The Government has today introduced legislation that will reverse provisions in the Oranga Tamariki Act as part of a path to rebuild trust and confidence in the organisation. 

“The Oranga Tamariki Amendment Bill makes a number of changes but by far the most important is the partial repeal of the subsequent child provisions,” Minister of Children Kelvin Davis said. 

“While these provisions were introduced by the previous government with the aim of improving the safety of a subsequent child, unfortunately often the opposite occurred and the legislation unfairly impacted on both the young person and their whānau.” 

The subsequent child provisions currently apply where a parent has previously had a child permanently removed from their care or has a murder, manslaughter, or infanticide conviction for the death of a child in their care. 

A review found the provisions often resulted in increased trauma and distress to the older child, who was often drawn into court proceedings to establish there was no realistic prospect that they would be returned to their parent’s care. 

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