Volume 16 – Issue 1 – February 2020 FOCUS ON Family wellbeing Engaging Children and Young People in the Policy Process: Realising treaty-based protection in Aotearoa’s lessons learned from the development of the Child child welfare system – Claire Achmad 40 and Youth Wellbeing Strategy – Kelsey Brown, Luke Fitzmaurice, Kiri Milne and Donna Provoost 3 Enhancing long-term governance – Parliament’s vital Supporting Child Wellbeing: a health assessment oversight role tool for the Hamilton Children’s Team – Jonathan Boston, David Bagnall – Polly Atatoa Carr, Sneha Sadani, Jesse Whitehead, and Anna Barry 43 Deanne McManus-Emery, Tanya Parsonson and Jolanda Roe 10 Catastrophic Risk from Rapid Developments in Artificial Should Surrogate Pregnancy Arrangements be Enforceable Intelligence: what is yet to be addressed and how might in Aotearoa New Zealand? – Rhonda M. Shaw 18 New Zealand policymakers respond? – Matt Boyd and Nick Wilson Lessons from Child Welfare: why accountability 53 to ministers cannot meet the needs of public Sea Level Rise and Local Government: policy gaps legitimacy. – Len Cook 26 and opportunities – Vanessa James, Catherine Iorns and Patrick Gerard Four essays on the child welfare system 62 Child protection, capitalism and the settler state: Valuing Impacts – the contribution of CBAx to rethinking the social contract – Ian Hyslop 34 improved policy practices – Kirsten Jensen and The case for an inequalities perspective in Christopher Thompson 67 child protection – Emily Keddell 36 Towards a New Public Ethics Child welfare: a perfect storm? – Michael Macaulay 77 – David Hanna 39 Editorial In October 2017, the Labour party formed a coalition surrogate or egg donors. On the one hand, legislation government with a mandate to address child poverty should protect both the surrogates and future and with aspirations to make New Zealand the best parents in a surrogacy arrangement. On the other, place in the world to be a child. Towards this aim, the the reasons why women volunteer to be surrogates or Volume 16 – Issue 1 – February 2020 ensuing Child Poverty Reduction Act (2018) legislated donate eggs may result in unintended consequences Policy Quarterly (PQ) is targeted at readers that current and future governments set child poverty from well-meaning policy. in the public sector, including politicians and rate targets and report on their progress, and a In terms of family disruption, the conversation their staff, public servants and a wide variety corresponding amendment to the Children’s Act over the role of the State in family reached a of professions, together with others interested (2014) required governments to devise and publish deafening level in 2019. As wha-nau and families in public issues. Its length and style are intended to make the journal accessible to periodic child wellbeing strategies. released shocking videos of their babies being busy readers. In their article in this issue of Policy Quarterly, removed from maternity wards within hours and Submissions: The journal welcomes Kelsey Brown and Donna Provoost of the Office of the days of birth, Oranga Tamariki was undergoing contributions of about 4,000 words, written Children’s Commissioner and Luke Fitzmaurice and another burst of change through amendments on any topic relating to governance, public Kiri Milne of Oranga Tamariki discuss the process passed under the Children’s and Young People’s policy and management. Articles submitted will be peer reviewed. Please submit articles by which children were included in the process of Well-being Act (1989)/Oranga Tamariki Act (1989). to the Editor: [email protected]. developing the nation’s first child and youth wellbeing These changes mandated Oranga Tamariki to Although issues will not usually have single strategy. Importantly, throughout this engagement ‘recognise and provide a practical commitment to themes, special issues may be published from process they discovered that children’s ideas around the principles of The Treaty of Waitangi’ and placed time to time on specific or general themes, their own wellbeing and the role of the government in wha-nau, hapu-ū, and iwi considerations at the centre perhaps to mark significant events. In such - cases, and on other occasions, contributions supporting them, rest on the wellbeing and support of of tamariki Maori wellbeing. These two factors shed may be invited from particular people. their family and wha-nau. light on the historical roots and current patterns of Subscriptions: The journal is available in A conundrum exists, however. Addressing ethnic inequity within the child welfare system and PDF format on the Institute for Governance the legislative mandate aimed at addressing them. and Policy Studies (IGPS) website: https:// child poverty is more publicly (and hence likely www.victoria.ac.nz/igps/policy-quarterly. more politically) acceptable than supporting family To that end, Len Cook discusses the crisis of Readers who wish to receive it by email wellbeing. While a large majority (80%) of citizens Ma-ori perception of the legitimacy of Oranga Tamariki should register as PQ subscribers igps@vuw. agree that child poverty is a problem in New Zealand, as a state actor and adjudicator of child risk. He does ac.nz. This service is free. opinions on the causes are split. An equal portion of so with an historical and current statistical portrait For all subscription and membership enquiries please email [email protected] or New Zealanders (40%) believe that child poverty is of inequities in the child welfare system, offering a post to Institute for Governance and Policy due to bad parenting and choices versus structural pathway forward through greater data transparency, Studies, P.O. Box 600, Wellington. factors, such as poor jobs, unaffordable housing, state accountability, and whūnau partnership. Electronic Access: The IGPS directs and inequality (Child Poverty Action Group, 2014). Continuing the discussion and building off a interested individuals to its website: seminar series hosted by Victoria University of www.igps.victoria.ac.nz where details of the A perceived tension arises, then, when children Institute’s publications and upcoming events stress that their wellbeing rests on the support their Wellington’s School of Government in 2019, seminar can be found. family receives, yet supporting families (vs. children speakers Emily Keddell, Ian Hyslop, David Hanna, Permission: In the interest of promoting directly) may be less palatable to the general public. and Claire Achmad offer their reflections on the debate and wider dissemination, the Given this context, policies and programmes that are state of the child welfare system. While each brings IGPS encourages use of all or part of the articles appearing in PQ, where there is no child-centred, yet empower and benefit families and their unique perspective from academic disciplines, element of commercial gain. Appropriate wha-nau, may be particularly important in the policy practice, and advocacy, a current thread points to the acknowledgement of both author and source toolkit. historical roots of ethnic inequities prevalent today, should be made in all cases. The IGPS Polly Atatoa Carr and colleagues demonstrate one and a call for structural, systems-wide reform that retains copyright. Please direct requests such child-centred initiative that can lead to greater involves a wha-nau-centred approach to caring for for permission to reprint articles from this - publication to [email protected]. family and whanau wellbeing. The Hamilton Children’s and supporting children at risk of harm. Editor: Jonathan Boston Team was established to support early intervention The articles in this special issue, while heavily Guest Editor: Kate Prickett among families at-risk of involvement with Oranga focused on some of the most vulnerable tamariki Editorial Board: Maria Bargh, Cheryl Barnes, Tamariki. This cross-sector approach displayed the in Aotearoa New Zealand, highlight the centrality Roger Blakeley, David Bromell, Simon - Chapple, Jo Cribb, Girol Karacaoglu, Gerald power of constructing a multi-faceted response to of family and whanau wellbeing in stemming the Minnee, Gail Pacheco, Anneliese Parkin, children’s needs in ways that empowered families systemic inequities in child poverty and state care. Kate Prickett, Mike Reid, Tim Ng, Andrea and has potential to enhance their independence and Supporting children involves shifting the public and Schollmann, Conal Smith, Mämari Stephens wellbeing. Importantly, this programme was targeted policy discourse in ways that recognises the primacy and Julia Talbot-Jones ISSN: 2324-1098 (Print) at families with multiple, complex and oft-thought of family wellbeing. ISSN: 2324-1101 (Online) intractable challenges. Volume 16, Issue 1 – February 2020 A closely connected challenge for policy-makers Kate Prickett Guest Editor Copy Editor: Rachel Barrowman and programmes aimed at supporting families and February 2020 Design & Layout: Aleck Yee children centres around who constitutes family, and Cover Photography: Aleck Yee Production: Alltex Design the role the state plays in influencing both family Reference Proof Reader: Vic Lipski formation and disruption. Rhonda Shaw challenges Child Poverty Action Group, (2014). New Zealanders’ policy-makers to think carefully around how and attitudes to child poverty: Research report. when to legislate about family matters. She does Retrieved February, 2020 from https://www.cpag. so through the lens of surrogacy laws and a rich org.nz/assets/MMResearchReport