What has the Government done for women?
Halfway through its term in office, this Government has not done enough for women.
It’s true that this Government is barely even out of nappies. But have its members been doing anything for the past 18 months, other than crawling round the floor of the Beehive shaking rattles at each other? Does Iain Lees-Galloway look good in a bonnet? Would Shane Jones be sharing his toys?
These are all important questions, and today I will attempt to answer them and others, such as: what has this Government achieved for gender equality?
In order to analyse this, I have collected a set of public promises made by various ministers and Labour itself, and tried to measure their progress. This list is not exhaustive, because I am a tired and busy woman who can only do so much, and getting a kick-arse haircut yesterday was pretty important.
So, to the scorecard. In no particular order.
1. MAKE LIFE EASIER FOR PARENTS
One of its first moves in office was to pass legislation extending paid parental leave from 18 to 22 weeks, and up to 26 weeks from July next year. It also brought in a tax credit of $60 per child, per week (after the parental leave runs out). It doesn’t need to be stated that this is awesome, and well overdue.
But it’s still not perfect. At the time it was passed, National MP Amy Adams suggested an amendment that would allow both parents to take leave at the same time, similar to countries like Germany and Sweden. Workplace Relations Minister Iain Lees-Galloway rejected this at the time, but told Newsroom in November 2017 he was generally supportive of the idea and had asked officials to look into including it in the law in January 2018. This has not been done.
Last week, he said: ‘‘Any changes to further expand parental leave to fathers or partners may be considered in the future, but we do have a very ambitious agenda for workplace relations and can’t do everything at once.’’
In early childhood education, Education Minister Chris Hipkins has overseen the drafting of a 10-year strategic plan that would see $3.5 billion invested in ensuring highly qualified teachers, better adult/ child ratios, and more quality monitoring.
Grade: 7/10. Not bad – room for improvement.
2. REFORM THE ABORTION LAW
Justice Minister Andrew Little requested a briefing paper from the Law Commission in February 2018 about proposed changes that would remove abortion from the Crimes Act.
Currently, thousands of women each year have to convince two certifying consultants that they are facing mental illness in order to have the procedure. The commission’s report was tabled in October, and three new legal models were presented.
I asked the Ministry of Justice how work on writing the new law was going. It said it hadn’t started it yet, as Little was still considering the report.
Grade: 6/10. How long does it take to read a briefing paper? Draft the bill, already.
3. PREVENT DOMESTIC AND SEXUAL VIOLENCE
Major steps have been taken in this area, with the passing of the
Family Violence (Amendments) Act and the new Family Violence Act. These introduced the new offences of strangulation or suffocation, assault on a family member, and coercion to marry. It also aims to improve access to protection orders, emergency police safety orders, and allow for more information-sharing between agencies.
Under the direction of UnderSecretary for Justice Jan Logie, the Government has set up a joint venture for family and sexual violence which will develop a national strategy and action plan. We’re not sure of the details yet, but here’s hoping the coming months bring some more certainty.
Grade: 8/10. Bold moves, let’s wait for the results.
4. FIX MATERNITY CARE
The Ministry of Health and the College of Midwives have been in what seems like a years-long deadlock trying to co-design a new funding model to take the pressure off overworked midwives. Basically, the college agreed to work with the ministry on a new design in exchange for the college dropping a pay equity claim.
Other senior officials then vetoed the $353 million plan, advising Health Minister David Clark to turn it down. He’s sent them all back to the drawing board, and the college has not ruled out further legal action if there’s no movement.
Meanwhile, maternity units are understaffed, parents struggle to find midwives, and babies still have to be delivered. Grade: 2/10. Might be the previous government’s mess, but the time for excuses is over. Sort it out.
5. STOP PENALISING SINGLE PARENTS
In November 2017, Social Development Minister Carmel Sepuloni talked a big game about repealing the part of the Social Security Act that imposes sanctions on sole parents who do not identify the other parent.
Currently, these parents – mostly women – have their welfare payments cut. The most common reason for not naming the father is family violencerelated.
This has still not been done. Last week, Sepuloni said she was committed to repealing this law during the Government’s first term. She had just received the report of the Welfare Expert Advisory Group, and would consider the change as part of a wider overhaul.
Grade: 4/10. Seems like a fairly simple change that Sepuloni publicly committed to. Get it done.
6. STOP TRANSGENDER DISCRIMINATION
The Labour Party committed to improving access to services and rights for transgender and intersex people, and make changes suggested by the Human Rights Commission after its inquiry into discrimination.
This included amending the Births, Deaths, Marriages and Relationships Registration Act 1995 to allow the self-declaration of gender rather than medical examination or family court processes. This all appeared to be progressing quite nicely until February, when Internal Affairs Minister Tracey Martin deferred the bill to deal with problems caused by the select committee process. She said significant changes were made without adequate public consultation, and legal implications needed to be fully considered.
Is it not the Government’s job to ensure this doesn’t happen? It’s inexcusable that transgender people, who have been pushing since at least 2007 for this law change, are now being told those in charge haven’t really thought about it properly. Meanwhile, the bigotry, misinformation, and sheer hatred that has been directed at the trans community by a vocal minority during this process has been disgusting. Thank God for Louisa Wall. Grade: 4/10. Let’s get things back on track.
7. IMPROVE PAY EQUITY
Law changes to prevent wage discrimination on the basis of sex and make it easier to take a pay equity claim are under way. The proposed bill acknowledges systemic gender inequality and empowers employees to raise grievances with workplaces instead of resorting to court action. It’s an important shift. Grade: 8/10. Looking good.
FINAL TALLY
Midway through its first term, this Government just slides through with a pass mark of 39/70, or 55 per cent, for work towards gender equality. That’s a C+.
While great gains have been made, there’s still work to be done. Let’s hope, by this time next year, we’ll be talking straight As.
How long does it take to read a briefing paper? Draft the bill, already.