The New Zealand government has earmarked $2bn in funding for law and order in the recently revealed Budget 2017.
The new budget allocates $1.24bn for new operating funding over four years. It also includes $785.6m capital funding for law and order initiatives.
“The extra investment in Budget 2017 includes the $503.8m Safer Communities Package, which was announced earlier this year and will deliver an additional 1,125 police staff,” Police Minister Paula Bennett said.
According to Justice and Courts Minister Amy Adams, Budget 2017 provides an additional $1.52bn for the justice sector to improve services and further reduce the impact of crime on citizens.
“This funding underpins the government’s focus on preventing crime, reducing reoffending, and better supporting victims,” Adams said.
For Justice and Court, the budget includes $145.8mn for operating funding over four years, and $20.2m in 2016-17 to improve service. For Corrections, the budget allocates $255.9 in operating funding over four years and $763.3 for more prison capacity.
“While we’re focused on reducing offending, we also want to ensure we have enough prison beds to keep the worst offenders off our streets,” Corrections Minister Louise Upston said. “We’ll also upgrade infrastructure to enhance the safety of staff, prisoners, and the public.”
Key initiatives the budget funds over the next two to four years include:
- $32.9m for burglary prevention
- $13.9m to reduce reoffending, targeted at high-risk young offenders
- $40.2m and $2.1m capital for investment in anti-money-laundering initiatives
- $11.9m for additional security personnel across New Zealand’s court system
- $5.5m to continue the Iwi/Community Panels pilot
- $51.6m to better manage offenders serving sentences and orders in the community, and to support the judiciary and Parole Board to make informed risk-based sentencing and parole decisions
- $30.2m to improve the way prisoners at risk of self-harm and suicide are managed in prison, and to increase access to industry, treatment and learning interventions
- $1.4m of operating funding and $840,000 capital to provide the Serious Fraud Office with an integrated case and evidence management system to enable better analysis and management of complex evidence and data
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