Newshub can reveal the number of charges over breaches of electronic monitoring conditions is at a record high.
After last month's deadly shooting in central Auckland by a man on home detention, the National Party said it's time to raise the bar for eligibility.
Seven people were injured and three killed in the shooting, including gunman Matu Reid, who despite being on electronic monitoring got his hands on a shotgun.
It was a clear breach of his conditions, but he's not alone.
Figures obtained by Newshub show the number of charges for breaches of home detention conditions hit a new high of 2035 in the year to June.
"I think what we're seeing is more dangerous offenders who in the past would have been in prison, are now on home detention," said National's justice spokesperson Paul Goldsmith.
Corrections told Newshub they acknowledge the number of breaches has risen, but said they don't have any evidence to suggest what may be driving it.
However, they said they take non-compliance "extremely seriously" and hold offenders to account if they breach their conditions.
Criminal barrister Julie-Anne Kincade said home detention does play an important role in rehabilitation.
"We have thousands of people on home detention at any given time and largely those sentences work extremely well."
But National thinks it's become too easy to get home detention. It's handed down by a judge as an alternative to prison for offenders who otherwise would've received a short prison sentence of two years or less.
"We'll greatly restrict the ability of judges to massively reduce sentences, going from serious prison sentences down to home detention," Goldsmith said.
Reid was sentenced in March to five months home detention for family violence and had an exemption to work. An investigation into Corrections' handling of him is ongoing.
"I want to see the outcome of those investigations in relation to the Auckland shooting before we determine what needs to be reviewed," Andersen said.
To ensure the right decisions are made about who ends up in a cell and who gets to be on home detention.
This article was amended on August 8 because it incorrectly stated that 2035 people were charged with breaching home detention conditions. This figure actually referred to the total number of breach charges.
