to do is to ensure that person gets the help that they need. That is
what this piece of legislation
at its heart will do. Louisa Wall
what this piece of legislation at its heart will do. Louisa Wall Thank
you for the opportunity to
contribute in this
debate about the Domestic Violence
Protection Bill. I do want to provide some context for
the relevance of this bill,
particularly to women. So a third of New Zealand
women suffer
women suffer from family and domestic violence, a third. Let's
ponder that.
domestic violence, a third. Let's
women have had some form of sexual assault in their lifetime.
women have had some form of sexual
men. The police respond to 120,000 family violence incidents every year
and apparently
family violence incidents every year
violence incidents are not reported, so the actual number is close to
nearly 500,000 incidents.
Context matters. The reason I quote
that is because this
matters. The reason I quote that is
and I do want to focus on 69 A
Which is what this bill is trying to do, is to provide a statutory right
to victims, people
who are affected by family and domestic violence to
be able to deal with the effects
as employees. So
employees. So let Australia ponder that.
employees. So let Australia ponder that. Evidence before the select
committee from groups such as
The University of Auckland, ANZ,
Countdown, The Warehouse, these
are employers that in some form
Countdown, The Warehouse, these are
haven't required the government to tell them the implement these
policies. They have
Because, from their perspective, it saves them money and resources,
sick leave, they can tally up the
turnover of staff,
unexplained absences and the reality for
the businesses that present to the
select committee is this
makes economic sense to them.
select committee is this makes economic sense to them. To
actually invest and their employees, I
just want to focus on
69 A
domestic violence may make a request at
domestic violence may make a request
to deal with the effects of the employee being a pen affected by
want us to think about that concept is actually we are asking
people to disclose and we have
completely ignored the fact of those
disclose and we have completely
family violence incidents that don't get reported because these
are people who will
not tell anybody. They keep it a secret. I managed to
find a piece of research called Help
Seeking Amongst Women Survivors of
Domestic Violence. It was a
qualitative study of pathways
between formal and informal support.
What that piece of research has
said is that domestic violence
and disclosure is a long journey
of ambivalence. It is a journey
of being anxious, being depressed,
the other finding in this piece of research was that many women
needed an enabler. They needed someone or
disclose and guess what happens when women disclose family
get help. They can stop the cycle because they are strong
enough within a context that they know will
support them to disclose and,
in fact, that is
what this piece of legislation is going to enable us to
do. It will completely change
the game. For the oppositions
not to realise how significant this piece
of legislation is incredibly sad.
The other thing that is very clear
is because this provision
is specifically for victims of family
violence there is a
specific need for family violence leave.
violence there is a specific need for family violence leave. So Mark
Mitchell's SOP that wants
to convert annual leave and sick
leave into a de facto family violence leave
completely undermines the whole
purpose and intention of
this piece of legislation. This SOP
speaks volumes about the opposition's
solution. This compelete live undermines the
undermines the credibility, Mr Chair. Louisa Wall. Completely
undermines the credibility of the
opposition. So I would like
them to actually think about what they
are going to do in the third reading,
actually. I will be presumptive and
think, we will get through this
phase of the process of making this
very good piece
phase of the process of making this
piece of legislation because if you really want to help and be
part of the solution, then go and talk
to all of those business owners that
you are scaremongering
and saying that you are opposing this
bill because you don't want
to impose extra costs on them. Actually,
go and talk to them. Maybe all of
you should go and talk to 10 businesses
in your electorates and actually get
some evidence and get
some voices from the community. I was part of
the process. I was on the
last committee that heard
all of these submissions. I've had an
intimate knowledge of this piece of
legislation and the evidence that
has been presented to
the House about this piece of legislation. So,
more evidence and make an informed
this piece of legislation actually is Suzanne Snively said,
is so historic. She put this up with women
getting the vote in New Zealand. 125
years of women's suffrage in New
Zealand this year. What
a wonderful way for us, as a society, to put on
the table actually
the status of women in this country and the
reality is too many women
are victims of family violence and if we
really want to change it then we
do need society systems approach to
ensuring that people can
disclose, as I said before. Get the help that
they need. Also for the children of
those families to
get the support that they need, too. Unfortunately,
I think the missing in all of this
are our kids who have to grow up
living in households where they
witness this violence. They
internalise it. They go to schools.
We have got big issues of bullying.
Anyone who has been visiting their
schools in the
recesses or on Mondays and Fridays when we
are not here and if you haven't been
told that we have got behavioural issues,
ish shoeses of bullying in
our schools, then actually
aren't constructively engaging with some
of the issues that our
principals and our teachers are having to deal
with. That doesn't come
from nowhere. That comes from a culture
and a society
where we have internalised violence and made it an
acceptable and normal part of how we
deal with each
other as human beings. So, I do implore the
Opposition to please look further at
the evidence because I think it
would be a wonderful thing, if you
are only two SOPs to this House,
Mark Mitchell wanting to get
rid of the 10 days and allow to use holiday
leave and special leave
for domestic violence leave and if the other part
is you want MB to engage in
an education process and
I quite clearly heard the Minister
say that an implementation plan
is already under way and that will be an
absolute part of what the government
will do, in terms of disseminating
this legislation and
what businesses are required to do and the MB will
work with those businesses
then there actually doesn't seem to
me to be a reason why the
National Party will not support this bill.
So, let's have and continue to have a
constructive discussion and dialogue. That is
what committee stage debates are all about, but I
just finally would like to commend
Jan Logie in her work and
working with New Zealand First and working
with the Greens and working
with the Labour Party to present an SOP
that actually fulfils all of
Labour Party to present an SOP that requirements and also we have
had other SOPs tabled
from Clayton Mitchell and I guess that offer is
still there. Obviously, one of
those SOPs is off the table. Well,
both are, actually. If
the National Party want to come up with another one and
consult with the minute tonight
maybe there is city time. I
don't know, it might
maybe there is city time. I don't
member in charge of the bill, but I do implore them to change their
position because it
would be wonderful to see all of
Parliament supporting this
supporting this piece of legislation. Do the right thing
and try and actually end the
rates of family violence that we see in
New Zealand today. Kia ora. The Hon
Andrew Little. Thank you,
Mr Chairman. It is a great pleasure
and honour to take the stage on this
very important piece of legislation
Protection Bill and, like my colleague who has just spoken,
Louisa Wall, I would also like to
acknowledge and pay tribute
to the author and champion of
this bill and, indeed, of this cause, Jan
Logie, who is an