Honesty needed on child welfare issues

new-zealand-national-party

Thu Feb 12 2004 13:00:00 GMT+1300 (New Zealand Daylight Time)

Honesty needed on child welfare issues

Thursday, 12 February 2004, 6:08 pm
Press Release: New Zealand National Party

Judith Collins

National Families Spokesperson

12th February 2004

Steve Maharey's latest academic speech on child welfare does nothing to accept or address the causes of child poverty and neglect, says National's Families spokesperson Judith Collins.

"The number one cause of child poverty in New Zealand is family break-up. Nowhere in his speech to the Commissioner for Children's Symposium does Mr Maharey acknowledge this.

"Instead the Minister waffles on about 'frameworks', 'nexus', 'blueprints', and expanding various bureaucracies. More and more money spent on reports is not going to help one single child though.

"New Zealand is not going to make any progress on child welfare issues if we are not honest enough to cut through political correctness. Steve Maharey is completely out of touch if he thinks that selective use of statistics can cover up these problems.

"Children need mothers and fathers. They need stability, love, education, discipline and health. The Minister seems unable to grasp these simple facts," said Ms Collins.

Ends

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading

a.supporter:hover {background:#EC4438!important;} @media screen and (max-width: 480px) { #byline-block div.byline-block {padding-right:16px;}}

Using Scoop for work?

Scoop is free for personal use, but you’ll need a licence for work use. This is part of our Ethical Paywall and how we fund Scoop. Join today with plans starting from less than $3 per week, plus gain access to exclusive Pro features.

Join Pro Individual Find out more

Find more from New Zealand National Party on InfoPages.