"The Prime Minister has made no efforts to find out how many people have been arrested or what’s happened to them, showing she is out of touch with real life in New Zealand communities,” says ACT Leader David Seymour. 

“As Epsom MP I have met with devastated and scared shop owners on an ever-increasing basis. Since Parliament sat last week I have visited three in the Epsom Electorate alone. The Government needs to tell us what is happening to these young criminals and what changes it can make to stop this violent offending from continuing.

“The Government announced a crackdown on ramraiding three months ago, the Prime Minister told media on Monday “that’s not to say there are no consequences” when asked about ram-raiders and yet she has no idea what the consequences are. 

“Ram raids are one of the major problems affecting New Zealanders right now, and the Prime Minister has not gone hard or early on them. In fact, under questioning, the Prime Minister became angry, shouting that she could not know how many people had been arrested for ram raiding or what had happened to them.

“The Prime Minister seemed to take offence at the suggestion that she should be across the detail of what is happening with the most urgent crime problem facing business owners up and down the country.

“This is looking like the cost of living payment 2.0. The Government waited until the Cost of Living Crisis was out of control, finally admitted there was a problem, then took action. It’s not good enough to do the same thing with public safety. 

“The Government should be crystal clear on how many ram raiders there are, how many have been detained, and what measures have been put in place to ensure they do not reoffend.

“That the Prime Minister is offended by the very idea of knowing about such things shows a leader who is out of touch and ready to move on.”

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