A bill reducing parole hearings deemed to be unnecessary has passed.
The third reading of the Parole Amendment Bill was completed by 104 to 16 with the Greens and Maori Party opposed.
The bill reduces the number of parole hearings where the parole board believes the offender has little prospect of release.
The intent is to reduce stress on victims about hearings when there was no chance of parole being granted. Most parolees have four hearings before they are released and it is estimated the law change would reduce the number of parole hearings by about 800 a year saving around $700,000 a year.
The Greens opposed the bill because they said it reduced the value of parole as tool to manage offenders’ safe return to the community.
National MPs said the legislation was putting victims “at the heart” of the system.
MPs began the second reading of the Objectionable Publications and Indecency Legislation Bill
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