The Labour Government’s entirely apathetic approach to New Zealand’s courts has seen them fall into an appalling state, with victims and their families often waiting years for justice, National’s Courts spokesperson Chris Penk says.

“The Courts portfolio has been nothing more than an afterthought in five years of Labour, resulting in record-long delays in the Family Court, District Court and the Coroners Court.

“Since 2018, the wait time for the most serious criminal trials in the High Court has increased from 15 months to 23 months.

“It’s a similar story in the Family Court, where the number of families waiting longer than two years for a resolution has more than doubled since 2017, rising from 1,271 to 2,938 last year.

“Labour’s unwillingness to improve the state of our courts was clearly shown by previous Minister for Courts Aupito William Sio’s complete lack of attention to the portfolio. Last year, between April and June, the Minister’s diary shows that just nine hours and 15 minutes were allocated to Courts.

“This instils very little confidence that Labour is capable, or has any commitment, of fixing the eye-watering delays they have presided over.

“Unlike Labour, National will reform the court system to deliver quicker pathways to justice and give answers to families sooner.

“National will ensure much greater use of existing technology, such as audio-visual links for court appearances and increase the time courtroom facilities are available to help clear backlogs.”

Sources: WPQ 27738 (2022), WPQ 45182 (2022), WPQ 45147 (2022)

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