Source: Radio New Zealand
The law change means ACC claimants will incur debts for supplementary supports they sought while waiting on an outcome with the Accident Compensation Corporation.
The coalition has passed legislation to legalise long-standing MSD policy of clawing back welfare payments from ACC claimants.
The law change – passed after the High Court ruled the policy illegal – means ACC claimants, including sexual abuse survivors, state abuse survivors and those with birth injuries, will incur debts for supplementary supports they sought while waiting on an outcome with the Accident Compensation Corporation.
Advocates have already launched a petition to change the legislation to “ensure equity, fairness and also remove the retrospective elements inserted by the Amendment Bill.”
The legislation passed yesterday afternoon with support from National, ACT and New Zealand First.
Labour – which withdrew its support for the bill after Select Committee stage, voted against it with the Greens, Te Pāti Māori and independent MPs Mariameno Kapa-Kingi and Tākuta Ferris.
Third reading
Minister for Social Development Louise Upston wasn’t there for the final reading of the legislation.
Standing in her place, National’s James Meager told the House the High Court ruling meant those who received backdated ACC payments were better off than those who received the same payments at the time they requested it.
“These decisions highlight inconsistencies between legislation and long-standing policy but they do not reflect the principles of a targeted welfare system that provides assistance based on need.
“They also create inequities across ACC recipients in the welfare system.”
Labour’s Willie Jackson – who had called for changes such as a carve out for state abuse survivors – said the Minister had made a “real attempt” to find bipartisan buy-in for the bill but parties could not find a way through.
“It’s with disappointment we were unable to find a way through…we had a couple of meetings with the Minister, we put up some options in terms of where we should go, particularly with some of the people who were being hurt by this bill.
“She was particularly sympathetic to some of the examples that we were given but it seems that her officials find it all just too impossible, I’m not sure why they find it so impossible sometimes to actually worth things through, given these were officials who have worked with both National and Labour governments through the years.
The Greens’ Ricardo Menéndez March said the bill was a joke.
“How can this be a bill about fairness and equity when it entrenches a practice that puts some of our most injured and traumatised people in large debts?
“This government may be making it legal but it does not make it right.”
ACT’s Parmjeet Parmar said it was good the bill was being rushed through.
“It’s a very important issue. We have to. Otherwise we will not be doing justice to those who are going to be affected.”
New Zealand First’s David Wilson said the bill was not easy but his party supported MSD having discretion “to look at these cases”.
“It would be fair to say that our party has wrestled with some of the issues here, quite a lot.”
“We want to ensure that any complainants to ACC are not unfairly disadvantaged.”
Te Pāti Māori’s Orrini Kaipara said the bill would deepen hardship for survivors of sexual abuse, state abuse and those who suffer most.
“It represents a profound breach of justice, fairness and the Crown’s obligations to protect the wellbeing of whānau under Te Tiriti o Waitangi.”
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
