Monday 1 Jul 2002

ACT Leader Richard Prebble said today that Helen Clark was just out of touch if she believed that crime was at a 13-year low.

"The real facts are that New Zealand has the highest violent crime of any English speaking country.

"The government is suppressing last year's victims of crime survey that shows that over a third of all European New Zealanders were a victim of crime and over three quarters of all Maori New Zealanders were crime victims last year under Labour.

"Labour has ignored the Norm Withers referendum and reduced the minimum time violent offenders must serve by 50 per cent. A rapist sent to jail for nine years under Labour can now get out in three years. Even the Police statistics do not support Helen Clark's claims.

"Violent crime is at an all time record level, up 10.9 per cent since the election. Burglaries are down, but only because theft is up 10 per cent.

"ACT is campaigning for Truth-in-Sentencing so that `if you do the crime you must do the time'," Richard Prebble said.

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