NOT SUFFICIENT POLICE

Hokitika Guardian, 13 September 1929, Page 2

NOT SUFFICIENT POLICE

MINISTER’S OPINION. CONSTABLES OVERBURDENED. WELLINGTON, Sept. 11. There are too row policemen m kew Zealand, in the opinion of the Minister of Justice, tlie Hon T. M. Wilford. He told the House of Representatives to-day that the police force was overburdened with a multiplicity of duties, every session of Parliament producing a fresh crop of legislative enactments which added to constables’ burdens. “In my opinion we have not enough police,” stated Mr Wilford. “Every session produces new work, new obligations and fresh duties, and on top of that the Agricultural Department and other departments require the police force to carry out numerous dudes. In my opinion we require more police. Our present force is a fine body of men. There is no dearth of applicants, men of an excellent type being available.” Mr Wilford said that reports from other countries showed that as education increased and became more general the number of cases of assault, robbery with violence and brutal assaults showed a tendency to decrease. New Zealand’s experience in this respect was in conformity with that of other countries. In this country the education system had done away with the garrotter, the ordinary brutal assaults and robbery with violence, and the tendency was towards an increase in cases of false;' pretences, forgery, ptty thieving and confidence tricks. AFTERMATH OF WAR. Members had asked why there were so many cases of prosecutions and informations in respect to payment of maintenance money. Mr Wilford replied that the reason was to be found in the aftermath of the war. Hundreds of marriages took place during the war period without due consideration. people who had no time to get to know each other had rushed into matrimony, and it was a truism that those who married in haste repented at leisure. The great crop of. maintenance and divorce cases was due to the fact that so many war marriages had not been founded on real love, which was the only sure foundation. These ''ases threw an extra burden on the police. ARMS ACT DUTIES MAY GO.

Reverting to the topic of police duties, Mr Wilford said the Arms Act made work for a considerable number of constables who had to be set aside from ordinary duties,” said the Minister. He went on to describe the rates of pay and conditions of the force. lie said that if a man was still

only a constable after twenty years (when he received 17s 6d a day in addition to other allowances) that man was not worth much. A Labour member: You intend to ~eep him there on that rate ? Mr Wilford: Ido not, but there are financial considerations.