12. Question No. 12—CorrectionsMATT DOOCEY (National—Waimakariri) to the Minister of CorrectionsQuestion No. 12—Corrections12. MATT DOOCEY (National—Waimakariri) to the Minister of Corrections: Does he agree with the decision by the Department of Corrections to not notify local schools after two child sex offenders were placed in the Waimakariri electorate; if yes why?Hon ANDREW LITTLE (Acting Minister of Corrections): On behalf of the Minister I do not accept that schools in the Waimakariri electorate were not advised that sex offenders are placed in that community. Corrections has regular contact with schools early childhood centres and other community organisations about the presence and management of offenders including sex offenders in Waimakariri. In relation to the two offenders the member is referring to one is an adult sex offender and the other a familial child sex offender. One was first released into the Canterbury region under an extended supervision order in 2015. The other was released into Canterbury in 2016. From November 2018 both were housed in Waimakariri. This was notified to that member in December 2018. Both continue to be electronically monitored. In all the time they have been monitored no black spots have been evident in the monitoring. Both have been under daily supervision and apart from one incident when one of the offenders refused an instruction in 2016 to get into a car both have been fully compliant with their conditions since released three and four years ago respectively.Matt Doocey: Following that answer if the Minister's saying corrections notified the school why did corrections write to me in May saying they placed two child sex offenders and did not make notifications?Hon ANDREW LITTLE: On behalf of the Minister the corrections advice to me is that they routinely speak to schools and other relevant community organisations about the placement and management of offenders and that advice to those organisations includes words to the effect that there will be offenders including sex offenders placed in this community.Matt Doocey: I seek leave to table a letter from the Department of Corrections informing me they placed two child sex offenders without notification—SPEAKER: Order! [Interruption] Order! The member knows that he does not go into that detail. The member's asking for the House to agree in an unusual way for a letter to be tabled to him from corrections relating to sex offenders. Is there any objection? There is none.Document by leave laid on the Table of the House.Matt Doocey: Does the Minister believe that parents should know whether two child sex offenders have been housed near their children's school?Hon ANDREW LITTLE: On behalf of the Minister I am confident that corrections are doing their job appropriately in maintaining regular contact with schools and other relevant organisations about the placement and management of sex offenders in Waimakariri and the wider Canterbury region as indeed that member was notified as part of their routine engagement with relevant people in the community. This is always a difficult area when offenders—particularly sex offenders—come to the end of their sentence and have to be released. Corrections takes a very very clear approach with community safety first and manages offenders appropriately and properly. That member also has a duty to his constituents to advocate for community safety but in all his public commentary on this issue he has not identified a community at risk.Matt Doocey: What does the Minister say to parents of students at the four schools in the town of Kaiapoi in Waimakariri who recently received an email from school principals warning them that a child had been approached by an adult male in the community just days after it was revealed that corrections failed to notify schools about the placement of two child sex offenders in the area?Hon ANDREW LITTLE: On behalf of the Minister I would say to all the parents and all of those schools and to that member who represents them as their local MP that corrections' track record on working with schools notifying schools as well as placing offenders and managing the risks associated with them is a very good one. Those schools are told as part of the routine advice from corrections that if they have any concern whatsoever they must notify corrections. I go back to the track record in relation to these two offenders who have been released respectively for three and four years: with the exception of one breach of conditions that related to failure to comply with instruction to get into a car by a correction officer they have been fully compliant with all conditions.Matt Doocey: Does he agree with former Labour corrections spokesperson Kelvin Davis who said in 2016 in relation to the placement of two sex offenders in the community: Personally if I was the Minister I would've said 'That's just not good enough and I'll look into it' instead of just doing the old Pontius Pilot and wiping her hands of it and putting it on to everyone else."?Hon ANDREW LITTLE: On behalf of the Minister I stand by the assurances that I have given on behalf of corrections in relation to their engagement with that member and his community and the schools and education institutions within it and the management of these two offenders.Matt Doocey: Does he agree with Māngere Labour MP Aupito William Sio who was reported in 2016 as saying there needed to be changes in the law to stop sex offenders being placed near schools; what changes have occurred?Hon ANDREW LITTLE: On behalf of the Minister I refer to my earlier answer in which I acknowledged that this is a difficult issue especially for corrections who do not make the decision on length of sentence but when an offender comes to the end of their sentence then corrections has to manage that offender. They have access to the device of extended supervision orders. That applies to both of these offenders who have been in the community now for three and four years respectively and with the exception of one minor breach unrelated to any issue to do with community safety they have been fully compliant. It's because in addition to the daily supervision that they are subject to they are subject to electronic monitoring. Corrections has managed these two offenders appropriately and properly."