Turner Judy: Debate on Prime Minister’s Statement 
Turner Judy: Debate on Prime Minister’s Statement 
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JUDY TURNER (United Future) 
: 
 On 5 February the media in New Zealand were abuzz with the latest youth statistics for suspected involvement in juvenile crime suicide rates and teen births. While many debated whether we really were to be ranked first second or third among OECD countries with these appalling indicators most of us agree that we must not get comfortable by winning any of these prizes. We ask ourselves why unacceptably high numbers of our young people live their lives so close to the line regarding the law; why so many of our children are subject to abuse and neglect; why despite vigorous sex education programmes too many young men and women engage in unsafe sexual activity; or why—if one is to believe some people—there are still large numbers of young women who have so little faith in their ability to carve out a future for themselves that teen parenthood is their preferred choice. Why do large numbers of our young people lack the essential strategies needed for dealing with disappointment so that suicide becomes a perceived option? The danger I see is that we allow ourselves to be defeated by the complexity and scale of the issues facing young people. We resort to oversimplifying things and focusing on single issues or we throw our hands up in dismay and just hope that our own family can somehow remain unaffected.  
At a time when parents schools and communities struggle to identify causes and bring about the much-needed change the role of Government is obvious. We have to relook at the way we shape and determine the environment in which families and communities operate. We must never give the impression that Government is any better than the rest of the population in meeting the challenge of family life. However we do need to change the culture so that seeking advice and help when it is needed is not seen as failure but as the action of concerned and responsible parents.  
The proposed Families Commission is an opportunity for a mechanism to be put in place that monitors the combined impact of all Government departments on the family and on the communities from which the family draws its support. Nobody for a minute is suggesting that any Government is deliberately family-unfriendly but it is vital that as we go about the business of Government we check that the plumb line of New Zealand families is telling us that we are building in a sound way. The vast majority of New Zealanders live their lives in the context of family and community. It is this background of relationships that helps determine our honesty and our hope for the future and equips us with the necessary strategies for coping with the ups and downs of life. 
The Families Commission will proactively advocate for the family as the building block of society encouraging New Zealanders to be more deliberate about the parenting skills that they have and more skilled in their significant relationships. The commission will highlight not only the rights and responsibilities of families but also the rights and responsibilities of the Government towards families. 
 Last week I attended a gold star award night put on by my local volunteer fire brigade for two men in recognition of the 25 years’ service they have given to this vital community organisation. This brigade like many others is a community of families who train together work together and socialise together. These people are ordinary New Zealanders who have discovered there is something intensely rewarding in helping others. I have also seen that this week at a local marae as a community grieved the loss of a young man through an accident.  
The pulling together that families can depend on when the going gets tough is the hallmark of the Aotearoa New Zealand that I want to live in. United Future agrees with the Prime Minister’s statement today in the House that our children and our young people deserve to grow up in supportive families that they are our future and that we neglect them at our peril.