Barry Soper: Senior Political Correspondent on historic apology to those abused in state care, Wellington City Council observer starts tomorrow

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon issued a historic official apology to the estimated 200,000-plus people who were abused in state and faith-based care institutions over decades. 

Plus, Lindsay McKenzie has been appointed as Wellington City Council’s Crown observer and starts the job tomorrow. 

And, the ACT party is supporting removing a broadcasting allocation from taxpayer funding in the lead-up to an election. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Barry Sober, senior political correspondence with US.

Speaker 2 (00:02):
Now, Hey, Barry, good afternoon. Hither of course Trumpy wouldn't
have talked about Jasinda Dern to Chris Luckson when he
told him this morning, because look, the first meeting I
went to with Jacinda Drn overseas, and that was to
APEX in Vietnam, not long after she became Prime Minister
Trump he locked at her and mistaken her for Justin
Trudeau's what yees.

Speaker 3 (00:23):
So it's entirely possible he hasn't realized she was the
Prime Minister of New Zealand, which is probably US dodging
a bollot with It'll be honest about.

Speaker 4 (00:29):
It, hey, grim day in parliament and I am.

Speaker 2 (00:33):
It was about two hundred survivors were in the public
galleries in Parliament watching from above as one of them
was disruptive, but that was from Tamaki's party and he's
disrupted politicians before. But certainly Chris Luckson was saying sorry
a lot, and he was sorry that they weren't believed

(00:57):
when they came forward with their complaints. Here's the Prime
Minister at the start of his speech today.

Speaker 5 (01:02):
I stand before you as the representative of not only
this government, but of all the governments that have gone
before us, to offer a formal and unreserved apology for
the abuse that you suffered while in state care, churches
and other faith based places. It was horrific, it was heartbreaking,

(01:24):
It was wrong and it should never have happened. For
many of you. It changed the course of your life
and for that the government must take responsibility.

Speaker 2 (01:34):
So it was a very somber Parliament this afternoon and
they rose after they introduced that peace of legislation. The
views of abuse and state care over the decades were
many and buried from the politicians today. They described the
abuse as things that it's so difficult for the young

(01:57):
and the vulnerable over the years, just in recent years.
The debate was led off by Erica Stanford from National.
It was followed by Labour's Carmel Sepoloni and then by
the Greens Chloe Swarbrick. Here they are in that order.

Speaker 3 (02:10):
Some survivors did not live to hear this House state
clearly and unequivocally that what happened to them was wrong
and admit the failings of the state in turning a
blind eye, having an inadequate safeguarding and complaints processes, failing
to properly investigate perpetrators of abuse, and in some instances
colluding to cover up what happened.

Speaker 4 (02:31):
As a New Zealand born Pacific person, born and raised
in the church, it sickens me to think that the
religion that I grew up practicing sat as a front
to the most evil practices of abuse against children and
vulnerable adults.

Speaker 6 (02:49):
The system of power and secrets which enabled at least
a quarter of a million Maury who there tamadikin Rangatahi
to be abused through decades, was brought to this land
and established through colonization and oppression. The abuse in state care,
mister speaker, has filled our prisons and grown gang numbers.

(03:11):
That is what the state is responsible for.

Speaker 2 (03:15):
Yeah. So the views, as I said, there were many
and varied, but it was somber. They rose at four
o'clock this afternoon, and no doubt they'll be mixing with
the people that gathered in the public galleries today.

Speaker 4 (03:29):
So the Wellington observer stantces tomorrow, isn't he?

Speaker 2 (03:32):
Oh, yes he does, Lindsay McKenzie. He was appointed, of
course as the observer to sit in some would say
the minister's nark at the Wellington City Council. Well Wellington
married Tory Farawl, aforementioned by you, doesn't believe having an
observer will be as dramatic as people think. Certainly, he's
there to sort through what is seen as a dysfunctional council.

(03:56):
Tory Farnel doesn't see it as a vote of no
confidence in her though in her leadership certainly, and says
counselors have been getting along better since the government stepped
in here. She is on Newstalk ZB with Nick Mills
this morning.

Speaker 1 (04:10):
It will never be perfect, is what I'd say, and
that's due to the personalities that are in the room.
You know, when you disagree so fundamentally on things like
you know, values, policies and or so forth, it's going
to cause tension, It's going to be robust, will never
be best friends. And that's probably something I was naive

(04:32):
about when I first started as mayor.

Speaker 2 (04:35):
That she most certainly was. Do you see she's joining
the he que? Yeah, I heard you say that. I
think that is just chose that her judgment is what
should not be as the mayor of the capital city.

Speaker 3 (04:49):
Well, it's ridiculus just continued, naivety doesn't protesting totally.

Speaker 1 (04:53):
Hey, really quickly run me through this.

Speaker 4 (04:54):
What's going on with act wanting to wanting to buy
television ads?

Speaker 2 (04:57):
Well, it's been a report back of the Justice Select
Committee inquiry into the election last year and they say
that the government should consider whether broadcasting allocation should be
removed and the lead up to an election, that's where
the taxpayer pays for elections on sorry our ads on

(05:17):
television and radio. Now certain the actors in favor of that.
It's been opposed by Labor and the Greens, though not
surprising considering they were the paupers essentially, although they did
raise a bit, but they were the paupers when it
came to voluntary donations and that's what Acts are arguing
that it should be on voluntary donations are not hampering.

Speaker 4 (05:40):
Because the Acts were loaded at the last election.

Speaker 2 (05:44):
Right, so the government so was national to right.

Speaker 4 (05:47):
Barry, Thanks very much appreciated, Barry Soper, Senior political correspondent.

Speaker 2 (05:51):
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