Willow-Jean Prime: Labour Spokesperson for Children criticises Chris Luxon's lack of knowledge about bootcamp legislation

Labour's criticising the Prime Minister regarding his knowledge of legislation on bootcamps. 

The Government is crafting law to allow the use of force for restraining youth offenders at the military-style academies.

The Prime Minister has said he wasn't aware there were suggestions force could be used. 

Labour MP Willow-Jean Prime says that's not okay.

"It is deeply concerning that the Prime Minister is not across the details of one of the key National Party election policies, which is boot camps."

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Now the Prime Minister is copying it for not being
across as brief. So this morning it was on with
Mike Costing. Mike asked him about the decision to give
the boot camp staff the right to use force outside
of the boot camps. This was his answer, It's not
something I've been briefed on. It's not something that I'm
aware of. It's not something that I would should be
involved in. Those closest to it should make those calls. Yeah,
except it was something he was involved in a because
it was a decision that was taken by Cabinet which

(00:21):
he's the chair of. Now Willow Jene Prime is Labour
spokesperson for Children with US. Now, hello, Willow Jeane killed
that what do you may give him apparently not remembering
the decision that he's actually helped to make.

Speaker 2 (00:33):
It's deeply concerning that the Prime Minister is not across
the details of one of the key National Party election policies,
which is boot camps and the serious Young Offender category.
And it's deeply concerning because this is about children, and
the fact that he is not across the details on
policy decisions that they are making as a real concern

(00:56):
now as.

Speaker 1 (00:57):
To the actual substance here. Do you have a problem
with them extending the permission to use force, which already
exists inside the camps to outside the camps.

Speaker 2 (01:06):
Yes, that is a concern that many have. Because those
not many, I want.

Speaker 1 (01:10):
To know what you think. Do you have that concern?

Speaker 2 (01:13):
So, I, along with the Children's Commissioner and other MPs
that have spoken today for tipkins, we all have concerns
about the extension of these powers to thood party providers
in boot camps. If government has this problem because they
have created boot camps that legislation doesn't currently provide for this.

(01:33):
In order for them to be able to deliver their
program that they want to, they are having to look
at the extension outside of our centers of detention and
giving powers to people who are not don't currently have
those powers to be able to use force on children.

Speaker 1 (01:51):
Yeah, but so what's the problem? I mean these well,
a gene, these are not cool kids. They're not good kids, right,
They're not kids with good manners and good behavior. They
are problematic kids. And if they want to go and
have a nor hall at the Marii, then the MARII
staff have to be able to restrain them. If they
try to smack other kids around.

Speaker 2 (02:08):
Right. The issue here, Heather, is that there are currently
no safeguards in place, There are no protection mechanisms, there
are no details around the faith guarding of this. The
boot camps are already an experiment.

Speaker 1 (02:25):
We have no, no, Jean, I don't stop stop making it.
Stop making us bigger than it is. Talk to me
about this. Do you seriously think that one of these
kids who is like liable for ten years in jail
should be able to go and stay the night of
the Marii and those staff there have no ability to
use force and restrain them if they start bashing the staff.

Speaker 2 (02:45):
The issue that we have here, Heather, is that the
government has absolutely no details in their cabinet paper about
the safeguards that need to be put in place, who
ensure the very real risk of abuse happening, the abuse
of this power happening, that they have not see this power.

Speaker 1 (03:04):
You tell me how you see this power being abused?
How is this power going to be abused?

Speaker 2 (03:10):
So as we have evidence from the Royal Commission, this.

Speaker 1 (03:14):
Is not the nineteen seventies Willow Jeane. We're talking about now,
we're talking about really naughty kids, talking about very very
bad kids going to stay somewhere as a privilege, and
how is this going to be abused against them? The
ability to restrain them, how is it going to be abused?

Speaker 2 (03:28):
So the Royal Commission will tell you that these were
very naughty kids who needed to be obtained in the
past and who were abused in those facilities. What they
have recommended and found in that report and recommended is
that there needs to be appropriate safeguards put in place
to ensure that abuse cannot happen in these settings. And

(03:50):
what we are saying is from the cabinet paper that
has been leaked, there are absolutely no details around the
safeguarding provisions. The Children's Commissioner has consumed there are no
details that she has not been consulted, that children's rights
are not being considered in the development of this policy
and I share those concerns.

Speaker 1 (04:10):
All right, Hey, thank you for articulating that. Appreciated as
Willow Gene, Prime Labor spokesperson for Children. For more from
Heather Duplessy, Allen Drive, listen live to news talks that'd
be from four pm weekdays, or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.