COMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS REVIEWS REPORT OF NEW ZEALAND

The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights concluded today the consideration of the fourth periodic report of New Zealand on measures taken to guarantee the enjoyment of rights as prescribed by the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

Introducing the report, Andrew Little, Minister of Justice of New Zealand, emphasized that the meeting would provide an opportunity for the country to benefit from the Committee’s expertise and knowledge. New Zealand was a diverse, multi-cultural Pacific nation that prided itself on the promotion of human rights and equal treatment for all of its citizens. The relationship between the Government and the indigenous Maori was a significant aspect of the nation’s identity and New Zealand’s founding document, the Treaty of Waitangi, formed the basis of that relationship. New Zealand continued to advance the economic and cultural redress for tribal groups through comprehensive settlements between the Maori and the Crown. The new Government which had recently been formed, was marking a change in direction after the command of the centre right National Party. Its top priorities included reducing child poverty, addressing the housing shortage by building 100,000 homes in ten years, increasing access to education, employing fairness in the workplace, and eliminating the gender wage gap. Confronting its history, New Zealand had announced a commitment to establishing a Royal Commission of Inquiry into historical abuse in State care, which signalled how seriously the issue was being taken. Also, the Government was committed to taking actions to improve the lives of people with mental health issues, including through an inquiry into the mental health services overstretched by the rapidly growing demand.

In the discussion that followed, Committee Experts commended New Zealand on being the first nation to give women suffrage and for its efforts to close the gender wage gap. They were shocked by certain issues in this country that didn’t seem to meld with the fact that it was a developed nation, especially significantly high levels of child poverty and important disparities in housing and in health. There were also disturbing levels of domestic violence in the nation, some of the highest in the world, and New Zealand was lacking in measures to combat this issue. Experts raised a number of questions pertaining to the indigenous Maori and Pacific peoples with particular regard to their access to housing, health care, education and the job force. There were also concerns that their access to education was limited by the fact that schools used English as the main language to teach and Maori-speaking teachers only made up four per cent of the teaching population. Concerning the rights of women, there were high numbers of women represented in decision-making bodies but representation didn’t necessarily mean equality - women needed equality not parity, said one Expert. This existing disparity was still seen in things such as a motherhood penalty, whereby mothers returning to work were placed at a disadvantage.

In his concluding remarks, Mr. Little thanked everyone for the opportunity to participate in the review and said that New Zealand would continue in its efforts to improve the economic, social and cultural rights for its citizens.

Maria Virginia Bras Gomes, Committee Chairperson and the Rapporteur for New Zealand, concluded by thanking the delegation and non-governmental organizations for the fruitful dialogue and said that the Committee was looking forward to future cooperation with New Zealand.

Zdzislaw Kedzia, Committee Vice-Chairperson, in closing remarks, thanked everyone for their very frank and profound attitudes in answering questions and the approaches that were being taken, as well as the insights of where New Zealand was heading.

The delegation of New Zealand consisted of representatives of the Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Social Development, Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Ministry of Education, and representatives of the Permanent Mission of New Zealand to the United Nations Office at Geneva.

The Committee will issue its concluding observations and recommendations on the report of New Zealand towards the end of its session, which concludes on 29 March 2018.

All the documents relating to the Committee’s work, including reports submitted by States parties, can be found on the session’s webpage. The webcast of the Committee’s public meetings is available at UN Web TV.


The Committee's next public meeting will be at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, 27 March at Palais des Nations (Room VII), when it is scheduled to informally meet with States.


Report

The Committee has before it the fourth periodic report of New Zealand (E/C.12/NZL/4).

Presentation of the Report

ANDREW LITTLE, Minister of Justice of New Zealand, began the presentation of the report in Maori and expressed gratitude for the opportunity to present New Zealand’s fourth periodic report, emphasizing that the meeting would provide an opportunity for the country to benefit from the Committee’s expertise and knowledge, as well as receive constructive views. New Zealand was a diverse, multi-cultural Pacific nation that prided itself on the promotion of human rights and equal treatment for all of its citizens, said Mr. Little. The relationship between the Government and the indigenous Maori was a significant aspect of the nation’s identity and New Zealand’s founding document, the Treaty of Waitangi, signed in 1840, formed the basis of that relationship. Over the course of history, New Zealand had moved from a place where the rights of Maori under the Treaty were breached and their needs largely ignored, to a place where their perspectives now informed decision-making. Also, New Zealand continued to advance the economic and cultural redress for tribal groups through comprehensive settlements between the Maori and the Crown.

Since New Zealand had submitted its last report there had been significant changes in the country, said the Minister, noting that the new Government formed in October 2017 marked a change in direction after the centre right National Party led it for nine years. Its six priorities intersected with crucial economic, social and cultural issues, as they included commitments to reducing child poverty; increasing access to housing, tertiary education and secure employment; as well as to two significant enquiries: Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historic Abuse in State Care and a Government Inquiry into Mental Health and Addiction.

A strong commitment to achieving a significant and sustained reduction in child poverty was embodied in the recently released Child Poverty Reduction Bill, which set out a framework for how New Zealand would hold itself accountable for reducing child poverty and improving the wellbeing of their youngest citizens. The plan was to set robust measures and require successive Governments to set targets with the aim of making New Zealand the best place in the world to be a child. The new Government had embarked on an ambitious plan to address New Zealand’s acute housing shortage and had committed to building 100,000 new homes over ten years; 40 percent of those homes would be affordable or social and emergency housing. In addition, the Government wanted to make renting a secure and healthy experience and would review aspects of the Residential Tenancies Act to improve the experience of renters in New Zealand, including tenancy security.

Another priority for the Government was access to education, said Mr. Little since education created opportunity and enabled people to contribute fully to society. Since cost could present a significant barrier to tertiary education, beginning in 2018, every person commencing tertiary education or training for the first time was eligible for one year cost-free full time study or the first two years of an apprenticeship; from 2024, this would be extended to cover the first three years of study. Where employment was concerned, the Government was committed to creating a high performing economy that delivered good jobs, decent working conditions and fair wages. A number of amendments to employment relations had been introduced into legislation that would restore fairness in the workplace. Those changes would provide greater protection to workers, especially vulnerable ones. In relation to employment creation, the new Government had launched a plan for significant public investment in regional economies to spur growth and private investment.

Concerning abuse in State care, the Minister said whether physical, sexual, emotional or neglect, abuse was inconsistent with domestic and international standards and principles and when it occurred, it warranted prompt examination. In addition, since New Zealand’s report had been submitted, the Government had announced its commitment to establishing a Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State Care. Explaining that Royal Commissions were reserved for the most serious cases of public importance, the Minister said that this sent a signal of how seriously that issue was taken; furthermore, an inquiry was a chance for New Zealand to confront its history and make sure that same mistakes were not again made.

On the issue of Mental Health Inquiry, the Government was committed to taking actions to improving the lives of people with mental health issues and had announced a Ministerial Inquiry into Mental Health and Addiction. Currently, mental services were stretched and demand had grown rapidly in recent years. The Inquiry was broad and would have a particular focus on equity of access to quality services with better outcomes, especially for Maori and other groups. The final point targeted relations with the indigenous people called Crown/Maori relations. The new Government had made it a priority to create a foundation for a future relationship based on partnership, participation, protection and recognition of cultural values. In conclusion, Mr. Little said that New Zealand was proud of its record as a contributor, nationally and internationally, to human rights, but also acknowledged that they were facing some challenges. The delegation was looking forward to engaging with the Committee to continue to better protect and promote the economic, social and cultural rights of New Zealanders.

Questions by the Country Rapporteur

MARIA VIRGINIA BRAS GOMES, Committee Chairperson and Rapporteur for New Zealand, opened the dialogue and noted that many New Zealanders had a high standard of living by international standards, but the extent to which the economic, social and cultural rights were realised was heavily influenced by family status, economic advantage, discrimination and institutional bias.

New Zealand’s legal framework and the Bill of Rights Act did not include the provisions of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The delegation was asked to explain the scope and relevance of declarations of inconsistency issued by the State party’s judicial power. The legal framework did not guarantee efficient remedies for violations of economic, social and cultural rights, therefore the Rapporteur recommended including those rights in the Bill of Rights, which would raise their visibility. Would New Zealand develop a coherent strategy for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals in compliance with its obligations from the Covenant?

How did the Government ensure the implementation of the recommendations of the Waitangi Tribunal to ensure the free, prior and informed consent of Maori on any decisions regarding their lands, territories, waters and maritime areas? The delegation was also asked to provide information on the measures taken to ensure that private companies respected economic, social and cultural rights throughout their operations, including when operating abroad.

Next, it was stated that there were very disturbing levels of domestic violence in New Zealand, some of the highest in the world, and it seemed that measures to prevent this abuse were lacking. Therefore, would New Zealand consider putting into place a coherent and long-term crosscutting strategy from prevention to protection of domestic abuse? Also, what were the measures in place to investigate child abuse in State care?

Lastly, she said, what measures would be taken to increase the presence of women in private sector boards and senior roles and to list the major obstacles in that regard.

Response by the Delegation

On the point of the justiciability of economic, social and cultural rights contained in the Covenant, it was said that the Government had no plans to change the substance of rights contained in the Bill of Rights. However, lawmakers were alert to New Zealand’s obligations and whether or not the laws passed were consistent with the human rights clauses contained in the Bill of Rights and international commitments the Government had entered into. Furthermore, New Zealand intended to confirm the rights of the courts to declare legislation inconsistent with the Bill of Rights and it would be required that Parliament respond to any such inconsistency.

The delegate said that the Government, through an inter-agency process, had recognized Sustainable Development Goals and would decide how they would be applied. The intention was to raise the living standards of all New Zealanders, specifically those left behind as a result of policy settings in the last 30 years.

The Treaty of Waitangi had a very special status and discussions were ongoing whether it should be a written in the Constitution and how the cherished status of the treaty would be maintained in that vein. The Treaty had been established under specific instructions from Queen Victoria to reach an agreement with the indigenous people as opposed to settling by conquest. For Maori, this Treaty was their agreement with the Crown, not with politicians or agents of the Government.

Concerning the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the new Government had established the Minister of Crown/Maori Relations and had appointed as the Minister a member of one of the biggest Maori tribes, Ngāpuhi; also, the Government was working on developing robust processes for input into State decision-making. The Minister was also leading the process to remedy the correctional system in which the Maori were disproportionately overrepresented, in a clear sign of a societal bias against that population.

Trade agreements were subject to Parliamentary scrutiny including the committee selection process where public or any other institutions could have their voices heard.

With regards to the sale of indigenous people’s land, arrangements had been made, stating that the proceeds of those sales were to be used for land protection and other matters related to those communities. There were on-going negotiations with those who expressed concerns about how the agreements, the rights and the interest of the local Maori would be respected. In relation to labour exploitation, a delegate explained that there were working seminars for businesses on migrant exploitation and slavery, and the efforts to promote awareness and knowledge through educational means in businesses so that New Zealand could fulfil its obligations in that regard.

New Zealand’s new Government specifically addressed the issue of family and gender violence when looking at violence against women. They were in process of putting together a crosscutting strategy with all parties in the Parliament working to reduce domestic violence against women; the delegate stressed that the solutions established would be enduring. The most comprehensive inquiry into domestic abuse was being conducted at the moment and the outcome of that inquiry would provide effective remedies for victims.

Turning to the status of the Maori people in New Zealand, the delegate continued by stating that they were overrepresented in unemployment statistics and had low attainment in education. The educational performance measures in the last couple of years had seen improvements for Maori and Pacific peoples, but there was much more work to be done. On the role of women in decision-making roles in New Zealand, the Government worked with civil society organizations to develop programmes to include higher numbers of women on private boards and in senior positions. The best approach, however, was for the State to be an exemplar of this increased representation of women as shown in the following statistics: 44 per cent of women were on the boards of government agencies, 38 per cent of parliamentary representatives were women and around 40 per cent of cabinet ministers were women.

Follow-up Questions and Answers

In a series of follow-up questions, Experts asked about the complaint mechanism in the country, whether the Government would contemplate active measures to promote the involvement of women in private sector boards, and also what was being done to remove the so called “motherhood penalty” which reflected an unconscious bias toward women and prohibited women’s greater advancement in the private sector. Women needed equality, not parity, Experts stressed, they needed equal wages and equal levels in the same posts. Also, what was the situation on the same matter when it came to Maori women?

How was New Zealand addressing the deep-running unconscious bias against the Maori and other ethnic group, including by ensuring equal ethnic representation in Parliament? Participation was a key pillar of relationships with the Maori. But what were the mechanisms for their participation regarding climate change strategies bearing in mind that it would have a grave impact on the economic, social and cultural rights in the future.

On the matter of the accreditation of national human rights institution, to remain independent in line with the Paris Principles, an Expert recommended that there be an open, publicized written procedure for the selection of those commissioners. In both of New Zealand’s Human Rights Acts, 1990 and 1993 respectively, were the plans to give equal importance to civil and political rights, and economic, social and cultural rights – could the delegation update the Committee on this issue?

The delegation responded that New Zealand was aware of the motherhood penalty, and said that there was a lot of work going on at the moment to find a way for women to return to work without being put at a disadvantage. The protection of women had been provided through numerous acts however the question of whether that was enough remained.

On the matter of ethnic representation in decision-making, the number of Maori in the New Zealand Parliament was 29 out of 120, which was the highest number in history. Speaking about the unconscious bias, financing had been supplied to Maori broadcasts and there was an active television station—Te Reo—to sustain Maori language, as well as cultural festivals to promote and preserve Maori culture.

Pertaining to domestic institutions for the protection of economic, social and cultural rights, the delegation said that the process for appointing commissioners was open, advertised and transparent. Once they were appointed, there were very clear and narrow grounds for the removal of the commissioner and very rarely, would they be removed before the completion of their term.

Turning to climate change, a delegate said that it was the major point of concern for the new Government. In that vein, one of the policies considered was the establishment of a Climate Change Commission. Additionally, New Zealand had many Pacific peoples as neighbours and they had been working with them in partnership on climate change issues.

It was added that pay equity legislation had existed for more than 40 years and the one case that had appeared before the court concerning the wage gap resulted in a settlement of nearly four billion New Zealand dollars. The new Government would ensure that new legislation was passed in order for women in similar situations to be able to obtain such settlements. Also, the promotion of women would be continued in the public sector, as well as the private one.

Finally, an action plan was in place when it came to economic, social and cultural rights. The Human Rights Commission had developed an online interactive tool that enabled the public to explore Government actions in relation to recommendations coming out of New Zealand’s periodic reviews, which had received 16,000 hits in 2017.

Questions by Committee Experts

Committee Experts praised New Zealand’s educational system as one of the best in the world: fluid, free and effective. However, the teaching process was compulsory in English, so Maori could not receive education in their mother tongue at all levels of education. Teaching the Maori in their native language was limited by the lack of teachers, as only four per cent were able to teach in Maori; in addition, there was no bilingual teaching. Could the delegation inform on the educational reform including on the reform of the 1989 law on education? What actions were being taken to tackle a disparity in school results between Maori children and those of European descent?

Indigenous peoples tended to live within their own communities, which potential might lead to segregation in education. To what extent the Maori were mixed in schools with New Zealanders so as to overcome the issue of unconscious bias? Was the Maori language suitable for scientific teaching?

Experts asked if it was true that 40 per cent of students did not achieve a university degree. The delegation was asked to supply statistics in that regard as well as the exact number of high school dropouts. It was also noted that the gap remained almost the same when it came to the difference in educational success of Maori and New Zealanders. Could anything be done to cope with that more efficiently?

Children with special needs and disability were excluded from the educational system – did they have the same rights and educational opportunities as other children and what was being done to improve that situation? There was also discussion on the issue of punishments in schools, both physical and mental, and harassment on social networks. Would those issues be better addressed by authorities asked an Expert. Was true that children could leave school in order to work and if so, what was the legal age to do so?

On migration waves and refugees, the Committee Experts asked if children who resided illegally in New Zealand had the right to education. In addition, if the school was not free of charge, could the State intervene and assist in covering school fees?

Responses by the Delegation

Responding to questions about the lack of Maori teachers in education, the delegation responded that the data was true and the goal of the Government was to enable all Maori children to be able to learn in their native language. That would take time, but measures were being developed in that regard. The law on education was being reviewed and changed about once a year, and the changes included the system of educational standards review.

When it came to the participation of young Maori in education, a delegate noted an improvement in school attainment rates which was the greatest amongst any people in the Pacific population. Concerning bullying, laws had been created to tackle that issue, including online and social network violence. There were also special measures and programmes in place that were aimed at both victims and bullies. The delegation then noted that the minimal age for leaving school was 16; however, work could be done out of school hours. The way to prevent that type of work to increase the quality of education of those children by getting them to stay in school.

Regarding the issue of educating illegal immigrant children, the delegation said that they were required to attend school while residing in New Zealand. When it came to school fees, the new Government had considered a scheme of topping out funding for state schools in exchange for them not charging additional fees to children. On the matter of refugee children, the practical experience was that children overcame the language barrier rather quickly, which moreover helped their parents learn the language.

New Zealand’s educational system was not a segregated one. A greater number of Maori attending the same schools was more prominent in urban areas than in rural ones. However, the risk of segregation, both self-imposed and formal was very low. Regarding high school dropout figures, the view of the new Government, when it came to educational quality, was that a new progress measuring system was necessary to give parents a real picture of the progress their children were making in school.

Speaking about the use of Maori language in schools, science subjects were taught in Maori, as well as other subjects and it did not fall behind English in any respect when it came to the richness and depth of terms.

When it came to early childhood education, the participation of Maori was now at 95.2 per cent, an increase of 5.6 per cent since 2010. The Maori children’s achievements at this level were equal to other populations.

Questions by Committee Experts

The Committee Experts noted that there were groups who suffered more under the underemployment and unemployment, such as Maori and the Pacific women, youth and persons with disability. What measures was the new Government taking to improve that situation? New Zealand had one of the lowest gender pay gap percentages in the world, but it was still 9.4 per cent. Was equal right to work and equal pay for women systematically provided?

There was concern that the youth required particular attention with particular regard to employment, so Expert inquired about the manner in which New Zealand addressed youth employment.

On the issue of minimum wage and the persons with disability, it was asked were there plans to repeal the exemption permits and were the incentives to promote the employment of persons with disability? The number one complaint to the national human rights institution concerned disability-based discrimination including in reasonable accommodation, Experts noted and stressed the critical importance of legal obligations and legal protection for the realization of the rights of persons with disabilities.

Taking note of the high number of workplace accidents, particularly in construction and agriculture sectors where many Maoris worked, the Experts asked if there were any new drastic measures to improve the work place safety? On gender segregation, both horizontal and vertical, how would the principle of equal pay for work of equal value be realized in the real working environment? Furthermore, it was asked if the 90-day trial period remained for the companies that had less than 19 employees.

Were there plans to withdraw reservations on Article 8 of the Covenant when it came to effective trade union representation?

Experts were concerned about a serious setback in providing social services and asked about the measures in place to ensure the recovery of the social security system. The social service contract provided to the Maori was renewed annually, while for others the period was five years. What was the status of the review of the social security system?

Responses by the Delegation

Concerning the disclosure statements related to the legislation and the matter of whether economic, social and cultural rights were referred to in the New Zealand judicial system, a delegate said that those were made when legislation entered Parliament. Disclosure statements would soon be compulsory in that they be attached to every piece of legislation. This was to assure monitoring as to whether or not legislation was consistent with the New Zealand’s international obligations and their consistency with the Covenant. The exact number of disclosure statements that included those international obligations weren’t known.

On the dropout rate of tertiary students, the dropout rate of roughly 40 per cent was calculated by evaluating what happened to students eight years after they had enrolled for a bachelor’s degree. In that study, which had taken place in 2009, 62 per cent of students who had pursued a Bachelor’s degree completed that or a higher degree, within that time period. The latest data showed that students under the age 20 who began a Bachelor’s degree had a 19 per cent drop out rate after six years and 76 per cent of those students completed their degrees, while five per cent furthered their studies.

With regards to the independence of New Zealand’s Human Rights Commission, a delegate said that a panel of officials appointed commissioners, however it should have been added that the panel included members of non-governmental organizations as well.

With regards to employment of persons with disabilities, the delegation said that disability employment statistics were regularly published by Statistics New Zealand and included a census, household labour force survey and a disability survey. The quality of that data had been improved as well with the input of disabled people and their representative organizations. There were no current plans to amend the legislation for reasonable accommodation; the Human Rights Act of 1993 had already created a legislative duty for those accommodations. Support persons with disabilities to move into open, paid employment in the public and private sector included specialist employment services, workplace modifications, wage subsidies, paid internships and training support funding to support disabled students. To improve accessibility, the Government’s approach to economic, social and cultural rights for people with disabilities was underpinned by the New Zealand Disability Strategy, implemented by an Action Plan and in cooperation with a range of government departments and disabled people’s organizations. There were currently seven crossing governmental actions to improve accessibility within that Plan.

With regards to the right reasonable accommodation, the delegation noted that one of the commissioners in the Human Rights Commission was dedicated solely to disability issues. That person dealt with complaints, education and the understanding and awareness of the obligations of employers and organizations, including service providers to ensure that the needs of the disabled community were taken in account. There was a growing awareness to ensuring services and facilities accommodated the needs of disabled people.

Concerning a repeal of the minimum wage exemption, a delegate responded that the Government was currently considering alternatives to that exemption to provide better pathways into the open labour market. The purpose of the exemption was to ensure that disabled people who faced barriers to work could find employment despite those barriers.

As for the issue of workplace deaths, New Zealand was tackling the issue with a Health and Safety at Work legislation, which had been created in response to the growing public concern about the number of work place fatalities. The legislation’s aim was to improve the provisions of work place health and safety committees because the worker’s voice on health and safety was vital. Workplace health and safety was a cultural factor, continued the delegate, and required the work of both management and worker representation.

In terms of pay equity, new legislation would restore the statutory approach of determining equal pay for work of equal value that had been removed in recent years. In addition, when it came to the issue of segregation, the Government was working with the National Advisory Council on the Employment of Women to support a pilot project for women returning to information technology careers after a career break. The project would also encourage women to enter non-traditional trades or occupations, such as construction.

Changes in legislation concerning collective bargaining were introduced, with the aim of restoring workers’ rights in the collective bargaining process, specifically removing the unilateral right of employers to walk out of multi-employer collective bargaining and restore the presumption that collective bargaining would result in a collective agreement. In terms of other reforms, the collective bargaining framework was being amended so more workers could enjoy collective agreements. When it came to 90-day probation work which allowed the removal of employment rights within the first 90 days of employment, the delegation said that the new law limited the application of this law to for companies with less than 20 employees.

On the matter of withdrawing the reservations on Article 8 of the Covenant, the new Government was committed to trade union representation for workers. Sympathy strikes and strikes for social causes were unlawful in New Zealand while strikes for economic reasons remained protected. This position of New Zealand would not be changed.

On the other hand, the new Government was determined to take a progressive approach to work place conditions and trade union rights, and was dedicated to implementing progressive social security measures, which it considered a priority. The welfare system was under review and the Government was dedicated to ensuring that it was open to all New Zealanders. The review of the social security system would be done in broad consultations with stakeholder organizations, social security providers, and representative organisations of women, Maori and Pacific peoples.

There was a one billion dollars a year programme for investment in regions where employment growth had been the most difficult in the previous years, as a measure to promote employment opportunities for women, Maori, Pacific peoples and people with disability.

In terms of the pay gap for women, claims had been lodged, for example in the last two years, midwives had lodged a claim under the Pay Equity legislation. Claim was indeed necessary to address the issues of pay inequities but for jobs where women were the dominant employees, claims had to be lodged on their own. There were mechanisms in place to aid them in placing their complaints. A new legal framework was being developed to facilitate determinations for equal work for equal value without going through a formal court process.

When it came to the question of the abuse of migrant workers, there was an active programme of work through the Labour Inspectorate for companies that were more apt to employ migrant workers and ensure they were not exploited. For example, it was found that students from overseas that had the right to work 20 hours a week were being exploited. The Labour Inspectorate had been active in imposing penalties due to migrant worker’s abuse in that and other matters.

The approach taken by the State concerning youth employment was that the youth needed to be occupied. There had to be a training element to this occupation whereby they could then enter the labour market. In addition, the new Government provided subsidies for the first year of apprenticeship, which was one of the measures for improving access to work for young generations.

Questions by Committee Experts

In the next round of questions, Experts were shocked by a significant population of children living in poverty, with 27 per cent living in homes with incomes below the poverty line; particularly affected were Maori and the Pacific children. In a country as developed as New Zealand, children should fare better, Experts stressed.

There was also a grave problem with housing; homes were overcrowded, and waiting lists for social housing were long and frustrating. It seemed New Zealand was lagging behind in this matter as well as in making safe drinking water available. Housing was being treated as a commercial asset instead of a fundamental right. For example, prices of houses in Oakland had risen by 75 per cent in the last years, which caused mass migration to the suburbs. Had steps been taken to regulate the private housing market, and how the legal system dealt with evictions? Were the courts entitled to look at the impact the eviction had on the tenants and did they provide for alternative accommodation in cases where tenants were left homeless?

On the issue of equal access to the right to health, there were significant disparities when it came to Maori and Pacific peoples in comparison to other New Zealanders. The delegation was asked to elaborate more on the concrete strategies to reduce those health inequalities.

Committee Experts noted that the Human Rights Commission intended to develop a new human rights action plan 2010-2015 but questions erupted as to whether it had actually been established and they needed more information on that topic.

Experts raised the question of the Canterbury earthquake compensation problems.

Response by the Delegation

The delegation explained that there were a number of contributing factors to the problem of child poverty, such as rapidly rising accommodation costs, which increased the number of homeless people; income disparity; and lower incomes which were due to a structural change in the manufacturing sector. The chronic child poverty was seen as a grave matter by the Government and the measures aimed at addressing it would be in parallel to addressing the housing problems.

Rapid growth in New Zealand’s population meant that the housing capacities had not been able to keep up. In addition, non-resident off shore buyers were buying lots of property in New Zealand, which raised the price of housing—there were issues with local authorities on that matter, as well. The Committee was reminded that there was a programme in place to build 100,000 houses in ten years, and the rights of rental tenants were steadily being improved. On the matter of heating, a delegate said that New Zealand was a tropical country but that some parts had temperatures that could reach below zero in the middle of winter. The housing infrastructure was, at the moment, unable to provide suitable living conditions in that regard.

Concerning social housing, the delegation acknowledged that many Government-owned houses had been sold and the new Government planned to construct new ones to ensure that those who could not afford their own houses would be provided this basic right.

On the affordability of the housing, steps were being taken to regulate certain parts of the housing market, and to knock speculators out of the market. It had prohibited overseas buyers from buy the existing properties and obliged them to construct new housing. Tax advantages that allowed some write off the costs of owning a rental property were removed. All these measures were taken improve the market for first time owners.

The matter of eviction was overseen by a tenancy tribunal with a prescribed number of days before eviction could take place and a property owner could not evict tenants over night with no plausible reason. Banks or financiers were required to follow statutory processes in terms of notifying homeowners about the default of their mortgage payments. There was a process where the forced sale of the house could take place, public notification was a part of that process.

The delegation reiterated that New Zealand saw housing as a human right, regardless of whether the person owned or rented the house.

The Government was aware of the need to create a modern safe drinking water provision programme to improve the situation, particularly when it came to infrastructure. It was noted New Zealand had good quality drinking water, with fresh spring water of New Zealand being the envy of the world, however this was not available to all.

On the matter of Canterbury earthquake claims, roughly 2,600 claims remained unresolved and the Government was exploring the possibility of establishing a specialised Tribunal to deal with those claims as soon as possible.

In terms of mental health of its population, New Zealand was not any different than other developed countries, and the most important issues depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.

With regards to equal access to health especially for the Maori and Pacific peoples, the delegation noted the long-range disparities they experienced and said that this issue was a priority for the new Government. Efforts were directed to increase the immunization rates of Maori and Pacific peoples, which had improved immensely and stand at only one per cent below the 95 per cent target; the number of Maori women accessing breast cancer screening was in the increase, and incidence of rheumatic fever among Maori children and young people was reducing.

Concluding Remarks

ANDREW LITTLE, Minister of Justice and the head of the delegation, in his concluding remarks, thanked everyone for the opportunity to participate in the review and said that New Zealand was proud to build an inclusive society and would make progress in implementing the recommendations for improving the economic, social and cultural rights in New Zealand.

MARIA VIRGINIA BRAS GOMES, Committee Chairperson and the Rapporteur for New Zealand, concluded by thanking the delegation and non-governmental organizations for the fruitful dialogue and said that the Committee was looking forward to future cooperation with New Zealand.

ZDZISLAW KEDZIA, Committee Vice-Chairperson, in closing remarks, thanked everyone for their very frank and profound attitudes in answering questions and the approaches that were being taken, as well as the insights of where New Zealand was heading.


For use of the information media; not an official record

CESCR/18/08E