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ACT Leader Stands By Crime Statements
ACT leader Richard Prebble said today he stands by his statements comparing New Zealand's rate of violent crime unfavourably with New York's.
"No matter how you measure it, the irrefutable fact is that in New York violent crime has fallen dramatically while in New Zealand during the same period violent crime has been rising," Mr Prebble said.
"The figures I quoted came from the Parliamentary Library and compare the official crime statistics issued by the New Zealand government with those of the state authorities in the United States.
"Phil Goff is correct that different jurisdictions classify crime differently. But the differences aren't enough to give the Minister any comfort.
"In New York, crime has fallen because they have a zero tolerance approach and "truth in sentencing" - where offenders have to serve their full sentence. In New Zealand we're heading in the opposite direction.
"Under Mr Goff's Bill, violent offenders will be able to get out of jail after serving just a third of their sentence," Mr Prebble said.
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