15 November 2012

Bill establishes Special Inquiry into data breaches

The Electronic Data Safety Bill will establish a Special Commission of Inquiry into the spate of disastrous data breaches across government, says Labour’s Communications and It spokesperson Clare Curran.

“The huge data breaches at MSD, ACC and IRD are an information omnishambles for the Government. They are incapable of applying basic security to our private information.

“We know at least 15,000 people have had their privacy breached in the past year alone but the Government is doing very little to address the issue.

“The confidence of the public has been deeply shaken, if not lost. Confidence must be restored and a Special Commission of Inquiry is the only way.

“There are fundamental concerns about IT governance and accountability as well as the wider government attitude to privacy that must be addressed.

“This bill will do that and I call on all parties to support it.”

ends

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World Refugee Day:
Are We Doing Our Bit?

On World Refugee Day, Thursday June 20th, Doing Our Bit will officially launch a campaign to double New Zealand’s UNHCR Refugee Resettlement Quota...

New Zealand’s low refugee intake is not a new issue. In February a NZ Herald editorial commented that our intake was ‘paltry’, remarking that ‘surely we could do more’. In April, Amnesty International described the quota as ‘tiny'.

“Despite being a small country in the middle of the South Pacific, New Zealand prides itself on being hospitable. We are friendly to overseas visitors and we see ourselves as punching above our weight in international affairs,” said Murdoch Stephens, coordinator of Doing Our Bit.

“However, in terms of accepting refugees New Zealand is clearly not doing our share.” More>>