20 May 2005
Richard Worth National Party Justice Spokesman
Budget '05: Labour ignores justice needs
National's Justice spokesman, Richard Worth, says Labour's additional $156.5 million for the Justice Ministry over the
next four years falls well short of what is needed.
"The problem for Labour has been that the three Ministers responsible for the delivery of justice services have no
understanding of either the legal system or its needs.
"Courts Minister Rick Barker is a trade union official, Justice Minister Phil Goff is a political studies lecturer, and
Attorney-General Michael Cullen is an economic historian.
"That combination of experience is unable to assess what should be the priorities in a justice system," Mr Worth says.
"Labour says the extra funds will enable the Ministry to deliver more efficient court services 'especially in
high-volume courts that are experiencing delays in processing cases'.
"That is rich indeed, because as recently as late last year Rick Barker was denying there were any delays," Mr Worth
says.
ENDS