12. CARMEL SEPULONI (Labour) Link to this
to the Minister of Justice
Does he stand by his statement: “This Government is committed to ensuring that everyone … has access to justice”?
Hon SIMON POWER
Phil TwyfordWill shifting work from the efficient and highly regarded Waitakere Family Court to the already overloaded and inefficient Auckland Family Court improve access to justice; if so, how?
Yes, because matters requiring 1 day’s hearing or more in the Family Court in Waitakere currently have an average waiting time of 30 weeks. Centralising that work to the Auckland court has seen that waiting time reduced to 9 weeks.
Does he agree with senior west Auckland lawyers acting for children, who believe that his policy to improve access to justice will do the exact opposite of what is intended: services in Waitakere will be slashed, urgent orders for at-risk children will be delayed, and the safety of these children will be put in jeopardy?
No. There will be no impact on children and vulnerable families. The process for dealing with urgent applications is robust at the Waitakere District Court, and that will not change.
Why does he continue to stand by his justice policy in the face of criticism from the Deputy Mayor of Auckland, Penny Hulse, who, when referring to the planned centralisation of Auckland’s courts, has said that these “cut at any price”, senseless initiatives will make our kids face further risk?
Rahui KateneDoes the Minister agree with Kim Workman from Rethinking Crime and Punishment that “We have reached a tipping point, where the incarceration of Maori is causing social damage within their own communities.”, and what initiatives is the Minister putting in place to ensure that Māori have access to justice?