Media statement

Wednesday 5 September, 2007

Dunne: Good parenting the key to putting children first

UnitedFuture leader, Peter Dunne, says promoting good parenting is the best way to put children’s interests first.

Speaking at the annual conference of Every Child Counts in Wellington this afternoon, Mr Dunne expressed UnitedFuture’s full support for the group and its objective to place children at the centre of policy and planning.

“This also happens to be a core value for UnitedFuture,” he said.

“We will achieve this through increasing the availability of and access to one-stop shop Family Service Centres; boosting support for kinship caregivers like Grandparents Raising Grandchildren; encouraging and normalising parenting programmes and relationship education; and promoting more flexible working hours.

“UnitedFuture believes every child deserves the best start in life through affordable housing; better recognition of the contribution of the stay at home parent through either income splitting for tax purposes, or a home-carers allowance; and the promotion of shared parenting arrangements where necessary.

“As Minister of Revenue and in accordance with our confidence and supply agreement with the government, I am planning to release a government discussion paper on income splitting and household income generally, in April next year, and I am presently looking at shared parenting arrangements under the Child Support scheme,” he said.

Mr Dunne said UnitedFuture strongly supported the Families Commission programme to stop family violence, and called for more active early intervention with clearly identifiable at risk families.

“If we do not intervene early to stop disadvantage and family violence in the interests of ensuring every child gets the best possible start in life, we will most certainly be intervening later, when that child becomes either a client or victim,” he said.

ENDS

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