Sunny Kaushal: Ministerial Advisory Group for Victims of Retail Crime Chair says firearm policy decisions need to be shared by those who deal with violence directly

Statistics show there's been more gun crime in Auckland this year than the last.

RNZ reports there were 879 gun crime offences across Auckland in the first six months of the year - 28 more than the same time last year.

Just 18 of those were committed by people with a firearms licence.

Ministerial Advisory Group for Victims of Retail Crime Chair Sunny Kaushal told Ryan Bridge New Zealand is fast becoming a violent society.

“It’s crucial that the decisions around firearms policy are shared by those who deal with the gun violence directly. That’s the Police and affected communities, not just policymakers in Wellington.”

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Gun crime on the rise in Auckland. In the first
six months of this year, there were eight hundred and
seventy nine offenses. That is twenty eight more than last year.
But the concerning number just eighteen of those almost nine
hundred offences were committed by people with an active firearms license.
So basically almost one hundred percent of this is people
who do not have a firearms license with guns that

(00:22):
got them. Well, who knows. Sonny Kaschelle is the chair
of the Ministerial Advisory Group for Victims of Retail Crime.
Is with me this morning, Sunny, good morning, really good morning, Ryan,
Good to have you on the show. Where are they
getting all these guns?

Speaker 2 (00:35):
Look, there's the issue that we must also look at
how guns are entering into the country. You know, as
with drugs, there's a need to enhance border control. It's
alarming that nearly ninety nine point eight percent of one
million risk assessed shipping continents are not inspected. So Ryan,

(00:55):
you know, New Zealand is fast becoming a violent society.
This is a national discussion we need to have. You know,
we need some issues that will work, not virtual signaling,
because criminals are acting with impunity. As a dramatic increasing
gun use has just shown and this data.

Speaker 1 (01:13):
Yeah, I guess the thing is if they can bring
them in on the boats, we're not checking all the boats.
We're never going to be able to check all the containers.
They can print them three D these days, they can
steal them from existing gun owners. I mean that the
horse is bolted, hasn't it.

Speaker 2 (01:28):
That's true that the real issue we face is the
overwhelming number of illegal guns not legally had, of firearms
my license honors, as you rightly said earlier, So we
need to focus on cracking on cracking down on these
illegal firearms than diverting excessive sources to That's.

Speaker 1 (01:48):
What we're doing now, Sonny. And there's more and more
of them.

Speaker 2 (01:52):
There's true. But we must also it's a bit crucial
that the decisions are on FARMA arms policy are shaped
by those who deal with the gun violen directly. That's
a police and affected communities, not just policymakers in Wellington
who don't experience these traits firsthand.

Speaker 1 (02:12):
What are they deary owners feeling, because obviously that's those
stats aren't good. What are they feeling? What are they
doing to better protect themselves? Now?

Speaker 2 (02:20):
Well I mean they right now, in the given situation
of the crime at they actually cannot protect themselves. And
that's one area that we are working. You know, what
are the areas in the climate and also sentencing that
can be changed. But coming to a gun crime site,

(02:42):
you know, I do support Nicole McKee's review of the firearms,
just to determine if it is the best use of
limited resources to prevent gun gun crime. But we don't
want to prejudge the review.

Speaker 1 (02:56):
Yeah, I understand what you're saying. Starting thank you very
much for coming on the shows. Only Koshelle who was
with the Dairyan Business Owners Group, he's no longer with them.
He's the chair of the Ministerial Advisory the group for
Victims of retail crime. It is eighteen minutes after five.
We'd love to hear your views on that this morning,
nine two ninety. I mean, in my mind, the horse
has bolted, whether they bring them in on cargo ships,

(03:18):
whether they make them in their own living rooms via
three D printing, whether they steal them from a farmer.
Gangs are going to get guns, aren't they. So what
do you do arm yourself? I can't say that, can you?
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