Auckland councillors are asking for a slice of the $1.3 million anti-crime funding slated for the central business district, saying it misses parts of the city even harder hit by crime. Photo / Hayden Woodward
Auckland councillors are asking for a slice of the $1.3 million anti-crime funding slated for the central business district, saying it misses parts of the city even harder hit by crime. Photo / Hayden Woodward
Police data showed crime decreased in the CBD year-on-year to January, but increased in Manukau and elsewhere.
Auckland councillors are asking for a slice of the $1.3 million anti-crime funding slated for the central business district, saying it misses parts of the city hit just as hard by offending.
Three years' worth of funding announced yesterday will go towards improved lighting, more security cameras and a boostin security patrol numbers, Minister for Auckland Simeon Brown said.
The funding is from the Proceeds of Crime Fund, a pot of criminals' ill-gotten gains, and will go to business associations for different neighbourhoods in the central city.
Three years' worth of funding announced yesterday will go towards improved lighting, more security cameras and a boost in security patrol numbers, Minister for Auckland Simeon Brown said. Photo / Mike Scott
Brown said the Government was “committed to cracking down on lawlessness and antisocial behaviours” in town, saying it had increased in recent years.
But Manukau councillor Lotu Fuli told the Herald the funding meant nothing to Aucklanders outside the CBD.
“It is bitterly disappointing that the minister continues to only focus on the inner city,” Fuli said.
“Especially when crime in the suburbs like Papatoetoe and other areas outside the inner city is at such a high,” she said.
Minister for Auckland Simeon Brown says the Government is "committed to cracking down on lawlessness and antisocial behaviours" in town, saying it had increased in recent years. Photo / Mike Scott
Police data showed the annual number of assaults, robberies, burglaries and thefts across the Auckland CBD was down in January.
Meanwhile, Manukau saw a rise in assaults, sexual assaults, abductions, robberies and thefts in the same time period.
Police’s crime snapshot showed there were 2352 fewer “victimisations” in the areas partly covered by the central city’s business association Heart of the City over the year.
The funding, announced by Brown and Associate Minister of Justice Nicole McKee, will see Heart of the City getting $150,649 each year for the anti-crime measures. The Newmarket Business Association will get $109,231 a year.
The Karangahape Road Business Association will get $39,217 each year, Parnell Incorporated will get $82,486 and Ponsonby Business Association will get $10,600.
A heat map showing number of "victimisations" across Auckland in the year to January from police's crime snapshot.
The Uptown Business Association, loosely representing Eden Terrace, Newton and Grafton, will get $7950 a year and the Waitamatā Local Board will get $50,454.
Police data showed there were 487 “victimisations” in Parnell in the year to January. There were 63 assaults, two robberies, 133 burglaries and 285 thefts.
“This [funding] does nothing to make the rest of Auckland and the wider community feel safe,” councillor Fuli said.
“The Government needs to realise that Tāmaki Makaurau is more than just the CBD.
A ram-raided Kingsford Supermarket on Raglan St, Māngere East in October 2023. Photo / Hayden Woodward
“Manukau is considered our second CBD, but with its growth has come an increase in crime, anti-social behaviour and other needs like homelessness.
“Don’t forget about the rest of Auckland. We want to feel safe too.”
Fellow Manukau councillor Alf Filipaina agreed and stressed to the Herald there were other areas that needed desperate help.
Brown said in a statement that the CBD contributed 8 per cent of New Zealand’s GDP and was a gateway for international visitors and investors.
He said the city centre also had the highest concentration in crime, accounting for 7.6 per cent of reported victimisation crime in the year to October 2024. Manukau was the second highest area, accounting for 3.9 per cent of the total.
“As Minister for Auckland, I want to ensure that the CBD is a welcoming, safe, and enjoyable place for people to live, do business, and visit,” Brown said.
The Government was focussed on increasing law and order and reducing anti-social behaviour across Auckland, he said.
Raphael Franks is an Auckland-based reporter who covers breaking news. He joined the Herald as a Te Rito cadet in 2022.
