4. Hon ANNETTE KING (Deputy Leader—Labour) Link to this
to the Minister for Social Development and Employment
Does she stand by her June 2009 statement that stopping “the heinous and incomprehensible abuse of New Zealand’s children” is a priority?
Hon PAULA BENNETT (Minister for Social Development and Employment) Link to this
Yes, I absolutely do. Interestingly, the article that the quote was taken from was about a programme run by the local district health board to reduce shaken baby syndrome. The board had been seeking funding for the programme since 2006. I stepped up and arranged funding for a 3-year pilot, which has been running for a year now.
Does she think a $2 million advertising campaign will reduce violence against children, in light of John Key’s comments about another anti-violence campaign that “People who are putting their child in a dryer and turning it on aren’t sitting back watching television and saying ‘Oh gosh, now the government is telling me over the TV it’s not a good idea.’ ”; if she does not agree with the Prime Minister, why would she waste taxpayers’ money on this programme?
Hon PAULA BENNETT Link to this
I am sure that even that member would appreciate that it is an incredibly complex and distressing area. There are some families whom the campaign will help; there are others whom it will not. It is about raising awareness. I think the previous Government found it a difficult and complex issue. We have taken a number of initiatives, a number of others are coming up shortly, and we are taking steps towards protecting those children who need it most.
In response to numerous parliamentary questions, she has claimed “Every day … I invest energy and passion into making a difference in the lives of children and young people, … with a continuing priority on the vulnerable under two year olds.”, but do one small pilot programme, another review committee, and a publicity campaign, which she has said have been the Government’s actions to date, really indicate that this Government is serious about addressing child abuse—something that National when in Opposition said was so easy to fix?
Hon PAULA BENNETT Link to this
I find it a sad day when we are playing politics with these young people’s lives, and I can assure the House that that was something this party did not do. I will give a bit of an indication of some of the things we have been doing. We have the First Response pilot, which is being run by the New Zealand Police, Child, Youth and Family, and Shine, which is an agency in Auckland. We have 16 Child, Youth and Family social workers in hospitals now, and that is a new initiative introduced since we have been in Government. We have multi-agency discharge meetings for children who have turned up at a hospital abused, to determine what happens to them when they leave. We have data sharing happening between agencies that has never been there before. We have the Auckland District Health Board programme to prevent shaken babies. We also provide respite care for families who are under a lot of duress, to try to give them a break so that they can actually do more. Those are just some of the new initiatives that have been introduced since we have been in Government.
If 40,000 child abuse notifications 5 years ago was a national shame, as was said by National in Opposition, what does she call 110,000 notifications at present, a figure that is predicted to rise to 125,000—her own prediction for next year? Does she believe that 9 years in Opposition to develop a policy and 18 months since the election is long enough to put together the Government’s solution to child abuse, or does she now realise that child abuse is a complex and difficult problem, as Labour tried many, many times to point out to National when it was in Opposition?
Hon PAULA BENNETT Link to this
What I will talk about is the fact that at the end of March 2010 Child, Youth and Family had 90 unallocated cases. It is those sorts of numbers that make a difference. Equally, in terms of investigations that are open for over 90 days, in 2005 there were over 5,000 of them and today there are 129—129. As we know, notifications have gone up because the police are reporting any incident of family violence they go to where a child was present. We are seeing increased awareness by the public, and I encourage that and think it is a good thing. We will step up and take these initiatives, which I think make a difference.
Does she agree that a growing underclass—with many people living in poverty, and with many children going to school hungry, being beaten regularly, living in fear of abuse, and living in squalor—contributes to child abuse, as claimed by her Cabinet colleague Judith Collins; is she aware that the number of children living in poverty has increased by over 40,000 since she became the Minister; and when will she put faces to the children who are represented in these statistics?
Hon PAULA BENNETT Link to this
I do not think there is any doubt—and I have heard from a number of people who work in this area and take it very seriously that they also think this—that this Government is stepping up to the issues and making some of the hard decisions around it. I find it quite disappointing that Labour members have decided that because there is so much strife and chaos going on in the party they will play politics on this issue today. But I think there is no doubt about it, and there is no one who can identify—
Mr SPEAKERI ignored the previous instance when the Minister accused the other side of playing politics in asking a question, but it is not on. Members of this House are entitled to ask questions. Ministers do not have to like the questions, but they should not make accusations when questions were genuinely asked. At the same time, I must say that the questions were very long and it was extraordinarily difficult to sort out whether they were being answered. But, certainly, we should not have accusations that in asking a question—[ Interruption] I am on my feet. We should not have accusations that members in asking a question are just playing politics.
Katrina ShanksHon PAULA BENNETT Link to this
I am proud to announce that tomorrow the Minister of Police, the Hon Judith Collins, and I will sign a memorandum of understanding between the New Zealand Police and Child, Youth and Family to ensure a close working relationship in such a critical area. It sits above the new child protection protocol, which specifies how the two agencies will investigate child abuse, and is also on top of the multi-agencies that we have been opening this year.
Te Ururoa Flavell Link to this
Tēnā koe, Mr Speaker. Kia ora tātou. Is the Minister aware of any initiatives taken by whānau, hapū, iwi, or Māori communities in addressing the issue of child abuse?
Hon PAULA BENNETT Link to this
Yes. There are a number of initiatives out there. One example that I want to point out today is in Kaikōura, where three women from a local hapū, from Ngāti Kurī, are working with young women on issues of abuse and violence to improve their outcomes. The programme is Te Ara Tika-wāhine Toa, and I have heard absolutely favourable things about it. I think it has the capacity to make a real difference on the ground. I commend those women for their initiative and support them in it.