Mahuta Nanaia: Prisoners’ and Victims’ Claims (Expiry and Application Dates) Amendment Bill — Second Reading In Committee Third Reading 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Mahuta Nanaia: Prisoners’ and Victims’ Claims (Expiry and Application Dates) Amendment Bill — Second Reading In Committee Third Reading 
[Sitting date: 22 June 2010. Volume:664;Page:12062. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
Hon NANAIA MAHUTA (Labour—Hauraki-Waikato) 
: 
 I am pleased to follow the erudite challenge set out by the Hon Clayton Cosgrove. His challenge puts the responsibility of victims’ rights squarely in the hands of the Government which does need to do more. 
Labour’s record of standing up for victims’ rights is clearly set out by our commitment and by our actions in the past to address the interests of victims. I will outline that for the record. We introduced and passed the Sentencing Act in 2002 which introduced a presumption in favour of reparation and resulted in that sentence being used more frequently. The same Act also recognised the potential of restorative justice processes to make offenders more accountable to victims. It enabled courts to take both financial and non-financial offers of amends by an offender into account. 
Labour introduced and passed the Victims’ Rights Act in 2002 which extended a number of rights to victims such as the right to information and the ability to have an input into sentencing decisions through victim impact statements. That in itself had a transformative effect on addressing the rights of victims. In terms of the practical examples that have come through my office I have seen that it has made a big difference. 
In 2003 the Ministry of Justice launched a campaign to trace those owed money. It introduced an 0800 number and it also established new collection centres to further bolster the collection and disbursement of reparations. In 2005 we passed the Prisoners’ and Victims’ Claims Act as Clayton Cosgrove has mentioned. It ensured that the victims of inmates who were awarded compensation could claim against the inmates’ compensation. 
Labour introduced the Pay or Stay initiative in September 2006. It enabled the Ministry of Justice to stop those people who had unpaid fines or reparations from travelling overseas if they attempted to leave New Zealand. 
The changes we introduced in the Evidence Act in 2006 provided for the needs of vulnerable witnesses and victims by making provision for witnesses to give evidence in alternative ways such as giving evidence from behind a screen via closed-circuit TV or pre-recorded video. Victims of sexual offences for example have utilised this particular mechanism. 
When we amended the Children Young Persons and Their Families Act we included a provision to ensure that victims of youth crime could attend Youth Court hearings. We also put in place provisions to ensure that these victims were kept informed of proceedings. In 2008 a Victims Charter was developed to build awareness of the standards of service that victims could expect from Government departments. We know that the Accident Compensation Corporation in particular was one Government department where a number of concerns were raised with regard to the handling of sensitive cases. An 0800 victim helpline was also introduced in that same year as was a website for victims and a boost in funding for Victim Support which offers much-needed services in many communities. All these types of initiatives built a profile of ensuring that the rights of victims continued to be addressed. 
We also announced that we would provide additional services in 2008 through the Family Court such as the introduction of an independent victim advocate or support person to provide support and assistance to victims of domestic violence. I know that in many of the communities I support this important service is heavily utilised to ensure that those suffering from domestic violence are supported. 
Labour also asked the Law Commission to look at how to set up proper victim compensation schemes. I understand that that work is still continuing. 
We know that this particular bill is an extension of the gains that Labour made and we are happy to support it. It is considering a minor technical change. 
We want to ensure that the big picture in terms of how National addresses victims’ rights will have to supersede the record that has already been established by Labour. It is just not good enough in terms of the accident compensation issues raised by Clayton Cosgrove not to provide an avenue for those who have suffered sexual abuse and for them not to have a remedy for reparation or to have their needs addressed. I know from the particular cases I have dealt with that the ongoing support provided by mental health and counselling services are very much needed services. It is absolutely reprehensible that this type of support might not continue to be available. 
I did not intend to take a long call on this reading of the bill. As we have said this is a minor technical change but let the case state that Labour’s record of advocating for victims’ rights stands in its own right.