Debate on Crown Entities, Public Organisations, and State Enterprises — Children’s Commissioner

Thank you for allowing me a call on the performance and current operations of the Children’s Commissioner. The commissioner, Dr Russell Wills, in his annual report reminds us that his office has four priorities: one, for more children to grow up healthy; two, for children to grow up with access to adequate resources; three, for more children to achieve their educational potential; and, four, for more children to be free from all forms of neglect. I would go further and say that each of these priorities should be for every child in New Zealand and should be a spur to action for this Government. But as I learnt from the Social Services Committee report on the financial review of the Children’s Commissioner, although Dr Wills has done sterling work on child poverty, the Government has failed to take any action on 55 of 78 recommendations.

Rather than address the symptoms of poverty, we must act on the cause. Let us take an example and look at something as simple as weaning. If a child is on the correct milk, the next stage is being weaned on to solid food. If that solid food is highly artificial, sweet, or preservative-laden food, then that sets the template for life—the scourge of obesity and associated disease.

Poverty seems to be increasing. In the United States 145,000 workers at Kodak were put out of a job because of their industry’s digitising of manufacturing and the industrial internet. Companies such as Instagram, which employs 30 people, take the role in production, consumption, and distribution that Kodak previously did. We are having a hollowing-out of the world’s middle class’s ability to earn money. The industrial internet ushers in a completely new economic model. Where are the systems in place to serve middle-income families as they lose their occupations due to digitalisation, robotics, and the industrial internet? Poverty is not just about money. Surely the issue is about creating pathways to prosperity, not just for children but for existing workforces.

As an independent member of Parliament, I believe in safe children, safe whānau, safe society. When we drill that mantra down, it is three pairs of words with one commonality: safe. Safe is the name of the game—emotional safety, occupational safety, family or whānau safety, vocational safety, societal safety. Good, responsible governance and sustainability are paramount. People recognise that the only mobility out of poverty is education.

So where are our educational systems? Intergenerational learning starts pre-birth with the mother to be. Let us not hide behind the word “poverty”, as many politicians and parliamentarians do. Poverty does not mean that you are unhappy. Poverty does not mean that you do not care for your children. Poverty does not mean that you cannot feed your children. But as a country we need to provide ladders and pathways to prosperity—clear vocational pathways, clear educational pathways, and clear health pathways. Life is about learning. We are on the brink of the greatest industrial revolution the world has seen. If we have a safe society, then we have safe families, and therefore our children cannot be impoverished. But we need to plan and operate with open and transparent processes. When we empower the Children’s Commissioner to report, surely we should heed those warnings. Surely we should adopt more than the 29 percent of the commissioner’s recommendations that were adopted by the Government.

But, most important, let us be the safety net at the top of the cliff rather than the ambulance at the bottom. Let us tackle the cause. Let us set up ecosystems for healthy children. Free medical care for children under 13 is a great initiative, but it needs to start now, not in a year’s time. Education in being a parent is critical and needs action now. Educational upgrades of parents, teachers, seniors, children, young people, and existing workforces must become a priority. New skills and competencies give preparedness to existing workforces. We cannot continue to walk and stumble blindly into 2020. We need to prepare. As an independent member of Parliament, I call on—

Report noted.

Housing New Zealand Corporation