After five years of soft-on-crime policies, ram raids have increased by 500 per cent and Labour has no plan to restore law and order in New Zealand, National’s Police spokesperson Mark Mitchell says.

“Sleepless nights for small business owners are all-too-common under a Government that has allowed ram raids to spiral out of control.

“The situation has become so bad that in 2022, a business is ram-raided every 15 hours.

“The responsibility for these shocking figures falls squarely on the shoulders of the Labour Government. Their soft-on-crime approach has created a permissive environment where criminals believe they can operate with impunity.

“Offenders – many of whom are in their early teens – know that there is little chance of being caught and minimal consequences if they are.

“When the message from the top is that there won’t be serious repercussions, offenders feel emboldened to go out and commit crime. This is something that a National Government won’t stand for.

“Rather than turning a blind eye to the rampant crime wave, Labour needs to ensure that youth offenders face consequences proportionate to the harm they inflict, as well as implement support to help these young offenders on to a better pathway.

“It is wrong for communities to continue to be terrorised by increasing criminal activity. Unfortunately, that is all Labour has delivered in five years of failure.

“Kiwis expect their government to keep them safe. Instead, we’ve seen gang membership increase by 50 per cent and violent crime rise by 21 per cent.

“After the Prime Minister admitted to a ‘loss of focus’ in the Police portfolio, Chris Hipkins replaced Poto Williams. But it is clear that he has not addressed Labour’s failings in law and order. Nearly six months into the job with no new ideas and worsening crime statistics, it would appear he is no better than his predecessor."