CYPFA Stays Silent on Case - The Children Young Persons Service isn’t commenting on why it closed the case for the four
year old Napier boy who was bashed to death by his step-father. The man was jailed yesterday for 12 years for the
manslaughter of his step son. He was in prison in 1996 for assault on the same child. The man’s lawyer has questioned
why the case wasn’t followed up after the step-father’s release. It was obvious, the lawyer says, the boy’s family was
struggling. Chief social worker Mike Doolan confirms that CYPFA was involved with the boy in 1996 and 1997, but not at
the time of his death. He says CYPFA has looked into the case to see if there are any issues that need addressing, but
he wont make any comment at this stage because another person is before the courts. He will be prepared to say more once
the court case is over.
Professor Warns Against An All Science Society - A warning against the Government’s push toward a knowledge economy. The
Association of University Staff says the Government’s five step plan which aims to boost funds targeting scientific
research in two or three universities. The spokesperson Professor Jane Kelsey is pleased in the change of direction, but
she says we must be cautious as a society built around science and technicians will end up shallow as one would driven
by accountants. She says there is an assumption that the benefits of this change will somehow trickle down to the rest
of society. But there is no guarantee of that whatsoever. New Zealand, she says, still lacks an overall vision of what
sort of society and values we have, and how this new economic vision will fit into it.