Ngaro AlfredALFRED NGARO (National): I rise to take a call on the Children Young Persons and Their Families (Oranga Tamariki) Legislation Bill in its first reading. I just want to comment on what the previous member Jacinda Ardern spoke on and I would agree. She said that for all of us here in the House we have the same intent and purpose which is to ensure that our children our tamariki and our whānau are well cared for especially those who are more vulnerable. In fact I can remember us being in a debate—I think it might have been in 2014—where we talked about the challenges of poverty for our children and the member is right: the reality is that poverty and the issues and the challenge of it have been around for some time.In fact the comment that the member made at that point in time was that actually for those members under Labour over those previous 9 years it was a job unfinished. What that goes to prove is that the challenges are very complex. They cannot be solved even in a short period of time. They are systemic. They need a critical point of change constantly along that process. So the member is right. In that debate when questioned about why in the 9 years under a Labour Government it had not reduced child poverty the response was that that was a job unfinished. It was a job unfinished.I agree with the member because it is complex and it is difficult. So I agree with the member that this is something that we need to be consistent about. The process in order to be able to deal with these things—if we think about this bill—sits inside a range of other issues that need to be addressed: issues around housing employment and issues around health and education. When we talk about them they are systemic—the challenges that we face and that our children face. So I would agree with the member.If we then narrow down to where this bill sits—I can remember that back in the day in fact in 1995 I actually began a period of time where for about 6 or 7 years I was on the care and protection resource panel out in Royal Oak. I can remember that at that time part of our role and responsibility was as social workers came in and talked about the challenges that they faced in their case management approach to be able to give them feedback from us as community representatives to talk about those challenges and how they were accommodating the complexities of what they were facing. They were talking about kin carers they were talking about placements and the statutory roles and responsibilities that they had to remove children from a traumatic situation. Even compared with that time I would have to say that when I read the current stories and casework of social workers at present nothing has changed. I would say that nothing has changed—those issues are still present.I have to commend the Minister for Social Development because after 14 reviews this is the second part of a transformation overhauling this part of the legislation. I think that is important. The thing that I think is significant about this—and we think about significant change—is that the current Act from 1989 the Children Young Persons and Their Families Act became more focused on crisis management. The point of difference for this bill is to ensure that actually it is looking at a number of long-term life outcomes for children in care. I suppose it is more outcome-focused rather than focused on the immediate aspect of ensuring the care and protection and the well-being of the child. So what we would call crisis management moving into a more outcome-focused approach is quite critical to that.The second part that I think is quite critical is that we have always talked about the point of difference which is being child-centred. We know that has been quite fundamental. Part of that is the paramountcy of the child. But then when we think about the Whānau Ora model for instance which was introduced by our coalition partner the Māori Party the fact is that it is talking about the paramountcy of the whānau—the two collectively working together. Although we try to hold those two elements together what I think is significant about this—and I am looking forward to hearing the submissions on this through the select committee—is how we allow the voices and the concerns of our children to be part of the planning of a safety plan and also of an outcome-focused plan into the future. I think this is going to be quite critically important to that as well.The bill allows us to have a single point of accountability and it has a social investment approach. In other words when we think about the procurement of services that surround the child—if you think about education for instance it is a similar process where the funding will follow the child. What was quite specific about this previously was that in a sense the funding was there for the providers to provide the service. What we have seen is that that model had to change. The model now has to be focused on the child or the children—the tamariki in the situation—what is going to best serve their needs and the issues that they currently are experiencing? This is where there is a point of difference that I think is actually quite critical. So the whole procurement model of services is going to be quite critically important to this process as well.I am looking forward to this bill coming into our select committee the Social Services Committee; we are actually meeting tomorrow. We will also then be able to open up for submissions and to hear from others. I am sure as the member Jacinda Ardern said that we will be able to debate the issues robustly. There are always opportunities to shift and change and remodel legislation as it sits. That is part of the grunt work of a select committee so I look forward to that opportunity and I do commend this bill in its first reading to the House.