Para-military police force?

Press, 28 October 1981, Page 6

Para-military police force?

Provisions in the Community Noise Control Bill could lead to the introduction of a-para-military police force in the community, the Chief City Health Inspector. Mr A. P. Millthorpe, told the Canterbury United Council’s ' air pollution committee yesterday. “I think it is quite wrong to ask local bodies to police the law,” he said. “It could well lead to the rise of a para-military police force in the community.”

The bill was introduced in Parliament on October 21, the committee was told. Submissions to a select committee had to be made before February, and it was recommended that the committee do so.

The bill provides for an employee of a local authority to give notice to the occupier of a dwelling from which excessive noise is coming, requiring him to abate the noise within specified time. •

If this is not “done, an abatement order-may bfe obtained from a Justice of the Peace, empowering the local authority’s engineer or health

inspector to enter the premises without further notice and abate the noise themselves, by turning off or turning down the noise, seizing the noise source, or disconnecting the power supply to the noise source. “Legislation is already in existence to deal with noise and disturbance in the community,” Mr Millthorpe said. Under the Health Act, there was provision for dealing with noise. Disturbances in the community, above and beyond noise, should be dealt with by the police. “The only thing not provided for under the existing legislation is the noisy party,” he said. Cr C. E. Manning said that the committee must consider its responsibility to the council's! officers, who should not have to become enforcement officers.

“Professional men, such as health inspectors, should not have to waste their particular expertise on such enforcement," he said. ' In addition, there was the strong possibility that council officers involved in such enforcement Would be subjected to violence, he said.