ACT has proposed a Three Strikes policy for burglary. The idea is simple: if someone is convicted of burglary three times, they must spend at least three years in prison with no chance of early parole. Deputy leader Nicole McKee announced the plan this week RNZ.

McKee said 184,000 New Zealanders were victims of burglary last year. She pointed out that about one in four burglary victims have been burgled more than once. She also noted that most people released from prison for burglary commit more crimes and return to prison within two years RNZ.

ACT argues the policy is about keeping dangerous repeat offenders off the streets. Rather than hoping punishment will change someone's behaviour, the party wants to remove people who keep reoffending from the community RNZ.

This builds on a broader Three Strikes law the government brought back in late 2024. Labour had removed it in 2022, and the current government reinstated it just two years later. The change became law on 17 December 2024 Ministry of Justice.

The current Three Strikes system applies to violent and sexual crimes. Here's how it works: the first conviction is a warning; the second brings another warning plus tighter conditions for getting out of prison; and the third conviction means the maximum possible sentence with no parole. ACT's new proposal takes the same idea but applies it to burglary instead.

Burglary is treated as less serious than violent crimes when judges decide on sentences. Most burglars get home detention or short prison terms, not years inside. Forcing a three-year minimum sentence on the third conviction would be a big jump for many offenders.

ACT's argument hinges on one question: if most burglars reoffend, then current sentences aren't stopping them from harming the community. But officials will need to check whether this plan would actually catch enough repeat offenders. Most importantly, whether it becomes law depends on the other parties in government — National and New Zealand First would both need to agree RNZ. ACT can't pass laws on its own.