The Abuse in Care Inquiry and this week in Parliament w/ Labour’s Carmel Sepuloni: 25 July, 2024

Yesterday the Abuse in Care Inquiry was released to the public. It came with a set of formal recommendations, including a suggestion for a formal apology from the government, compensation, and new legislation to do with mandatory reporting. 

Labour Leader Chris Hipkins also acknowledged Labour’s role in beginning the inquiry and their response to the 2021 interim report, stating, “We didn't do enough and the ball now falls to you and your government.” He added that “this must be bigger than politics.”

And Data released last week showed the number of benefit sanctions being issued by the government is up 50% compared to this time last year. This has been met with criticism but the Minister for Social Development says the sanctions are because the government is serious about getting people into work.

For our weekly catch-up with the Labour Party, Wire Host Caeden asks about both of these topics, as well as a bill that was dumped yesterday because the Minister failed to turn up to its first reading. 

They started by asking about the number of benefit sanctions.