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New prisoners: More Māori than ever

New prisoners: More Māori than ever
- The ethnic makeup of New Zealand's new intakes of prisoners has set new records.
Maori now make up a higher proportion of all new prisoners than at any time in recorded history.
Ministry of Justice figures released last week showed 56.3 per cent of people imprisoned last year were Maori - the highest proportion since records were available from 1980.
The proportion of Europeans imprisoned dropped to its own record - falling below 30 per cent of the total for the first time.
In the past decade, the number of people convicted has dropped significantly. At its peak in 2009, about 100,000 people were sentenced. Last year, that figure had fallen to fewer than 65,000 - a 35 per cent drop.

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