Labour moves to remove three strikes law

With no New Zealand First as part of a coalition acting as a handbrake, the controversial three strikes law could well be scrapped under the new Labour-led government. Introduced by the National and Act parties in 2010, the law dictates that if a person is convicted three times of the qualifying offences, they automatically receive the maximum allowable sentence on the third strike, with parole granted in exceptional circumstances only. In 2018, Labour's plan to repeal the law was derailed by its coalition partner New Zealand First, who weren't prepared to offer their support. Now, Acting Justice Minister Andrew Little has doubled down on his party's committment to getting rid of the law, which he says is leading to "absurd results". University of Otago law professor Andrew Geddis is a long-time opponent of the three strikes regime. He told our producer Matthew Theunissen why he thinks it's got to go.