Govt is gunning for gangs – but McKee reckons some Firearms Prohibition Orders could be lifted much earlier than 10 years
Having sorted out the war criminals and terrorists with a series of foreign affairs announcements yesterday, the government today confirmed its plans to allow police to search gang members, their vehicles and homes at any time using court-authorised firearms prohibition orders (FPOs).
The orders – introduced by the previous Labour government in November 2022 – allow a court to ban certain people from using, accessing, or being around firearms – and make breaching those rules a criminal offence.
Associate Minister of Justice (Firearms) Nicole McKee.McKee brayed the news in a statement headed Government going after gangs’ guns with FPOs.
Her rhetoric was bellicose:
“Firearms are being illegally used by gangs to intimidate, to commit violent crime in support of their profit making, and to initiate gang warfare that law-abiding citizens get stuck in the middle of. This can’t be allowed to continue, this Government is going to take their illegally held firearms off them,”
But there’s a bit of hard cop, soft cop in the new proposals
The law now imposes FPOs for 10 years
McKie’s bill will allow offenders subject to an order to apply to the court after five years to have their FPO varied, modified, or revoked.
Her news will vie for media attention against the announcement that final approval has been given for New Zeland King Salmon’s Blue Endeavour open ocean aqaculture project.
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones trumpeted this as a significant step for New Zealand’s aquaculture, and a win for the economy.
The environmental effects?
Jones said only that:
“The coalition government is committed to removing unnecessary barriers to make approval processes for projects such as this quicker and easier and, in doing so, a lot cheaper.
“There are currently too many hurdles causing delays for aquaculture projects, and these delays hurt our economy and the communities that rely on aquaculture.”
New Zealand King Salmon submitted its application for resource consent to Marlborough District Council in 2019, Jones said.
Consent was granted in September 2023, following an Environment Court decision.
The Ministry for Primary Industries then assessed the proposal for its impact on fishing in the region and gave approval on 16 January 2024. Finally, there was a 30-day judicial period, which ended on 28 February 2024.
More business news came from Trade Minister Todd McClay, who announced the launch of public consultation for a trade agreement between NZ and the United Arab Ameriates (UAE).
Associate Minister of Justice (Firearms) Nicole McKee.McKee brayed the news in a statement headed Government going after gangs’ guns with FPOs.
Her rhetoric was bellicose:
“Firearms are being illegally used by gangs to intimidate, to commit violent crime in support of their profit making, and to initiate gang warfare that law-abiding citizens get stuck in the middle of. This can’t be allowed to continue, this Government is going to take their illegally held firearms off them,”
But there’s a bit of hard cop, soft cop in the new proposals
The law now imposes FPOs for 10 years
McKie’s bill will allow offenders subject to an order to apply to the court after five years to have their FPO varied, modified, or revoked.
Her news will vie for media attention against the announcement that final approval has been given for New Zeland King Salmon’s Blue Endeavour open ocean aqaculture project.
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones trumpeted this as a significant step for New Zealand’s aquaculture, and a win for the economy.
The environmental effects?
Jones said only that:
“The coalition government is committed to removing unnecessary barriers to make approval processes for projects such as this quicker and easier and, in doing so, a lot cheaper.
“There are currently too many hurdles causing delays for aquaculture projects, and these delays hurt our economy and the communities that rely on aquaculture.”
New Zealand King Salmon submitted its application for resource consent to Marlborough District Council in 2019, Jones said.
Consent was granted in September 2023, following an Environment Court decision.
The Ministry for Primary Industries then assessed the proposal for its impact on fishing in the region and gave approval on 16 January 2024. Finally, there was a 30-day judicial period, which ended on 28 February 2024.
More business news came from Trade Minister Todd McClay, who announced the launch of public consultation for a trade agreement between NZ and the United Arab Ameriates (UAE).
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In her statement, Nicole McKee explained that the Firearms Prohibition Orders Legislation Amendment Bill gives effect to the Government’s 100-day commitment to give Police greater powers to search gang members for firearms.
The courts will be able to issue orders to any member or associate of a gang who has been convicted of a significant offence.
Police will be granted new powers to search offenders with a FPO, their vehicles, and their premises for firearms at any time.
The bill amends the FPO regime to allow people subject to an order to apply to the court after five years to have their FPO varied, modified, or revoked.
McKee said:
“If someone can demonstrate that they no longer pose a risk to public safety, then they should be treated as such, but if they continue with their antisocial behaviour and put others in harm then it is in the public’s interest to make sure they can’t get their hands on more illegal firearms.
“The Government’s first job is to keep law-abiding New Zealanders safe from criminals. These changes will make New Zealand a safer place.”
All parties in parliament at the time – Labour, National, the Greens, ACT and the Māori Party – voted in favour of enacting the Firearms Prohibition Orders Legislation Bill in 2022
The orders can be applied to people convicted of offences which would disqualify them from holding a firearms licence, other serious violent offences, the Crimes Act offence of participating in an organised criminal group, or terrorism-related offences.
Poto Williams, the Minister of Police at the time, said when introducing the legislation:
“The bill will make it a criminal offence to breach a firearms prohibition order, and also a crime to knowingly supply firearms to those that have a firearms prohibition order placed on them.
“It provides additional measures, and wider sanction and controls targeted at those that have serious criminal convictions and are hardened to crime. We want to prevent those people from accessing firearms, which are a key means of perpetrating future violent and serious crime.”
She said the bill had two important safeguards:
“The court must be satisfied that, on balance of probabilities, the making of a firearms prohibition order is reasonable, necessary and appropriate to assist in managing the risk that that person sentenced poses to public safety … these standard conditions may be modified by the court to take into account particular personal circumstances.”
Like much of what was done under the previous government, special consideration was given to the interests of Māori (who rewarded Labour by kicking out most of its MPs who held Māori seats).
Williams said the bill aimed to keep the public safe, particularly the Māori communities:
“Māori have experienced a worrying growth in serious firearms offences perpetrated on their communities and whānau … I know that matters raised and considered by Māori will be further explored as the bill is scrutinised by the Justice Committee, and I look forward to hearing this important feedback.”
Although National supported the bill, Mark Mitchell said without warrantless search capability, the bill was “toothless”.
Mitchell is now Minister of Police.
Point of Order is a blog focused on politics and the economy run by veteran newspaper reporters Bob Edlin and Ian Templeton
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