Law changes to better protect people in care
The Government has proactively released information about law changes to better protect people in care - the Responding to Abuse in Care Legislation Amendment Bill.
Proactive release abuse in care legislation [PDF, 5.1 MB]
The Bill will make changes to the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989, Children’s Act 2014, Crimes Act 1961, and Public Records Act 2005. It will:
- remove strip searches of children in care and provide new search powers for people visiting youth justice facilities
- strengthen restrictions for people working with young children
- enforce better record keeping by Government agencies
- amend the Crimes Act to include disability in the definition of vulnerable adult.
The Social Services and Community Committee is now inviting submissions on the Responding to Abuse in Care Legislation Amendment Bill.
Public submissions for this Bill close 11.59pm, Wednesday 11 December 2024.
The submission process is to help the Select Committee improve the Bill.
You need to know:
- Written submissions are logged against the person or the organisation which submitted them. This information is publicly released unless you ask for it to be kept confidential.
- Written submissions are published in full. For this reason, you may wish to keep your name and the names of other people out of your written submission to protect privacy.
- If you wish to include information of a private or personal nature in your written submission please contact Select Committee staff to discuss your options before you submit.
- You can contact the Select Committee staff if you want to speak to the Select Committee but do not want to make a written submission.
- If you wish to speak to the Select Committee about your submission, please state this clearly and advise them of accessibility needs.
To find out how to make a submission visit:
Proactively released papers
In the proactively released documents you will find information about the Responding to Abuse in Care Legislation Amendment Bill.
The Cabinet Social Outcome Committee papers on policy for the Bill
- Initial legislative changes in response to the Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry
- SOU-24-MIN-0119, Social Outcomes Committee Minute, 25 September 2024
- Appendix One – Technical detail of proposed changes to the Oranga Tamariki Act
- Appendix Two – Offences listed in Schedule 2 of the Children’s Act that apply to the workforce restriction on core workers
- CAB-24-MIN-0380, Cabinet Minute, 27 September 2024
The Cabinet Legislation Committee papers approving the Bill
- LEG-24-SUB-0223, Cabinet Legislation Committee, Summary paper
- Responding to Abuse in Care Legislation Amendment Bill: Approval for Introduction
- LEG-24-MIN-0223, Cabinet Legislation Committee Minute, 7 November 2024
- CAB-24-MIN-0431, Cabinet Minute, 11 November 2024
Proactive release abuse in care legislation [PDF, 5.1 MB]
Other materials
You can find the Bill and the Disclosure Statement on the Parliamentary website: Bills (proposed laws) - New Zealand Parliament(external link) (Appendix A and B to the Cabinet Legislation Committee papers)
You can find the Regulatory Impact Statement on the Ministry for Regulation website: Regulatory impact statements (RISs) - Ministry for Regulation(external link)
Summary of redactions:
Section 9(2)(j) – to enable a Minister of the Crown or any public service agency or organisation holding the information to carry on, without prejudice or disadvantage, negotiations:
- Parts of paragraph 71.1 of Cabinet paper – Initial legislative changes in response to the Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry
- Parts of paragraph 71.2 of Cabinet paper – Initial legislative changes in response to the Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry
- Parts of paragraph 72 of Cabinet paper – Initial legislative changes in response to the Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry
Not relevant to the work of the Crown Response to the Abuse in Care Inquiry:
- Other papers noted in CAB-24-MIN-0380 and CAB-24-MIN-0431.
