The Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry will issue reports, including recommendations for change, throughout its four-year life. The Government intends to start work on those recommendations as they are made.
The Royal Commission’s interim report on redress, He Purapura Ora, he Māra Tipu – From Redress to Puretumu Torowhānui, was publicly released(external link) on 15 December 2021. The Royal Commission recommends the creation of a single independent holistic redress system, puretumu torowhanui.
The Government has agreed [PDF, 1.5 MB] (external link)to develop an integrated, independent system that acknowledges the harm and trauma people have experienced and supports them to improve their wellbeing. In a joint statement(external link) by the Minister for the Public Service (Hon Chris Hipkins) and the Minister of Internal Affairs (Hon Jan Tinetti), Minister Hipkins said,
“The Government has listened to the concerns expressed by survivors, and we acknowledge the Royal Commission’s findings that there have been failings in the Crown’s approach to providing redress. We are therefore making an immediate and clear commitment to change.
The new system will be designed from the ground up in collaboration with Māori, who were heavily over-represented in State and faith-based care. The collaborative design will also be guided by the views of survivors and key communities, including Pacific peoples and disabled people.”
Discussions will begin in early 2022 with key interested parties on options for how the collaborative design process could work, before the detailed design process begins in mid-2022. Views or material on how the design process should operate or on puretumu torowhānui more broadly can be sent to the Crown Response at contact@abuseinquiryresponse.govt.nz
For now, nothing will change for survivors whose claims are being, or have been, processed by the existing historic claims' agencies. There will be early work done on urgent actions flagged by the Royal Commission. Claims agencies will let survivors know any changes affecting their claims in plenty of time. The design process will ensure that no-one is disadvantaged by the introduction of the new system.
This page will be updated as work progresses.
