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Police will have new powers to tackle gangs under a national government, party leader Christopher Luxon says.
“New Zealanders are waking up daily to news of gang shootings and the only question is not if or when there’ll be another, but whose street it will be in next time,” Luxon said in a statement Saturday.
"The scenes we’ve witnessed recently in Auckland and other places are alarming law-abiding New Zealanders.
“We don’t have to put up with it, and we shouldn’t," he says.
National will ban gang patches in public places, stop gang members gathering in public, prevent known gang offenders from associating with each other and stop gang members accessing guns, Luxon says.
He says the causes of crime and increasing gang membership are complex and national would bring back the social investment approach to help steer at-risk young people in a direction that would give them the chance of a more positive and productive life.
“But inevitably that’s a long-term response and there’s an urgent need to act right now to tackle gangs who are emboldened and who are bringing fear to Kiwi neighbourhoods and families.”