Andersen GinnyGINNY ANDERSEN (Chairperson of the Justice Committee): Thank you Mr Chair. It's a pleasure to give a brief summary on the Appropriation (2022/23 Estimates) Bill for Vote Justice and what the Justice Committee heard during that period. The four main areas that were touched on were: access to justice outcomes for victims of crime family violence and a new Government joined-up approach in that space and also we looked at the effect of COVID-19 on the justice system.In terms of access to justice there are two main parts under this. The first is Te Ao Mārama the new system that's going through our court processes and secondly the contribution and the expansion of funding made to legal aid and the legal aid system in New Zealand. The Minister told us that access to justice is a priority for this Government. In select committee we heard about specific initiatives to that extent.The Minister told us that Te Ao Mārama was a response to requests to reform the justice system over many decades. We heard that Te Ao Mārama will be first implemented in Hamilton and Gisborne and will be expanded to all courts over time. Budget 2022 provides funding of $47.4 million over four years for Te Ao Mārama. Part of this funding will enable the ministry to continue their engagement with iwi and communities to design and deliver services that reflect the needs of each community.In terms of legal aid it was warmly welcomed—the fact that Budget 2022 had $148.7 million that was specifically dedicated over four years for legal aid. The Minister told us that the ministry will also remove barriers for people who are registering as legal aid practitioners. We heard that a decrease to legal aid funding in 2008 and the subsequent reforms did result in a decrease in the number of legal aid lawyers and that hopefully this additional funding will boost those numbers.Number two in terms of supporting better outcomes for victims of crime Budget 2022 provides $45.7 million over four years for a sector-wide strategy to improve the outcomes for victims of crime. Funding for this initiative is held within Vote Justice and also in Vote Corrections as part of that cluster. This funding is used to establish a new Victims Operating Model and we were told by the Minister that the Government's priority is to analyse the gaps in the justice system; for victims of crime and their whānau to identify how the sector can change to meet the needs of victims.I'll briefly touch on the work being done with Te Aorerekura. I'd like to acknowledge that within Vote Justice the Minister for Prevention of Family and Sexual Violence is responsible for the appropriation for elimination of family violence and sexual violence. Te Aorerekura is a new way of doing things the committee was told that really empowers our communities to start taking control and making more decisions in their own areas.One of the main aims of Te Aorerekura is to help develop a skilled culturally competent and sustainable workforce. Budget 2022 provides almost $7.4 million over four years for the initiative of building workforce-capability to ensure the right response every time. We heard that the executive board believes that developing a skilled and culturally competent workforce is an important part of building the foundation for the work in the elimination of family and sexual violence.There was some good work done. It was great to have all committee members engaged and talking about some of the initiatives that this Government is driving to provide better outcomes for not only victims of crime but our entire justice system. Thank you.