Source: Federated Farmers
North Canterbury may have grabbed most of the headlines so far for speaking up about proposed police cuts – but farmers further south are just as concerned.
Federated Farmers vice president Colin Hurst says farmers and others in his community of Waimate are deeply disappointed by the proposals.
“We’ve had a good working relationship between Federated Farmers and NZ Police historically, but they’ve really dropped the ball on this one.
“I’m flabbergasted by what Canterbury Police wants to do to their rural police down here, as it’ll gut our ability to respond to rural crime and protect our people.”
A respected arable farmer based in Makikihi since the 1980s, Hurst says the proposal for Aoraki Policing District – which could see up to 11 roles lost at rural stations from Rakaia to Waimate – is short-sighted and dangerous.
“You can’t tell me reducing numbers is a good thing. It seems to me that they’re taking away from rural Canterbury to shore up the urban centres,” he says.
Under the proposed restructure, public safety teams in Temuka and Waimate would be disestablished and replaced by new rural liaison officer positions, while larger 24/7 teams would be based in Ashburton and Timaru.
But Hurst says the geography just doesn’t work.
“It’s about a 40-minute drive from Timaru to Waimate, but up to another 40 minutes into some of the more remote areas.
“So, does that mean people in those communities would need to wait one-and-a-half hours for police to show up if they make an emergency call?
“I doubt they’ll even bother most of the time.”
A packed public meeting was held at the Waimate Event Centre last Friday to discuss the restructure, with more than 240 people attending.
Hurst, who spoke at the meeting, says he was disappointed by the police response.
“I got up and spoke and they basically dismissed me. That’s not good enough.
“We want to work with them on this – not be brushed off.”
He says farmers already perceive police as being stretched, with the 2023 Federated Farmers Rural Crime Survey showing nearly half of victims didn’t bother reporting crime because they didn’t believe police were resourced well enough to respond.
“So how many more crimes won’t get reported if the police service is whittled back even further?”
Hurst says reducing police presence will only embolden offenders.
“When you take frontline police out of rural communities, crime goes up. It’s that simple,” he says.
“We’ve fought for years to build good relationships with our local officers. They know who we are, where we live, what’s normal and what’s not.
“That local knowledge disappears the moment you centralise everything.”
While he acknowledges resourcing is a real issue for police, Hurst believes the current approach is the wrong one.
“We’re not saying police shouldn’t review how they work – we absolutely get that money’s tight.
“But don’t fix it by making rural communities take the hit.”
Hurst isn’t the only one speaking up, with Waimate District Council chief executive Stuart Duncan and Mayor Craig Rowley expressing “profound concern” in a submission to Canterbury Police.
“Council argues that these changes will severely impact community safety, increase emergency response times, and erode public trust,” they say.
“Local officers provide essential services, possess critical local knowledge, and have built vital relationships within their communities, all of which would be lost under the new model.”
They also raised concerns about the danger posed to vulnerable populations and the increased risk to council staff working after-hours, dealing with issues like noise control and aggressive individuals.
They say the restructure appears to have been driven by an insufficient budget allocation rather than an assessment of actual community need.
“Relocating officers instead of increasing overall police presence simply shifts the gap in service from one area to another, creating new vulnerabilities.
“In rural districts like Waimate, where resources are already stretched, reducing locally based officers will have a direct and negative effect on the very types of crime the restructure is seeking to address in larger cities.”
Hurst agrees with the council’s submission, saying it reflects the real concerns of the community.
He also praised the council for pushing back publicly.
“It’s good to see our local leaders taking a stand. We need more of that – this proposal needs to be rethought from the ground up.”
