Time for a new approach on addressing family breakdown, family violence and child abuse. The Kiwi Party
Press Release
May 14,2008
Embargoed until 1.15pm
Presented by Larry Baldock, Kiwi Party Leader, at press conference 1.15pm May 14, 2008
“Today marks the end of 14 months of collecting signatures for a CIR petition in my name to request a referendum on the
question, ‘should the Government give urgent priority to understanding and addressing the wider causes of family
breakdown, family violence and child abuse in New Zealand?’ The collection of signatures for Sheryl Savill’s petition,
which is a separate question entirely, is ongoing and we have now collected approx 350,000 for that petition. Today I
will deliver approx 300,000 signatures to the Clerk of the House of Representatives for my petition and we will now
await (once again) a seemingly bizarre audit process to be carried out according to the CIR Act 1993.
Whatever the outcome of this process, 300,000 signatures represent a huge response from the people of New Zealand who
have consistently expressed their concern at our deplorable child abuse and family violence statistics.
After nearly nine years of a Government lead by Helen Clark and supported entirely or in part by Jim Anderton, Jeannette
Fitzsimons, Peter Dunne and Winston Peters, there is not a single statistic that can be referred to that shows their
‘lame duck policies’ have worked. This is despite huge tax surpluses and a strong economy.
A clear example of this is that we now have the Minister of Social Development openly acknowledging her own department’s
report that reveals the poor are worse off under a Labour Government than after the ‘mother of all budgets’ in the 90’s.
This petition and these signatures are calling for greater action on understanding and then addressing the wider causes
of family breakdown, family violence and child abuse.
We begin our question with the call to “understand’, as that is the first step to solving any problem. Clearly this
Government does not have any understanding of the real causes of our problems and has simply continued to keep bringing
so many ‘ambulance at the bottom of the cliff’ type responses that there is no parking space left. What we really need
are some solid fences constructed at the top.
Our social statistics reveal such systemic problems within our society that the Kiwi Party believes the Government
should urgently appoint an independent Royal Commission to respond to this.
Surely it is time to look for new answers and solutions?
Anti-smacking advocate and nanny state zealot Sue Bradford, now admits (contrary to her earlier claims) that her Anti
Smacking Bill was never intended to address the causes of child abuse and reduce our awful statistics for child
maltreatment deaths.
Anyone with a modicum of common sense now acknowledges that with 7 child deaths in less than a year, Bradford's Bill is
a feel-good fantasy dressed up as a complete waste of time, unless of course Bradford
ENDS
Kiwi Party Draft Terms of Reference for Royal Commission