29 Oct 2024

Police to get 'substantive' new powers over boy racers and spectators

11:10 am on 29 October 2024
One of the cars impounded on Saturday night.

One of the cars impounded on Saturday night. Photo: NZ Police / Supplied

Police will get "substantive" new powers to seize boy racer vehicles and arrest spectators, the police minister says.

Locals said it was a miracle no one was injured at a boy racer event in the Wairarapa that turned violent over the weekend.

"I hold the same concerns that you're going to have someone who turns up to one of these things that is run over or a police officer may get badly injured," Mark Mitchell told RNZ.

Mitchell, alongside Simeon Brown and Paul Goldsmith, were working on new legislation against boy racers.

"Which is going to give police substantive new powers to seize vehicles from boy racers, and we're going to deal with spectators as well."

He said he hoped it would have its first reading before the end of the year.

But wouldn't go into detail while it was still waiting to be signed off by Cabinet.

Mitchell didn't think boy racers had become more prolific recently.

"I think what's become more intense is the operations the police are running against boy racers. They are seizing vehicles, they're making arrests, they're issuing infringements notices and they're running big operations against the boy racers."

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

Get the RNZ app

for ad-free news and current affairs