The vast majority of the arming orders were in response to gun crime. It just reflects the number of serious firearms incidents that happen right across New Zealand on what we're now seeing as an almost a daily basis, and these figures support that," Cahill said. Unfortunately, to a degree, not surprising. "It certainly strikes me that it's very often. Police Association president Chris Cahill said it seemed to be common.
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Police Association president Chris Cahill says the number of serious firearms offences is high across the country. Police said data on the number of temporary carriage orders before this period "do not exist", so RNZ is unable to tell if the orders are being issued more or less frequently. The longest order lasted six days in the Far North, another was three days in the eastern Bay of Plenty, another for two days and eight hours in part of the Waitematā District, and a number of others for 24 hours. Officers can choose which type of firearm they carry: a glock or a rifle. This means all officers in a particular area and sometimes a entire district can carry a gun on them rather than in the boot of the car. This is slightly more than once a week somewhere around the country. In the 10 months to January this year, police issued 47 of what they call "temporary carriage orders", figures released under the Official Information Act show.
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Some say this is the safest response to a growing problem - others warn it increases the chances of injury and death. Some of these temporary arming orders - where all frontline officers can be armed - can span entire districts and last for days, usually while police investigate a shooting or other violence. Police responding to an incident in Wellington (file photo).