Don’t cut gang work that does good: Social Services

By CathNews New Zealand

September 1st, 2026

(Russell Street/ Wikimedia Commons)

The New Zealand Council of Christian Social Services has voiced opposition to a proposed law that would prohibit the Crown from funding initiatives that are run by or associated with gangs.

In a submission on the Public Finance (Prohibition on Providing Public Funds to Gangs) Amendment Bill to Parliament’s Justice Committee, the NZCCSS stated that gang-led initiatives provide reach into communities that would otherwise not engage with programmes due to distrust in government agencies. The group also pointed to past examples that have shown great success.

The NZCCSS, which includes Catholic Social Services as a foundation member, noted that from 2009 the Notorious chapter of the Mongrel Mob and the Salvation Army worked together to run live-in treatment programmes for gang members designed to help reduce the harm associated with methamphetamine use.

An independent evaluation of the programme found a significant reduction in methamphetamine and other drug and alcohol use, as well as reduced serious offending and notifications to Child, Youth and Family services (now known as Oranga Tamariki – Ministry for Children).

The programme used a whole-of-whanau approach to support people out of addiction, with family allowed to attend for support and participants reporting that this was much more successful than other programmes they had tried. A subsequent marae-based programme had significant success, with roughly one-third of participants not relapsing, and another third at minimal risk of relapse.

The submission cited research stating that gangs provide a form of community, and gang-led initiatives to promote behavioural change allow not only access to communities who may be less likely to engage with other services, but also understanding of the norms, values and practices that are established in these communities.

“We strongly recommend that funding for initiatives should be assessed on the possible outcomes for public good, rather than potentially beneficial programmes being discarded based on who is running or supporting the initiative,” the submission stated.

The submission also questioned the definition of a gang provided through the Gangs Act 2024, which provides little clarity around how those not explicitly mentioned will be affected by the proposed legislation.

FULL STORY

Public Finance (Prohibition on Providing Public Funds to Gangs) Amendment Bill (NZCCSS/NZ Parliament)