Child Protection (Child Sex Offender Government Agency Registration) Amendment Bill

Tēnā koe, Mr Speaker. Tēnā tātou e te Whare. Any bill or Act that places mokopuna and tamariki at the centre of the discussion is, in our view, worthy of debate. Te Pāti Māori supports the idea of improving the effectiveness of the child sex offender register, the clarification in the Act, and making it more applicable, I guess, and workable.

The proposed amendments are designed to protect to make safer places for children and young people, preventing the reoccurrence of abuse. Seventy percent of children in State care are tamariki Māori, and 80 percent of those who face abuse within the system are Māori. In 2017, it was revealed that 37 percent of victims of sexual violence within Child, Youth and Family care services were Māori. The recent abuse in care report delivered in this House showed up over the years how badly we have done, and, I would say, we still do poorly.

The only way these numbers will decrease for Māori is when healthy, nutritious food is available; when warm homes and strong communities surround our mokopuna; when te reo Māori is the norm; when whānau, hapū, and iwi systems are flourishing; and when cultural imperatives and cultural qualities are appreciated and understood and when this is systemic of public services. By the way, Whānau Ora is a perfect expression of all of those things, but—no surprises—this has also been taken away by the Government. Why? Because it works.

Later this evening, we will continue the debate on the repeal of section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act. How ironic it is that we’re prepared to care and protect the most vulnerable—and this bill does that—but it’s what we’re prepared to remove in terms of the care, protection, and understanding of what it means for mokopuna Māori. On the basis of these reminders and the points of fact reflected in this, we tautoko this next step in this bill. Tēnā tātou.

Thank you, Mr Speaker. I rise on behalf of the Green Party in support of the Child Protection (Child Sex Offender Government Agency Registration) Amendment Bill. As we heard from my colleague Kahurangi Carter and also from our previous speaker, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi, this is an important step, because, at the end of the day, child sexual abuse has a devastating and lifelong impact, not only on individual survivors but also on their whānau and communities. We must also thank those people who submitted as part of the select committee process, because, again, this is something that is nuanced, it is complex, and it is emotional. We would like to thank the submitters who submitted on this bill and spoke on this bill.

I think, broadly speaking, when we are looking at this bill, we understand the impact, from those submitters, that it has on their wellbeing and on the wellbeing of tamariki in Aotearoa. We also want to acknowledge the fact that there is preliminary evidence around this by the New Zealand Police and by some of the work that has been done on looking into the evidential basis. Our understanding—and I’ll come to that—around the section 7 report by the Attorney-General is that, domestically and internationally, the evidence on the registry is inconclusive; however, despite that, what we can see internationally is that, when we have registries which are restricted to law enforcement use and are coupled with comprehensive supervision and treatment programmes, including what we’re seeing in Aotearoa New Zealand, it does suggest that they may contribute to reducing the recidivism rates.

I think, for this particular scenario and for this particular bill, I really want to echo the previous speaker on the fact that we are having conversations around child protection, which is incredibly important, on the same day as we, as a Government, are looking to repeal section 7AA from the Oranga Tamariki Act. I think, in that sense, we do wonder if child protection is at the heart of the Government’s decision making, and also, in terms of the cultural needs that we are seeing, because we must recognise also that Māori are disproportionately harmed, both as perpetrators, offenders, but also, themselves, as victims of abuse, which has come out incredibly clearly and incredibly prominently in the report on State abuse and faith-based care abuse that we saw last year.

We must also address some of the tensions to do with this bill, and I would like to note both in terms of the section 7 report by the Attorney-General as well as the submission done by the New Zealand Law Society that what we are seeing is that there are elements of this bill that fundamentally challenge our understanding and our interpretation of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990, and for us to have a section 7 report is not something we take lightly. I think, in this case, we are looking at particularly the Law Society’s submission on this, which opposes the retrospective element of the bill, and I think this is something that is significant that we must address during the committee stage. We are also seeing what seems to be inconsistency around the idea of double jeopardy, as well as other elements, such as section 25G, I believe, of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act.

We will be putting forward Amendment Papers to consider during the committee stage that will ensure that this bill follows the purpose and the intent around child protection and, at the same time, is done in a way that is most consistent with our New Zealand Bill of Rights Act. And we would request that the Government consider these amendments seriously. With that, like I said in the beginning, the Green Party is in support of this bill, and we will look forward to the discussion during the committee stage.

Thank you, Mr Speaker. I rise to speak in support of the Child Protection (Child Sex Offender Government Agency Registration) Amendment Bill. This bill enables Government agencies to better manage the risk posed by child sex offenders in our community. It enhances the options and the effectiveness in the operation of the Child Sex Offender Register. The harm caused by child sexual offending is significant. It is something that we need to look to protect against, and to improve the protections against through this amendment bill.

This bill is about improving the effectiveness of the register and, in turn, supporting police and other agencies to make our communities safer. It requires offenders to provide additional information, in terms of the registration, around things like their location and their activities. I thought, for the benefit of the House and for those listening, in a moment I’ll go through some of those key changes, some of the most substantive amendments that enable that to happen. Other amendments will make it easier for offenders to comply with their reporting obligations, such as enabling offenders to provide some of their reporting via phone. There are eight substantive amendments to the primary legislation and the operation of the Child Sex Offender Register through this amendment bill.

First of all, it requires offenders to report if a child is going to be living at the same address as them 48 hours prior to it happening, rather than currently it being up to 72 hours after that child moves into the location that they are at or vice versa. Secondly, it requires offenders to report if they are attending education or training courses, and clarifies that voluntary work does require reporting. Thirdly, it clarifies how “locality” is defined for offenders who do not have a permanent address in New Zealand. Fourthly, it enables notices to be served to offenders by electronic means as well as a continuation of the postal option. Six, it requires offenders travelling out of the country to report this information at least seven days in advance of their overseas travel, rather than the current 48 hours prior. Seven, it clarifies that where a successful application against registration happens, that information contained in the register that relates to the offender must be removed. And, number eight, the requirement that an application for review has to be made within 28 days of registration—it removes that requirement.

Indeed, I think I may have missed one of my eight there, and I just want to make sure I’ve covered all—yes. So, ultimately, this bill is another example of the National-led coalition Government’s focus on law and order, and I commend it to the House.

Tēnā koe e te Māngai o te Whare. We speak in support of this bill today. It’s a crucial step towards strengthening our child protection laws and also ensuring the safety of our tamariki. We stand firmly in support of this bill because, fundamentally, it is about safeguarding our children and providing a framework that enables that to keep occurring in New Zealand. We want to make sure that not only the Police, but other agencies within New Zealand have the appropriate tools to make sure our children and young people are kept as safe as they possibly can be—particularly if there are known sex offenders.

It is important to be clear that this bill is not about creating a new offence. It is about ensuring that individuals who have already been convicted of sex offences or serious crimes against children are appropriately monitored to prevent any further harm occurring within our communities. It tightens registration requirements, it increases reporting obligations, and it introduces necessary amendment to the Child Protection (Child Sex Offender Government Agency Registration) Act, which was passed back in 2016. These changes, we think, will improve the effectiveness of the Child Sex Offender Register and enhance the ability of both Police and Corrections to track and manage the risks that exist around known sex offenders.

The bill introduces a series of important changes, and I’ll quickly run through those. First of all, it expands the range of personal information that registered sex offenders must report. It now includes things like attending education or training courses; also, ensuring that authorities can assess whether a registered offender may pose any risk to children or young people in those settings.

Secondly, it requires earlier notice for a change in residence—this is an important one. Offenders will now be required to report that a child will be residing at the same address at least 48 hours before that in fact occurs, rather than 72 hours previously. This is a really important shift as it provides the ability for earlier intervention, risk assessment, and also notification to caregivers.

The third is enhancing the reporting requirements for travel—and I’d like to note that Labour member Greg O’Connor already had a member’s bill in this space. Registered offenders must now go and report their intended travel overseas at least seven days in advance, instead of the 48-hour requirement. They will also be required to report their return to New Zealand within 72 hours electronically, or they’re able to do this by telephone as well. That was opposed to the previous 10-day in-person requirement. So this ensures that authorities remain informed and can act swiftly if required to.

This bill also clarifies definitions and improves the administration of the register. It includes defining what constitutes the locality of offenders without a fixed address, and allowing notices to be served electronically, not just by post, which can cause unnecessary and needless delay. These changes improve efficiency and eliminate unnecessary delays in managing registered sex offenders.

The removing of the 28-day time limit for appealing registration decisions: there appeared to be no valid justification for limiting the ability of a person to challenge an error in their registration status. This amendment ensures that individuals have a right to a fair review, improving the integrity of the register. It’s important to note there has been some discussion around this, on the retrospective application and human rights considerations that we also considered at committee. We noted that the majority of these amendments do in fact have a retrospective effect, and that means they will not just apply to new people on the Sex Offender Register, but these changes will apply to all of those people already on the Sex Offender Register. We know that some argue that this raises concerns under the New Zealand Bill of Rights, particularly regarding freedom from double jeopardy and the right to benefit from a lesser penalty. Parliament did examine similar concerns in previous amendments to the Act and found that balancing public interest and protecting children outweighed these considerations.

The Ministry of Justice has noted the bill may also engage the right to freedom of expression under section 14 of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act due to the requirement for offenders to report certain types of information. However, these are necessary and proportionate if we want to put in adequate protections for children.

We support this bill, primarily because we want to put our children first and foremost and we want to prevent them from incurring any harm at all. We initiated this bill, and it’s good to see that it’s proceeded under this Government. The Government has made some minor tweaks, but, fundamentally, there’s a continuation of the same work that we started. While we acknowledge there will always be room for further improvements, we want to make sure that individuals who pose a risk to children are kept under a framework—that this provides—to reduce those risks as much as possible. This strengthens the existing framework that’s been working well, and it identifies gaps that are existing there. It also moves with modern times, to make sure that we are using electronic notifications to make sure that when a risk is being flagged, it’s being acted on as quickly as possible.

We support this bill because it prioritises the wellbeing of our most vulnerable: our children. It is our duty as MPs and legislators to do everything in our power to prevent harm from children and young people, and we’re definitely making a step in the right direction with this bill. We must always remember why we’re here, and we’re here to serve and protect the people of New Zealand, especially our children.

While it’s great to see this bill here, it would be great to see other great things provided to our children as well, like a hot, healthy lunch; like a warm, dry home; and making sure that their mums and dads earn enough money to be able to pay for the bills. Those things are also very important for tamariki growing up in New Zealand, just as it is to grow up in a home that’s free from violence. We still have a long way to go in all of those areas, but I commend this bill to the House.

Thank you, Mr Speaker. I rise in support of the Child Protection (Child Sex Offender Government Agency Registration) Amendment Bill in its second reading. The principal Act that this bill amends is the Child Protection (Child Sex Offender Government Agency Registration) Act, which was passed in 2016.

Essentially, if we were to just summarise what the purpose of this bill is, we’re trying to reduce sexual reoffending against children. We’re going to do that by establishing and maintaining a register of child sex offenders in a way that, as I said, reaches that goal of ours to reduce reoffending.

As I listened to commentary across the House—particularly from our Green MPs, there’s kōrero which they usually bring up: they question the effectiveness and the legitimacy of the child sex offender register. I do find that quite curious, because, to me, whatever avenues and whatever means we can put in place to protect our tamariki, we should be going full force with that.

Also, the Green member previously kind of complained about the fact that there are New Zealand Bill of Rights of Rights Act issues here. The complaint is that the bill, in one aspect, has a retrospective effect. For this, I thought about one of the submissions. That submission was a very short submission by Josephine Edmonds, and she said—which really tugged at my heartstrings—“Please protect all children who are harmed”.

Personally, in my view, I don’t really care if a few rights are breached if our children are protected. If people have done something to put our children in harm—I’m sorry, but, personally, I don’t care if a few rights are breached in our pursuit of keeping children protected. With that, I commend this bill to the House.

The next call is a split call.

Thank you, Mr Speaker. As has been said, Labour supports this bill for very good reasons. I think it’s really important to start a contribution by acknowledging the incredible harm that could be done to children and the incredible responsibility that we have as lawmakers to make sure that whilst we’re here, we are putting in place anything we can to minimise that harm and to create good legislation.

Looking at the four key points and the reasons why Labour will be supporting this bill, as has been said, certainly the improved information for risk assessment rates very highly. Expanding the information that offenders must report—like whether they attend education attendances or education forums or help authorities identify situations where children could be at risk and help them, certainly, to respond earlier rather than after the fact—is incredibly important.

Also, as has been noted earlier, the means by which we accommodate an earlier notification of when a child is in co-residence, moving from a post-arrival to a pre-arrival notification system, provides agencies with that requisite time that is required to do a much more robust and a much more proper risk-assessment process and take into account and take the necessary steps to protect children.

As my colleague the Hon Ginny Andersen said, strengthening the overseas travel requirements—we remember, only too well, the member’s bill that was in the name of our colleague Greg O’Connor, who sought something very similar to this, but this has been assumed by this bill. Requiring earlier and more flexible reporting of international travel ensures offenders are monitored appropriately both when entering and leaving a country, because it’s really important that, within one jurisdiction, there is an awareness of someone on the register or someone that should have an alert. The fact that they may travel, for various reasons, and, therefore, place children overseas in harm is something that we should most definitely have a responsibility for. This includes, I think, those new qualifying offences, such as exploitation for commercial sex or creation of intimate visual recordings. And that’s really important because it ensures that the register captures those really serious risk behaviours that previously weren’t explicitly specified, so it’s important that we do so.

The Justice Committee received 22 submissions and heard oral evidence from five submitters. The effectiveness of the register was questioned. Some called for a review of the register’s overall effectiveness, but the committee did note that, in 2019, there had been an evaluation and it did show that the register was working as intended. But, certainly, further research is under way, with a notable study being done by the University of Waikato, expected to be reported back in 2027. And a PhD researcher is doing a body of work which is expected to be reported back next year. Certainly, preliminary results show that there’s something as robust as a 40 to 70 percent reduction in likelihood of reoffending when they look at the effectiveness and the efficacy of that register, so that is something that absolutely we should be building on through this process of strengthening this legislation.

As has been mentioned, the retrospective application raises some concerns, as all retrospective elements do. In this case, it just simply wouldn’t make sense not to include those 4,000 people that are already on that register and expect there to be some retrospectivity in terms of monitoring that future behaviour.

There were also some suggestions about changes of wording, particularly in relation to those qualifying offences. But, in this case, the committee suggested, or certainly found, that those particular suggestions were out of scope and emphasised, I think quite correctly, the need to remain as consistent as we possibly can with the original legislation.

So Labour supports the bill as a continuation of the earlier work in our earlier efforts to enhance child-protection laws. The amendments, we find, are targeted. We think it is evidence based, which is incredibly important, and, ultimately, it helps ensure that the register remains exactly what it should be, and that is an effective tool for the management of the risk of reoffending.

E te Māngai o te Whare, nōku te maringanui i ia wā te tū i roto i tēnei Whare i tēnei wā kia tautoko ai i tēnei pire.

[It is my pleasure to stand in this House and to support this bill.]

The bill is the Child Protection (Child Sex Offender Government Agency Registration) Amendment Bill. It’s a good and very thoughtful piece of legislation, and a step forward. Can I acknowledge the detailed and excellent contributions of members across the House to this bill. Can I also acknowledge the broad support that the bill has at this stage. It’s always a pleasure to be part of a thoughtful and largely bipartisan legislative process.

Can I acknowledge my good friend and the chair of the Petitions Committee, Greg O’Connor, for the advocacy work that he has done in this space. It’s pleasing to see that work incorporated here. Can I also acknowledge the hard work of the Justice Committee, all the members therein, who have listened carefully to—I understand there were 22 submissions, with oral evidence provided by five submitters, and there were a number of very thoughtful contributions made there that have clearly made their way through to shaping the legislation. I very much look forward to the committee of the whole House, where we can consider the legislation in even more detail.

With this point, it is my pleasure to end my short call there and commend the bill to the House.

Kia orana, Mr Speaker. Look, it’s a pleasure to rise and take what will be, I’m sure, a short call in support of this bill. I want to acknowledge the work of members of the Justice Committee that considered the public submissions to this. Members have talked about the nature of the submissions and the numbers, so I won’t delve too far into that.

But when we step back and have a look at what this bill is seeking to do, it is seeking to expand the personal level of information that is provided for those who are on the register, but also the timeliness within which that information would be provided. My colleague Dr Tracey McLellan talked about the extension to qualifying offences, and there are a few there. The interesting point is that with the agility of technology and as times have changed, some of those qualifying offences, as defined, didn’t exist in their current form at the time this legislation was perhaps introduced. So I guess one of the questions moving forward is how the legislation and the register would respond to the changing dynamics that technology and a future focus might bring as well.

It’s interesting when one has a look at the select committee report into the various aspects that were covered off. What I think is quite pleasing is that the time frame or the window within which the information would be required to be provided by someone who was on the register is largely tightened. So whether it’s about notification as to when they were travelling overseas, instead of that being a 48-hour window prior to leaving, it’s seven days. Likewise, when they return to New Zealand, instead of it being a 10-day window, it’s 72 hours. So there are these little tweaks that I think will make a huge difference and will mitigate risks that might be posed. And, of course, it’s over to the agencies involved to consider those.

The final point I’ll make is it’s interesting when one reads about a sort of retrospective approach to things, because often it’s a concern where legislation is passed and it has a retrospective sort of dimension to it. And the Attorney-General, I understand, in her report, sort of signalled that as a concern. The difficulty, of course, is that with this bill, if a retrospective approach was not to be applied, then, basically, the level of information that would be provided for those who would, effectively, go on to the register after the date of commencement would be required to provide a more detailed level of information and to meet those time frames than those who are already on it. So I think it’s not an easy view for someone to set aside some of those concerns. But I think, on this particular occasion, those balanced considerations are justified to set them aside. So I join with other colleagues around the House in commending this bill to the House.

Thank you very much, Mr Speaker. As the last speaker on this bill at its second reading, it is a really good opportunity to reflect on the contributions we’ve heard this afternoon and previously, when the House was deliberating on the legislation as well, prior to being interrupted. It is good to hear good support from a variety of different political parties in this place looking to see that we are rectifying an issue in our society and that we’ve got the support of other parties to make that happen.

Credit to Mark Mitchell, the Minister of Police, for leading the legislation. Credit to colleagues of every political party who sit on the Justice Committee for their deliberation and hard work on this legislation, and to those who submitted to the legislation and gave oral submissions to the select committee as well.

Ultimately, the principal focus of this legislation is to reduce sexual reoffending and offending against children by establishing and maintaining a public register of child sex offenders. It’s a pretty basic, pretty straightforward, pretty simple thing that I can’t believe we don’t have already established in 2025, and so it’s a good thing to be stepping in that direction.

The good thing about this is the purpose of the bill to improve safety for children and young people in our communities. As the youngest member of the Government, that is close to my heart. It’s important that we make sure that for our next generations coming through, we have done everything we possibly can to give them the best possible opportunity at life by providing them the protection they need and deserve and the safety from those who commit heinous crimes against the most vulnerable in our community. This register will do exactly that. This is part of our wider focus as a Government to restore law and order in this country and ensure that everyone has the opportunity at life and can feel protected no matter their age or stage.

Ultimately, the bill will improve the effectiveness of the child sex offender register and help registry staff assess and manage the risks presented by child sex offenders living in the community, and that’s a good thing. It will ensure our vulnerable and our young people coming through are protected from those who commit these terrible crimes. Therefore, I commend the bill to the House.

Motion agreed to.

Bill read a second time.