Cash to fight youth crime

it’s absolutely critical, says mayor

Hamilton needs more help – and Government cash – to tackle youth offending in the wake of a dramatic daylight mall robbery, the mayor says.

Mayor Paula Southgate says Hamilton is ‘‘feeling neglected’’ and has petitioned Police Minister Chris Hipkins for Hamilton-focused support to tackle the increasing issue.

She wants more police officers, help to fund crime prevention initiatives, and more money for victim support organisations, even proposing a ‘‘dollar for dollar’’ partnership.

‘‘The key point that this has been urgent for some time and now it is absolutely critical,’’ Southgate said.

She spoke to Hipkins on Wednesday and said ‘‘the clear message was to give us a Hamilton-focused level of support’’. He acknowledged the strong case, she said. Their conversation follows a daytime robbery at Michael Hill at Te Awa, The Base, on Sunday – where a group of about eight men jumped on counters and broke into display cabinets with hammers and at least one axe before fleeing with handfuls of jewels.

Auckland has benefited from a $6 million crime prevention fund announced in May and Government funding for programmes to create opportunities in education, training, or work and drive down youth crime.

‘‘We are not part of Auckland and we are feeling neglected in the conversation,’’ Southgate said. ‘‘[Hipkins] really did take that on board.’’

She proposed a ‘‘dollar for dollar’’ partnership to fund smart crime prevention initiatives, run through the multiagency Safer City Task Force.

It would help to hire extra city safe staff, accelerate the installation of number plate recognising cameras, fund

initiatives to help shop owners and social services to prevent young people engaging in crime.

‘‘We need to do something different, otherwise we are just waiting for the next event. It’s one of the things that frustrates me the most.’’

She said she would be disappointed if the conversation didn’t translate into funding or support, and Hipkins had promised to get back to her next week.

Hipkins said it was horrifying to see the footage of the robbery on Sunday, where families and shop staff were put at risk.

‘‘The crimes are unacceptable.’’

He was concerned, said the $6 million retail fund needed to roll out faster and would work with Hamilton City Council to find local solutions.

But opposition leader Christopher Luxon said harsher penalties and preventive work should be prioritised.

‘‘New Zealanders are owed a basic right to feel safe in their own home and in their own community and in their own workplace and that is just not happening. Violent crime is up over 20%. Retail crime is up over 30%, ram-raids are up over 500%, gang membership is up over 40%.’’

He said the Government was soft on crime. ‘‘You’ve got serious repeat offenders and we’re not giving them the right consequences at the moment.’’

He believed a big driver of youth crime was absence from school.

‘‘We have 100,000 kids chronically absent from school in New Zealand in 2022.’’

Waikato District commander Superintendent Bruce Bird said officers had made over 300 arrests and laid over 1200 charges since February.

‘‘In relation to the Te Awa Base incident we are following strong lines of inquiry and I can reassure the public that we take this offending very seriously.’’