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Introduction

Take care of our children, take care of what they hear, take care of what they see, take care of what they feel.

For how the children grow, so will be the shape of Aotearoa.

The work I introduce today is for the broken and the neglected, for those children that need us most as parents, neighbours, practitioners, politicians, and carers and as New Zealanders.

To honour Dame Whina Cooper's words; this is a new way of caring for our most vulnerable children.

E nga mana, e nga reo, e te iwi o te motu, tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katoa

I would like to acknowledge the Dean of Medicine Sunny Collins and Otago University Wellington for generously hosting us this evening and the Health and Disability Panel for their advice and expertise.

E nga mana, e nga reo, e te iwi o te motu, tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katoa. Good afternoon.

I would like to acknowledge some of those people who have been instrumental in this agreement being forged between Ngapuhi and Child, Youth and Family.

From Ngapuhi can I acknowledge the Chairman, Sonny Tau and Chief Executive, George Riley. Here today from Child, Youth and Family can I also acknowledge Deputy Chief Executive, Bernadine Mackenzie and General Manager of Operations, Marama Edwards.

The welfare system has not been working as it could. It has allowed too many to become trapped in an intergenerational cycle of dependence.

There are more than 317,000 people on welfare right now. Add to that the 220,000 children living in welfare dependent homes and there are more than half a million New Zealanders reliant on welfare in any given week.

This Government is transforming the welfare system into one that is modern, active and responsible because currently it is passive, out of date and quite frankly it is failing us.

It is a pleasure to be here to speak to you all.

I hope you have had a successful conference to date and that you have shared ideas, problems and solutions.

I admire the work you do in our communities. There are moments in my job when I sincerely feel the pull to be working at the grass roots level.

But we all have our roles to play and thank you for the important role you play.

They say that this is the worst time to be speaking to a conference - after lunch, before an audience with full tummies who might nod off.

The welfare system is failing New Zealanders.

It has created a cycle of dependency that has 12 percent of working age New Zealanders on benefits, directly affecting more than 220,000 children.

The system, I say, is failing them.

And it is out of step with today’s needs because times have changed.

Today we have teenagers on welfare who have been given a weekly sum of money and just left to get on with it.

E nga mana, e nga reo, e te iwi o te motu, tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katoa.

Thank you for this opportunity to speak to you all. It’s great to be here.

Today I’d like to spend a bit of time talking about:

•    our current welfare system
•    welfare reform
•    what it means for people with disabilities

Our welfare system is failing you. And worse, it is failing the people you work with.