The Naked Truth

I am composing a letter which I plan to send to my local member. I am attaching it here and would welcome any comments before I send it. Most is plagiarised from the template for the Select Committee submission. I think we should write to our respective members as well as makkng a submission.

Mr Paolo Garcia

MP for New Lynn

Private Bag 18888Parliament BuildingsWellington 6160

paulo.Garcia@parliament.govt.nz

Dear Sir

Re: Policing Amendment Bill 2026 (No. 268-1)

It has come to my attention that new piece of legislation under the title of the Policing Amendment Bill is currently going through the House and by the time you receive this, will have completed the Select Committee stage.

I strongly oppose this bill in its entirety. While I support the need for effective policing, this Bill grants excessively broad powers that infringe upon the fundamental rights of New Zealanders to use public spaces without fear of baseless surveillance or arbitrary exclusion.

My key points of opposition are:

1. Vague Surveillance Powers (Part 1): The Bill allows Police to record images and sounds for broad "intelligence purposes" whenever an officer thinks it "may" support a policing function. This is a "low bar" which lacks meaningful safeguards. In a free society, my presence in a public space—such as a beach or park—should not automatically make me a subject for a police database.
   

2. Beach and Reserve Closures (Part 2): Expanding "temporary closure" powers to include parks, reserves, and beaches is a significant overreach. These are essential public spaces. Giving individual officers the discretion to clear these areas based on "imminent" disorder—a subjective "term of art"—is open to abuse and could be used to unfairly target groups, including those practicing social nudity or peaceful assembly.
   

3. Inconsistency with the Bill of Rights Act: The Bill risks creating a "chilling effect" on the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly guaranteed under the NZ Bill Of Rights Act 1990. Public safety should be balanced with compassion and the protection of civil liberties, not achieved through mass surveillance and the criminalization of presence in nature.
   

I have already made a written submission to the Select Committee,

recommending that the Committee reject this Bill in its entirety. Parliament should instead focus on legislation that upholds transparency, protects privacy, and respects the constitutional role of public spaces in New Zealand life.

I call  now upon you as my Elected Representative in Parliament to vote against this Bill in its present form when it is next presented to the House for its next Reading. I am sure that when you came to New Zealand, you did do to enjoy the freedoms that were part and parcel of life in New Zealand at that time. I am sure that you wish to continue to enjoy such freedoms and to share them with your fellow citizens.

Thank you for your kind consideration.

Yours faithfully