“ACT is pleased to see National is supporting ACT’s policy of non-consorting laws for gang members,” says ACT's Justice spokesperson Nicole McKee.

“Under our Gang Control Orders, Police would be able to apply to the courts for an injunction against an individual on the National Gang List to limit the risks of criminal offending. Control orders could then be used to prohibit bad behaviours including being in a particular location or consorting with particular people. Police would need to have a reasonable belief that the individual posed a particular risk of committing gang related violence or drug-dealing offending.

“ACT announced the policy as part of our Law and Order discussion document on 20 July 2021. We encourage National to support the rest of our policies for safer communities.

“ACT has long put the focus on victims of crime, rather than coddling offenders. We introduced the Three Strikes Law that sent a clear signal to the worst one percent of offenders: we won’t tolerate repeat violent offending. This soft on crime Government is now repealing it.

“We would also introduce electronic monitoring of how individuals on the National Gang List spend any benefit they receive from the Government.

“And ACT would address re-offending by making rehabilitation programmes compulsory before an individual is eligible to be granted parole.

“We need a Government that takes responsibility for what’s happening on its watch. There need to be swift and serious consequences for offending in our communities. We need real change.”

ACT now challenges National to also adopt our other law and order policies including:

• Reinstating Three Strikes
• New thresholds for police to seize assets
• Electronic income management
• No rehab, no parole
• Increasing police in line with the population
• Repealing proposed hate speech laws
• An independent review of IPCA
• Abolishing the prison reduction target.

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