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Politics Friday: Lock them up or fix them up - are there enough rehabilitation measures for prisoners?

Author
Newstalk ZB,
Publish Date
Fri, 21 Nov 2025, 12:52pm
Photo / NZME
Photo / NZME

Politics Friday: Lock them up or fix them up - are there enough rehabilitation measures for prisoners?

Author
Newstalk ZB,
Publish Date
Fri, 21 Nov 2025, 12:52pm

Labour says the Government shouldn't be celebrating record high prisoner numbers.  

Earlier this week Prime Minister Christopher Luxon declared it was a good thing the prison population was nearing 11 thousand people.  

The Government is also celebrating a reduction by 38 thousand in the number of victims of violent crime since it came into power.  

Labour's Duncan Webb told John MacDonald that while locking people up may provide short term relief, it doesn't last.  

He says they eventually get out and will cause more harm unless they've been rehabilitated. 

National’s Matt Doocey told MacDonald that he disagrees with Webb framing the situation as locking them up, but not fixing anything. 

He says you can actually do both, and there is a duty to ensure there are rehabilitation programmes for incarcerated individuals. 

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