The Govt’s crackdown on illegal street racers, announced this week with a fanfare by an impressive line-up in the Beehive (the PM, Transport Minister Steven Joyce and Police Minister Judith “Crusher” Collins) embraces some draconian powers, including those to seize and destroy vehicles involved in the banned sport and imposing demerit points so as to deprive offenders of their licences. The Govt might be accused of deploying a sledgehammer to crack a nut, but it justifies the measures because there are currently about 10 deaths caused by illegal street racing each year, with a social cost of over $30m.

Currently the Courts order the confiscation of about 1000 vehicles out of a potential 10,000 a year. It’s anticipated the Courts will now order the confiscation of an additional 3000 vehicles annually. Current vehicle confiscation costs average $750 a vehicle. The law provides for these costs to be recovered from the sale of the vehicles. The Govt argues the threat of vehicle confiscation and destruction will deter and reduce the opportunities to use vehicles for street racing. However Labour’s Clayton Cosgrove, architect of earlier anti-boy racer legislation, says the Courts don’t use the extra powers they were granted in his Bill so why will they do anything different now?

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