Cost-recovery for policing commercial events proposed
Police should consider cost recovery for providing a police presence at future commercial events run on a ‘for profit’ basis, as diverting police to such events reduces police availability to serve the wider community, according to Police Association President Greg O’Connor. Public resources for private benefit “In principle, where public police resources are diverted to provide a private benefit in security services for a commercial event, the commercial operator ought to be compensating the community, which sees its police resources depleted as a result. This is the approach taken in most overseas countries, including the UK and Australia,” Mr O’Connor told Police News.
Public resources for private benefit
“In principle, where public police resources are diverted to provide a private benefit in security services for a commercial event, the commercial operator ought to be compensating the community, which sees its police resources depleted as a result. This is the approach taken in most overseas countries, including the UK and Australia,” Mr O’Connor told Police News.
Cost-recovery of policing commercial events was raised in the Police Association’s 2011 policy document, Towards a Safer New Zealand, launched last month.
“Police currently have a presence at, for example, rock concerts and wine festivals, where punters may be paying upwards of $100 a head into the pockets of the event organisers just to be there. Once on site, they are purchasing alcohol which is supplied on a commercial basis. Police are not generally providing the main security service at the events, but are required to be there, particularly because where alcohol and crowds are involved, there is always potential for assaults and other violent disorder,” Mr O’Connor explained.
Perception of event safety attractive
“The perception of safety flowing from having police on site in turn makes the event more attractive for its paying customers. However, if twenty police are required at such an event, that is twenty fewer police who are available to respond to wider public needs, be they 111 calls, attending burglaries, or progressing complaint files.”
While New Zealand Police did not charge for policing the Rugby World Cup (RWC), Mr O’Connor noted the irony that “stadium policing at the next Rugby World Cup, in England, will almost certainly be done on a cost recovery basis.”
Recovery unlikely for community events
However, Mr O’Connor said policing of fan zones, which were primarily community facilities – albeit temporary – would be unlikely to be suitable for cost-recovery.
“Not all major events fit the ‘private good’ security model. For example, the RWC fan zones were set up by local authorities to provide broad community benefit, and while food and beverages were available on site they were not ticketed, commercial events. Similarly, events like Auckland’s Christmas in the Park or Wellington’s Summer City concerts are community events, where policing is clearly a public good,” he said.
“Police resources are already stretched in many parts of the country. Policing major commercial events can only stretch resources even more thinly. The cost to the community of providing private security benefits cannot be ignored, and it is inevitable the issue will need to be addressed in future,” Mr O’Connor said.
Photo courtesy of Auckland Forensic Photography, AMCOS
