Williams Poto: Social Security (Clothing Allowances for Orphans and Unsupported Children) Amendment Bill — Second ReadingText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeWilliams Poto: Social Security (Clothing Allowances for Orphans and Unsupported Children) Amendment Bill — Second Reading[Sitting date: 18 March 2015. Volume:704;Page:2380. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]POTO WILLIAMS (Labour—Christchurch East): Kia orana Mr Assistant Speaker. With the indulgence of the House I would like to talk a little bit about my previous life having worked on a child protection review panel for a Child Youth and Family site and say what that was about.The review panels came about because of some unfortunate incidents that happened in the community that resulted in the death of some children. The child protection review panels were charged with reviewing the work of social workers particularly in the Child Youth and Family environment to ensure that they were given the best resources the best support and the best networks into the community sector to ensure that they could do their work effectively so that we could minimise the harm to children in our community.Why I raise it is that—I am referring to my colleague Peeni Henare—he talked about Pūao-te-ata-tū which was a programme that really first started the discussion in the social service arena around whānau caring for their tamariki when the parents were unable to do so. I believe that is right is it not Mr Henare?Peeni Henare: That’s right.POTO WILLIAMS:That is the genesis of a lot of the work that we are now engaged in in Whānau Ora. It had its genesis in the idea that the family should be able and should be encouraged to care for their own when circumstances make it difficult for parents to take that role through whatever mechanism.It was a really important step forward because it made us recognise that there were a whole lot of components to caring for children that were more than just providing a safe home or a warm bed or food. It was about attending to that child’s emotional needs and their cultural needs and ensuring that they had connections to their family their history and their past.So I must commend the work that started with Pūao-te-ata-tū and has continued to evolve into different programmes because really for most of the children who come to the notice of Child Youth and Family—when they get to the process where they may be uplifted or there are some real difficulties—it means the family gets involved at a very significant time. The family may be encouraged to find options to support that particular child. It may be that an aunt may provide some kind of respite or provide oversight for the family.Why that is important to mention is that this bill which Tracey Martin is bringing to the House and which she has got wide support for actually speaks to the heart of caring for children. We place a lot of responsibility on our families as we should to support parents to parent well and grandparents or aunts and uncles to take control when parents are unable to. This bill actually speaks about the equity of that. Yes it is right and true that families should take care of their own but not at the expense of being seen as unequal or having some inequity with other carers such as paid foster carers. This is really about the principle of having an equitable response and equitable treatment for all children with that being the basic principle for this. So I really commend you Tracey Martin. It is a small but a potentially very significant step in ensuring that we treat all children equitably.Let us look at what has come from Pūao-te-ata-tū to what we currently view as a very important way of dealing with families: Whānau Ora. The basis of Whānau Ora is about families caring for their own but it is also about families finding solutions that are fit for them and having the resources to do that. Sometimes that includes having the funding resources to support whānau to care for their own because sometimes our families are not the best place. We have had some issues in our families and we need to do a little bit of work on our families to ensure that they can be providing the appropriate care and support for our tamariki. We know this which is why Whānau Ora is such an important opportunity for families to deal with those longstanding issues.We must look not at the imposition but at what actually happens to grandparents and aunts and uncles or even older siblings when they are asked to care for children—what that actually does to the dynamic of a particular family. I want to refer to a dear colleague of mine who took on the children of her sister. Tragically her sister was killed at the hands of her partner in a family violence homicide and my colleague was then asked to take care of these two children in addition to caring for her own children one of whom was a special needs child. Very tragic circumstances but she was given very limited resources and did not really know where to go for support. She cast around various agencies looking for support.In circumstances like that should not the State be at the front of that queue not at the back of that queue? It should be right there saying to people like my colleague: “We will help you every step of the way. We won’t wait until 2018 to put this bill through. We’re going to put it through as soon as it has received its Royal assent.” So I want to challenge the Government members. They are obviously very supportive of what Tracey Martin’s bill is attempting to do. I thought Jono Naylor made an extraordinary speech. I was really happy to hear what he had to say—he obviously speaks from some experience—but then we look to when this bill is actually going to be in place: 2018. What is the significance of 2018? What is more significant is why it is not going to be in place as soon as it is possible. So—Tracey Martin: In 2018 the $4 million is gone.POTO WILLIAMS: That is right—thank you Tracey Martin.This bill has got a couple of clauses in it that are important but really it is the sentiment that sits behind this bill that is most important and it is around ensuring that our kids are treated equally. The basis is that it should be regardless of their circumstances. The tragic nature of the circumstances in which some of these children come into our notice should not actually disadvantage them at all. We should not have any more children who have to go to school and compete with Peeni Henare’s son for his date loaf. I think that is a delightful story and I would like to encourage all parents who make date loaf to put it in their children’s school lunches. That actually speaks to something—families that are thinking about the nutrition of their children. That is another issue that we could talk about but this is not the place for that.But I do want to say that this is a great bill. It will do a great thing. I encourage the Government to look at bringing the date forward in order to bring this bill into play and thank you very much for your indulgence Mr Assistant Speaker.