Photo: Cole Eastham-Farrelly/RNZ
- The police union says 68% of officers support routine arming
- Commissioner Richard Chambers says he hopes it won't come to that but he's open to discussions on the matter
- People Against Prisons say if police have instant access to firearms they will use them - predominantly against young Māori men
- The Council For Licensed Firearms Owners says police will have to improve training to ensure they can safely carry firearms into every situation
New Police Commissioner Richard Chambers hopes it will never be necessary to arm police officers in New Zealand - but he is open to a discussion about it.
The Police Association said the majority of police wanted to carry firearms in every interaction, however, experts warned the move would be a step backwards for police with potentially tragic consequences for young Māori in particular.
Majority of police support 'general arming' of officers
Police Association vice president Steve Watt told RNZ officers had been pushing for the general arming of police for years.
"In our recent survey of 2023, 68 percent of all police staff supported the general arming so it's something we'll be definitely having a conversation with the new Commissioner on," Watt said. Chambers told RNZ's Morning Report on Thursday he was open to listening to what officers had to say.
"I'm no different to other Kiwis in that I would like to think our country would not find itself in a situation where general arming was necessary. We are very proud [of unarmed police] as a country and I want it to stay that way," he said.
But Chambers acknowledged policing had become more challenging and unpredictable.
Sociologist Dr Jarrod Gilbert said police had consistently been in favour routinely carrying firearms but the commissioner's apparent receptiveness to the idea was a distinct change of heart from police leadership.
"Society is changing to some degree. The police are facing circumstances more routinely than they have in the past so it may be a sign of the times. But once that genie's out of the bottle it will never ever go back in so it is something that needs to be considered incredibly carefully," Gilbert said.
Fears more young Māori will die
But spokesperson for People Against Prisons Aotearoa, University of Auckland Criminology lecturer Dr Emmy Rākete, said the number of police deaths in firearms incidents was declining while the number of people shot dead by New Zealand police was increasing every year.
She said the use of tasers by police provided a chilling insight into what could happen if officers entered every situation with a gun.
"Police officers became extremely comfortable using their tasers to resolve conflict," Rākete said.
"If police officers have access to firearms on their hips they will use them and people will die. Overwhelmingly, those people who die will be young Māori men."
The recent Understanding Police Delivery report showed discrimination against Māori was still a major concern in almost every area of police's community engagement.
There would be widespread opposition if the government pushed forward with arming police knowing that it would often be young Māori getting killed, Rākete said.
Licensed firearms owners group opposed
Hugh Devereux-Mack of the Council of Licensed Firearms Owners said it might surprise some people to hear his organisation was against the routine arming of police.
The move would require a significant commitment from police to upskill officers to ensure public and officer safety.
"Some of the ranges that are most highly regulated are police regulated ones and most of the injuries that have happened on those ranges were either police or military injuries. So more police end up injured on ranges than civilians do - showing that actually they need a lot more training before you'd be confident letting them carry [firearms] around people," Devereux-Mack said.
Police also needed to step up their support for officers' mental health if the public was to be confident they were fit to bring a firearm to every interaction.