Two more Northland MPs are backing calls for more police, saying officers in their region are desperate.
Broadway, Kaikohe Photo: RNZ / Lois Williams
Green Party police spokesman David Clendon, who is from Kerikeri, yesterday backed a [ http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/319329/police-burglary-focus-'robbing-peter-to-pay-paul'
claim by an anonymous officer that police were "chasing their tails" trying to attend all burglaries at the same time as fighting organised crime].
Kawakawa business leader Malcolm Francis said small towns were feeling unsafe and the talk had turned to rough justice.
The number of aggravated robberies in Northland rose by a third in the year to June and car thefts are also up.
Te Tai Tokerau MP Labour's Kelvin Davis said local police were desperate because crime was oustripping their ability to fight it.
Winston Peters, New Zealand First leader and Northand MP, said gangs, methamphetamine and youth unemployment had combined to create the perfect storm for law enforcement.
Police say they're doing the best they can with the resources they've got. Police Minister Judith Collins said yesterday she was unaware of any evidence officers had been diverted from organised crime to respond to burglaries.
*More on this on Insight, on RNZ's Sunday Morning programme this weekend.