Jacinda Ardern
Deputy Leader
MEDIA STATEMENT
7 March 2017
Government spends more on lawyers than compensating victims
Minister Anne Tolley handed a double whammy to victims of historic abuse in state care, defending the spend on a Queen’s
Counsel hired by the Government to fight their claims, while also refusing to hold a proper inquiry says Labour’s Deputy
Leader Jacinda Ardern.
“The QC’s job was to fight claimants tooth and nail and the Government spent more money on lawyers’ fees than
compensating individual victims.
“The Government is failing to address what some have gone as far as to describe as the worst human rights breach in our
country’s history.
“The Minister for vulnerable children has also denied the abused the right to recover by dismissing any form of an
inquiry because she says they just want financial compensation and an apology. That will be a major blow to many, and is
just plain wrong.
“Labour supports the Human Rights Commission’s call for an inquiry because potentially hundreds of children suffered
mental, physical and sexual abuse while in state care and we must do everything we can to ensure we don't repeat those
mistakes.
“Already, Labour Leader Andrew Little has said the least the Government can do is commission an independent inquiry and
make its recommendations binding.
“The state was supposed to be taking care of 100,000 children who were institutionalised between the 1970s and the
1980s.
“Minister Tolley must rebuild confidence amongst those who were in care and do the right thing on this one - it's the
least we can do,” says Jacinda Ardern.