Complaint over National election ad claiming crime is down dismissed

The Broadcasting Standards Authority in New Zealand has dismissed a formal complaint regarding a National Party election advertisement that asserted crime rates are decreasing. The regulatory body determined that the political party possessed a reasonable factual basis for making the claim.

In reaching its decision, the authority noted that the National Party's assertion relied directly on official statistical data provided by the Ministry of Justice survey. The ruling clears the election advertisement of broadcasting standard breaches related to the disputed crime claims.