New Zealand drops armed police trial after public concern

A controversial trial of New Zealand police carrying firearms has been scrapped and the force will not create an armed unit following criticism that it was ill-conceived, badly executed and poorly communicated.
The decision comes in the wake of protests over the killing of black American George Floyd by police in the US that have spread around the world and to New Zealand, where thousands took to the streets despite Covid-19 restrictions.
A review of the trial was underway and a decision on New Zealand using routinely armed police was due later this month. But in a surprise announcement on Tuesday, police commissioner Andrew Coster said the Armed Response Teams (ARTs) would not be rolled out.


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“[They] do not align with the style of policing that New Zealanders expect,” said Coster, who was appointed in March when the trial of the armed units was almost over.