Julie-Anne Kincade: Law Association Vice President on the changes to the sentencing laws

The Law Association is calling the recent passing of sentencing law changes a great example of democracy in action.

The new law caps the sentence discounts judges can apply at 40% and adds new aggravating factors.

Law Association Vice President Julie-Anne Kincade told Mike Hosking issues raised —such as the wish to see the sentencing reduction proposals softened— were taken on board.

She says many select committee submitters shared similar concerns, and these seem to have been reflected.

But Kincade says they're concerned about how the new laws will increase the populations of our already full prisons.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
More new law for courts and sentencing. So the Sentencing
Reform Amendment Bill that passed its third reading yesterday, this
is the one that kept the discount. Judges can apply
repeat discounts for showing remorse. That's gone. Law Association VP.
Julian Kin Cage back with us. Julian morning, Good morning, Mike.
Now you submitted. Did they listen to you?

Speaker 2 (00:19):
This is a wonderful example of democracy and action. I
think there are a lot of people who submitted at
the select committee stage expressing very similar concerns, and they
seem to have been reflected in the changes that took
place after that select committee stage. One of the ideas
was this forty percent cap which was on all sentencing reductions,

(00:41):
which was an important part of that new act, and
that has been softened and it has been now allowing
four examples, specifically for examples where people provide information which
prevents further serious crime taking place, and that's seen as
a recognized exception.

Speaker 1 (00:58):
Would you describe yourself happy?

Speaker 2 (01:04):
I think, and my concern is that we already have
an terribly high prison population in New Zealand, higher than
any of our comparable countries at one hundred and eighty
seven people paer one hundred thousand our ramand space is
for women. Sixty percent of people women in prison are
on remand our prisons are full. We have these new

(01:25):
things coming into play which are designed to make prison
sentences longer and people to be in prison longer, as
well as three strikes coming into play in the seventeenth
of June this year, and these will lead to an
increase in our prison population, which is already a breaking point.

Speaker 1 (01:40):
Having said that, if you build more prisons, you solve
that problem and you appease the population. Who would argue
we want more people in jail, even though I'm sure
you would argue against that.

Speaker 2 (01:49):
I understand that people say that, but you've got to
also understand it cost one hundred and fifty thousand dollars
about to keep a person in prison for a year
in New Zealand. So that's ten more people in jail
for one year at each is one point five million,
and that would pay I'm sure for a palliative pediatric
doctor to come to New Zealand.

Speaker 1 (02:07):
Last time I looked through was one hundred thousand. So
there is inflation for you has gone up to one
hundred and fifty.

Speaker 2 (02:12):
What haven't they Well, I googled it last sight. It's
very difficult to give an actual figure because it depends
on the security risk of someone in prison. Someone who's
high security, it costs a lot more to keep them
than someone who's low security. So that's why there's always
going to be a variance.

Speaker 1 (02:28):
Forget the politics for a moment. If you want to
put people in jail longer, does this law do that?

Speaker 2 (02:37):
It'll help. And it does focus a lot on recidivist offending.
So where there's where they once didn't want anyone to
have a reduction for youth and remorse, what they're saying
is they don't want that being a repeated mitigating factor.
And so those are points which I think people can
understand why concerns have been expressed and the government is

(02:57):
trying to act on that.

Speaker 1 (02:58):
Julian always appreciate you. Julian can care. Who's the Law
Association VP with us this morning. For more from the
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