It is very disappointing to see Labour vote against a Bill that would make work easier for Police Officers in New Zealand as they endeavour to track down stolen goods, National’s MP for Port Waikato Andrew Bayly says.

“Following discussion with police, I proposed a Bill to allow police to easily obtain details of transactions from second-hand dealers. Dealers are already required to collect data on transactions and all the Bill required was that the information be provided to police in a machine-readable form.

“Currently police have to spend a massive amount of time driving to each second-hand store and recording details of each transaction by hand.

“The Counties Manukau Police developed and trialled their own digital system which automatically collects this data and filters it by region and by person who might be trading in stolen goods, saving hundreds of hours of police time.

“Labour have now decided to oppose it principally on the grounds of compliance costs for second-hand shop dealers; a weak and unfounded excuse. Even the Greens and ACT supported this initiative.

“This is but another example of how this Government will not lift a finger to help our Police Officers. It is a simple and pragmatic piece of legislation that would cut down on the time required to track down thieves and benefit the victims of theft.”