Survey has no credibility – Acting Commissioner

The findings of a recent survey claiming falling public trust in Police were deliberately engineered to mislead the public and bolster a complainant’s case against Police, says Acting Commissioner Viv Rickard.

Mr Rickard said the online survey of 756 adults by Horizon Research conducted over a 40 hour period at the weekend lacked any validity, as the company involved was not independent and had deliberately designed the survey to elicit a biased response.

“The integrity of the survey and the motivation of those behind it must be seriously questioned when the company involved is owned by a representative for individuals involved in a current complaint investigation by Police. There is also evidence their supporters have been actively encouraged through social media to take part in the survey and win cash and prizes.”

Mr Rickard said Police took the matter seriously and had commissioned UMR research to review the Horizon survey. UMR’s feedback was that the survey was .

“Meanwhile, we accept that our investigation into the complaints by those linked to the survey has taken too long and this is not ideal. This is why we are working hard to resolve this matter as quickly as possible.

“That said, attempts to cloud the issue by engineering a survey designed to deliberately mislead the public is unethical and reprehensible. It also must be noted that our efforts to investigate this complaint have been significantly hindered by the attitude and actions of some of the complainants, who have consistently refused to cooperate with Police to draw this matter out.”

Mr Rickard said as an organisation committed to continuous improvement, Police welcomed public scrutiny and constructive criticism based on reliable, objective and informed commentary.

“This is why over the last four years, Police have commissioned reputable market research company Gravitas Research and Strategy Ltd, to conduct the Citizens' Satisfaction Research programme.

“The latest results of the Gravitas survey of 9,706 people released last month shows 77 per cent of New Zealanders continue to have high levels of trust and confidence in Police – up from 72 percent in 2008/2009.”

Mr Rickard said the Gravitas survey conducted detailed interviews with people about their views of Police, their feelings of safety and what their service experience was like if they recently had contact with Police. The interviews were conducted over a period from July 2011 to June 2012.

“When you look at the size, scope and thoroughness of the survey carried out by Gravitas, the findings by Horizon simply don’t stack up to scrutiny. The timing is also highly questionable given that the Dominion Post published the survey findings to coincide with news articles and editorials quoting the complainants who are critical of Police.

“I think most reasonable New Zealanders will therefore see this rather cynical approach for what it is and make up their own mind.

“The quality of the Horizon survey and the strength of the related media coverage by the Dominion Post looks even flimsier when you consider that public satisfaction with Police is at its highest levels and New Zealand crime rates are the lowest on record.

“Latest fiscal year crime statistics released earlier this month showed the lowest number of offences in any fiscal year since 1988/1989 and the lowest crime rate per head of population since before electronic records have been maintained.

“These figures indicate that New Zealand is becoming a safer place to live, coupled with further Citizens' Satisfaction Survey results which showed that 73 per cent of those surveyed felt safe/very safe in their neighbourhood after dark, compared to 66 per cent in 2008/09,” Mr Rickard said.