Larry Williams Drive

This week another police officer was struck by a vehicle, this time in Huntly. The officer suffered moderate injuries.  It comes after the horrible New Year's Day incident in which Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming was killed and another officer injured after being struck by a vehicle in Nelson.  Police Minister Mark Mitchell said on the Mike Hosking Breakfast this morning, Police and first responders are increasingly dealing with violence. Not just here in New Zealand, but globally as well.  It's good to hear Mitchell, alongside Paul Goldsmith, is planning to bring new legislation into the house in the first quarter of this year to bring in tougher sentencing for violent behaviour towards first responders and prison officers.  It would have been better if it had been included in Goldsmith's sentencing reforms, which had its first reading in Parliament last September.  Those reforms too are to ensure criminals face tougher consequences and victims are prioritised.  This new legislation