Family Commission - reality bites

The PR spin sounds good, but the reality is that the bureaucracy created by this United Future payback won’t make a skerrick of difference to the majority of New Zealand families, says National Social Services Spokesperson Katherine Rich.

“This Commission is little more than payback to United for their support of Government. At $10 million that’s a hefty pay cheque.

“National has long established its credentials as a believer, and supporter, of the critical importance of families as the cornerstone of a stable and well-functioning society.

“There are two main reasons why the Commission for the Family will fail to offer real assistance to families in general, and needy families in particular.

“One is that deep down, Labour and United have totally different views on what constitutes a family, and ultimately, this lack of a clear definition will be the Achilles heel of the whole Commission. Every person in New Zealand is a member of a family of sorts.

“The second reason is that this Commission sets up another bureaucracy, taking scarce resources and duplicating good work done by the Ministry of Social Development, which the government has always professed to be its policy machine,” Mrs Rich said.

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