Perspective with Heather du Plessis-Allan: Is it really the Government's fault the gang numbers cracked the 10,000 mark?

You know that story about the gang numbers cracking the 10,000 mark? That's classic gotcha politics, isn't it?

It doesn't count when the number is 9,999, but once it hits 10,000 - or in this case, 10,009 - it's a thing, and it's the Government's fault.

Is it the Government's fault though? I mean, should we actually be angry at Mark Mitchell for this one? I don't think so.

I think that what we're seeing right now is the result of stuff that has already happened, mainly- with the deportation of criminals from Australia and the recession that we're in.

Recessions lead to an increase in crime for obvious reasons, and the deportation of serious criminals will lead to an increase in gang numbers - probably for a while yet actually - until the likes of the Comancheros and any other heavy outfit that's been brought here from Australia has maxed out its recruitment drive in New Zealand.

I think it's highly ironic that Ginny Andersen is the one moaning about this. Do you need me to remind you of Ginny Andersen?

Ginny Andersen was one of Labour's run of Police Ministers who totally took their foot off the throat of the gangs when they were in power. Ginny Andersen was the Police Minister at the time that the gang was basically allowed to take over Opotiki for the tangi. Remember that?

At least under this Government and this particular Police Minister, police have been given the understanding that they are to crack down on gangs. 

There have been a huge number of arrests. There are no gang tangi taking over small town roads anymore and there are no gang patches. Laura, the producer, lives out in West Auckland. She reckons she used to see a gang patch every single day, but doesn't see them now. None at all.

Now, it doesn't mean that the gang members are gone. You can still see them around the place, they just walk around in their colours, you know, without the patches.

Just look for someone wearing an unusual amount of primary colour red. That generally denotes a Mongrel Mob member. Look for somebody with a lot of yellow going on, that's generally somebody from the Comancheros. Lots of primary blue, that'll be your Black Power there.

I saw one in his gang colours in Bunnings the other day. But at least they do not have the belief that they can walk around intimidating good people in public places because they don't have their patch on - and them being stripped of that belief actually counts for a lot.

Now, I'm not happy the gang numbers have gone up, but they have. And I expect they're gonna keep going up for a while until this economy turns around and the pool of recruits available to the Aussie imports starts drying up.

That is not the fault of this Government and it is also not the fault of this Police Minister. And what counts for a lot more is at least these gangs are being cracked down on now.

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