Police cannot strike—Mr Palmer

Press, 11 February 1986, Page 18

Police cannot strike—Mr Palmer

PA Wellington The Attorney-General, Mr Palmer, said on Saturday he would have prejudiced police pay negotiations if he had released earlier a legal opinion he . sought on police industrial action. “But I can’t stand by and let the public, or some members of the police, think that industrial action is an option for the police in future. It is not,” he told Wellington’s “Evening Post.”

Mr Palmer was responding to criticism from the Police Association president, Mr Keith Morrow, for releasing an opinion which said industrial action by the police was unlawful.

The opinion, compiled by the Solicitor-General and summarised by Mr Palmer, is dated January 24, the day police officials and Cabinet Ministers met at Parliament to discuss the pay dispute.

Mr Morrow said the opinion was “academic nonsense.” The association was not taking it

seriously. Police officials had expected that sort of opinion from Mr Palmer if things did not go well, he said. Mr Morrow also said that the Minister was releasing the document now because it would not otherwise have had an “audience.” Mr Palmer said he was looking to the future in his decision to release the document.

“The most important feature was .that we did not make a point of this in the course of the negotiations because we did not want to prejudice them,” he said. “I have released it now because ... I want the situation in the future absolutely clear.” He sought the legal opinion before Christmas. The matter became of great concern because it was clear the police would be breaking the law if they went on strike. “You cannot have the police breaking the law. They are responsible for its maintenance,” he said. The legal opinion em-

phasises the police oath, in particular the words “I will ... serve ... until I am legally discharged.” “Industrial action by the police is plainly unlawful. Therefore, any industrial action taken by the police imperils the rule of law itself,” said the opinion.

Mr Palmer said he thought the Police Association was angry “because the opinion has made it clear that its threats were hollow, that they had no substance and that the association was posturing.”