Defence Force put on standby to help police

The New Zealand Defence Force is on standby as police step up enforcing rules around the Government’s coronavirus response.

It comes as Commissioner Mike Bush made a public pea to the to stop the mayhem at the supermarkets.

His warning followed the news that New Zealand was lifted to Covid-19 alert level three and would start level four at 11.59pm tomorrow.

Bush said people breaking the rules could be taken to the cells to cool down and would not necessarily need to be prosecuted.

But if people got disrespectful in supermarkets and behaviour rose to an unlawful level, police would intervene to keep those places safe and to maintain order.

‘‘We will be reminding people that if they don’t comply, they will endanger other people’s lives. Other people will die. That is good motivation to listen.’’

All of Government Controller John Ombler said the prime minister made clear there was plenty of food to go around and no need to rush to the supermarket.

‘‘It’s unfortunate that people are not heeding the message that they are given.’’

Police were aware of the issue of the run on supermarkets. ‘‘I hope we don’t have to get to the point of calling for assistance’’.

Bush said the The Defence Force had provided great knowledge, expertise around logistics around intelligence around operations, he said.

Yesterday he spoke with Chief of Defence Force Air Marshal Kevin Short to get a stocktake of what the Defence Force could do to provide support in terms of numbers and more logistics, he said.

‘‘Hopefully we will never need the Defence Force but you always want to be prepared. They are quite willing to work alongside us while we are out in the communities.’’

It may not be required but it had to be a contingency, he said.

One of the first things the public would notice during level four was more police.

Almost immediately, more police officers would be patrolling the streets looking for gatherings for what had been decreed.

To start with, a police presence in communities would be about education and encouragement, he said.

‘‘We don’t want to get to a place where we have to enforce restrictions but we will, if required. The chief of defence is very happy to stand up his people.’’

The military would supplement and complement the police response to those flouting new rules, he said.

‘‘You might see an army person, a navy or airforce person working beside police officers in the community to help people and support us in terms of ensuring there is compliance.

Bush is leading the operational pillar of the All-of-Government response to Covid-19 across the public service agencies and reporting back to Cabinet.

His group would be ready to go with a tailored response across the system for level four, he said.

‘‘The first thing you will see is a more and more visible presence of police interacting out there in communities to make sure people are reassured and feeling safe and also compliant.’’

As efforts are ramped up, the public is likely to see more of a police presence, Bush said.

Under his directions, a law and order work stream was focused on how to continue to keep New Zealand safe and manage how the police respond to Covid-19.

Police had noted a slight increase in calls responding noncompliance, he said.