A former police crisis negotiator says politicians shouldn't influence gang policing because they're inclined to change laws to make people "feel good" rather than examine if they actually do good.
It comes as the latest 1News Kantar Public poll suggests 70% of Kiwis believe the Government is not doing enough to deal with gangs. Fourteen per cent believe the Government is doing enough and 16% didn't know or refused to answer.
Lance Burdett told Breakfast some separation was required between governments and their departments.
"We don't want, I don't think, having politicians influence the way New Zealand is policed. There has to be a clear separation.
"But it seems that, over time, each government - regardless of party - comes in, they have their own ideology and they move the laws according to that ideology.
Lance Burdett says fixing the issue requires long-term thinking. (Source: Breakfast)
"Again, it's just done basically for the time to make people feel good. But are they good? Are they safe? You can make people feel safe, but are they actually safe?"
He added: "We slam them [gangs] with all sorts of things. To be frank it hasn't worked."
READ MORE: NZ's laws to combat gangs have almost no impact – study
A research report released by the New Zealand Law Foundation in April concluded that it was "not clear" whether the tougher gang laws of the 1990s reduced overall organised crime or violent offences in the country.
In July, after months of pressure to address gang crime and shootings, the Government proposed a suite of new tools. These included increased penalties for gun crime, additional police search and seizure powers, and banning "significant" cash payments for watches, cars and boats.
Jarrod Gilbert says while the measures were politically motivated, they were targeted. (Source: 1News)
Gang expert Jarrod Gilbert said at the time the approach seemed well-targeted and showed good restraint.
National also offered some anti-gang ideas in June, which involved giving police new powers and banning gang members from displaying gang insignia in public places and on social media.
National police spokesperson Mark Mitchell joins Q+A to explain the policies he believes will allow police to crack down on gangs. (Source: 1News)
Burdett said no party had a detailed long-term strategy to deal with gangs.
He said the issue needed to be addressed with "sound evidence". He said it wasn't enough to solely crack down on gangs because prevention was key.
"We haven't got sound evidence. All we're seeing at the moment is people breaking the law. We've got gun restrictions already, but that's mainly affected law-abiding New Zealanders.
"Having legislation to ban guns and gang members owning guns - they are still going to own guns, you've got to catch them doing it," Burdett said.
READ MORE: NZ gang members forging global networks, Customs warns
"You need to slam gang members in particular when they break the law, without a doubt. But then we need to work out how we can prevent [it in] future.
"We might want to get some ex-gang members to talk to our youth about what it is actually like inside a gang - there's nothing great about it."
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