Maharey Steve: Urgent Debates — Department of Child Youth and Family Services—Report  
Maharey Steve: Urgent Debates — Department of Child Youth and Family Services—Report  
[Volume:613;Page:9942] 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY (Minister for Social Development and Employment) 
: 
 I join with Katherine Rich who has just resumed her seat in saying today that I am glad these reports are now in the public domain. I thank the Children’s Commissioner for her report which was prepared partly under the previous commissioner and also the chief social worker. These reports are from people who have standing ability and insight and we should take them seriously—as I know Katherine Rich has done. 
What do these reports say? They make I think a very very important point. They say that the systems are working well but that the practice carried out by two people in these cases was not as it should have been. That is not to blame those people to point the finger at them and say that they are to take full and total responsibility for this—although I point out that they no longer work for Child Youth and Family Services—it is simply to say what these two independent people have concluded. This is a case of: system good; and the use of that system not good at all. That is what these reports conclude and that tells us a way forward. 
I also want to mirror the comments made by Katherine Rich in saying that this story began in 1992. That is when the elder of those young girls was born. By 1994 we are talking about a mother who was seeking a protection order against her partner. We are then talking about the ongoing changes in those girls’ lives—where they lived who looked after them and the circumstances they had to encounter. As Katherine Rich has just said one wonders when one looks at this how those girls ever ever had a chance anyway. In the end the tragedy came to a head when their stepfather Bruce Howse killed them. 
We also know from these reports that there was a good possibility that if practices had been matched to the protocols in place and to the way things should have been done those two young girls may well still be alive. That is the tragedy the reports tell us about. What will New Zealanders do? How will they respond to these two reports? They know when they are looking at this Government that they are looking at a Government that puts every ounce of energy it can into trying to improve the circumstances of young people who come into contact with Child Youth and Family Services. We do not ask people to take our word for it. Labour has been in office for 4 years. Therefore I am happy to stand on any platform in this country and list the amount of money put in—a 50 percent increase—the number of social workers the changes in protocols and practices the ways we have asked Child Youth and Family Services to work with other departments the changes in practice management for good social work and so on. I could list page after page of changes this Government has instituted. I have no fear of standing on any platform and answering any questions about this Government’s commitment to these children and families in this country. 
I remind those people who get up in here and ask for reports to be read out and to be reminded of them and so on that we were the ones who asked for the reports. I personally asked Mick Brown to write his report. I personally asked Treasury the Social Services Commission the Department of Child Youth and Family Services and the Ministry of Social Development— 
Hon Trevor Mallard 
: And State Services. 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: —and the State Services Commission to work together on the baseline review. That was totally supported by my colleagues Michael Cullen and the Minister of State Services. All those Ministers worked together to make sure that the baseline review worked. So when people get up in the House and debate this report they should remember it was the Government that asked for it. We saw it through. We are transparent we are accountable and we are responsible. We do not duck a single question because we want people to know we want New Zealanders to know and we want Murray McCully to know—he is laughing about this over there—that for 4 years we have been serious about this issue. 
I will sit down soon but I want to leave New Zealanders with one simple choice. When they look at this report they will be asking themselves: “Who would we want to be stewards of Child Youth and Family Services?”. Would we want a Labour-led Government to be stewards of Child Youth and Family Services? This is a Government that has put in money time and workers. It has had reviews it has had support and it has had non-governmental organisations working with it. Government members have travelled to talk to social workers about what we want and need. We have put in every ounce of energy. We have backed what we have said with real money. Would people want that Government or would they want a National-led Government? Under the National Government there were seven restructurings in 9 years five changes of name and a cut in budget every year between 1993 and 1997. Griff Page who led this organisation in the middle of the 1990s in on the record as saying: “This is the most demoralised organisation I have ever had any contact with.” Would people want that? Would they want the performance of Katherine Rich? She came into the House and used James Whakaruru to try to justify her argument. James Whakaruru died when the National Government was in power. Labour was the Government that received the report. We were the ones who put what was in that report into practice. Mrs Rich went through the whole report without mentioning one policy or one promise without putting one dollar on the table and without showing one sign of what a National Government would do if it were in this position. So the choice is easy. People do not have to take our word for it; they just have to ask: “What would Labour do?”. It would do more of what it has done. It has put the money in; it has done the hard yards. What would National do? It would destroy this department. There is no choice. 
These reports are received by the Government. They are taken seriously by the Government. They will be acted on. People know that if anybody else were in this position nothing would happen. They know that we can be trusted to be responsible and accountable and that we will act.