Election Survey: Mikaere Curtis (Greens)

Mikaere Curtis is the Greens' candidate for Tamaki-Makaurau, number 16 on the Green Party list, and a sometime commenter here at The Hand Mirror. His was the last reply we received, as of 5pm yesterday, so it's the last that'll be published in our 2008 election survey series.

The Questions & Answers
Question 1. What do you believe is currently the single biggest issue facing New Zealand women, and how would you like to address it if you are elected?
The single biggest issue facing New Zealand women is the nature of our economic system. Economic value is narrowly defined into that which can be measured by money. This fundamentally colours the nature of economic decisions – from macro to micro – and leads to distortions in how we value many aspects of our economic activities.

Social services, such as education and health, when viewed through the narrow lens of capital economic value, are seen as a cost rather than an investment. Cost is seen as a negative, to be driven down and I believe this is a significant contributory factor in pay equity issues in these sectors, as well as underfunding in general. A system that can accurately measure all the positive outcomes from social services will more highly value those that contribute to those services, and pay equity will be automatically built-in.

If elected, I would encourage the use of alternative approaches to measuring and valuing economic activity (such as the Genuine Progress Index). However, these are decorative rather than fundamental changes, so I would also encourage discussion and debate about evolving the fundamentals of our economic system from one that is narrowly focused, to one that provides more meaningful and holistic measurements.

Green Party combined response to questions 2 to 10.

Question 11. Do you have any further comments that you wish to make about the role of women in our society? Please feel free to share your thoughts here.
(no answer given)

Election Survey: Sarita Divis (Alliance)

Sarita Divis is the Alliance's candidate in the seat of Auckland Central, and number 9 on the Alliance party list. You'll find her answers below, and the responses of lots of other candidates, and some party-wide ones, here. This response from Sarita is the penultimate one we are publishing in the series; the final one will go up at lunch time today.

The Questions & Answers
Question 1. What do you believe is currently the single biggest issue facing New Zealand women, and how would you like to address it if you are elected?
The biggest single issue currently facing New Zealand women is the economic crisis in the global economy and domestic economy. In times of economic crisis all forms of inequality increace. Economic pressure creates a less tolerant society in the areas of racisim, homophobia agesim and discrimination against women.

Alliance has specific polices to address the economic crisis as well as policies to ensure the rights of all members of society are protected in all legislation. I would push that the Ministry of womens affairs should be properly funded to ensure that they have the resources to comment and impact upon on all legislation going through the house and not just what are considered 'womens issues' .Now more then ever womens voices need to be heard.

Question 2. New Zealand women are paid, on average, over $300 a week less than men, and the difference is worse for Maori and Pacific Island women. What do you propose as a first step towards closing the gender pay gap?
Please refer to other alliance candidates response they have outlined our policy positions in this area very well

Question 3. Do you think NZ's current approach to reproductive rights (abortion, contraception etc) is correct? (Yes or No or No Answer, please)
If not, what changes would you want to make?
Yes agree with current but Alliance would put more resources into the Family Planning Clinics.

Question 4. The police and the courts do not work in preventing violence against women. What other government actions would you take to ensure women can live without fear.
Raising womens economic status raises their status in the home and society Initiatives such as paid parental leave which was actually an alliance (not labour party ) achievement, Pay equity legislation, Free education Free quality healthcare. Full employment.

Question 5. Those who do the caring work in our society, paid and unpaid, are often the least recognized and the lowest paid, and they work the longest hours. What do you see as the priority to address these issues for those caring for our sick, our elderly and our children?
(no answer given)

Question 6. The Ministry of Health has recently launched a campaign to encourage breastfeeding and is now recommending that babies be breastfeed to at least one year old. What do you think the government could do to ensure that every woman who wants to breast feed can?
(no answer given)

Question 7. What single measure do you think our political organizations could take to better encourage young women to be involved and take on leadership positions in our communities?
Unfortunalty leadership is the catch phrase of the moment. What we need is more doers and less leaders. We need to acknowledge the contribution all women do already in the community as mothers sisters and community members. From there we need to make it possible time and resource wise for women to be more involved and take part in community activity and in political democracy.

Question 8. Do you see domestic violence as an issue for women, for men, or for all New Zealanders? (Women, or Men, or all New Zealanders please)
If elected, what strategies would you like to pursue to eliminate domestic violence?
All New Zealanders

Question 9. Successive governments have effectively cut the Domestic Purposes Benefit. Do you believe people raising children alone should have sufficient financial support from the state so that they do not need to go to work until they believe that is the best choice for their family? (Yes or No or No Answer, please)
No child should live in poverty.

Question 10. Women do the vast majority of cooking and shopping, and increases in food prices are a burden borne disproportionately by women. What do you think our government can or should do to ensure that everyone has access to good food?
The governemnt needs to promote economic self sufficiency especially in the area of food.

Question 11. Do you have any further comments that you wish to make about the role of women in our society? Please feel free to share your thoughts here.
(no answer given)

Election Survey: Doug Woolerton (NZ First)

This response is from Doug Woolerton, standing for the electorate vote in Hamilton East and number 4 on the New Zealand First party list. We have now had candidate and/or party-wide responses from every party in Parliament and a fair few who are extra-Parliamentary - you can find an index of all responses here.

And my apologies to Mr Woolerton, and readers, that this went up without the formatting finished, it should be all hunky dory now.

The Questions & Answers
Question 1. What do you believe is currently the single biggest issue facing New Zealand women, and how would you like to address it if you are elected?
Pay equity. Must keep on pushing for equal pay and get more women into higher paying jobs.

Question 2. New Zealand women are paid, on average, over $300 a week less than men, and the difference is worse for Maori and Pacific Island women. What do you propose as a first step towards closing the gender pay gap?
As above, but include education because many of the lower paid night cleaning jobs will have an effect on this group.

Question 3. Do you think NZ's current approach to reproductive rights (abortion, contraception etc) is correct? (Yes or No or No Answer, please)
If not, what changes would you want to make?
Yes.

Question 4. The police and the courts do not work in preventing violence against women. What other government actions would you take to ensure women can live without fear.
Educate men to understand that violence is not okay and only cowards beat up women and children. Attitudinal change is needed to really make lasting change.

Question 5. Those who do the caring work in our society, paid and unpaid, are often the least recognized and the lowest paid, and they work the longest hours. What do you see as the priority to address these issues for those caring for our sick, our elderly and our children?
Pay leads to status. As long as these critical jobs are lowly paid, they will continue to be ignored and undernoted. Pay needs to lift and quickly. People matter and looking after people is a priority.

Question 6. The Ministry of Health has recently launched a campaign to encourage breastfeeding and is now recommending that babies be breastfeed to at least one year old. What do you think the government could do to ensure that every woman who wants to breast feed can?
There was an advertising campaign on this a few years ago that was good. We need it out there again. It dealt with the embarrassment factor of breast feeding in public areas and the work place.

Question 7. What single measure do you think our political organizations could take to better encourage young women to be involved and take on leadership positions in our communities?
Push them into participating and suppoprt them when they do. Make their husbands part of the deal for support.

Question 8. Do you see domestic violence as an issue for women, for men, or for all New Zealanders? (Women, or Men, or all New Zealanders please)
If elected, what strategies would you like to pursue to eliminate domestic violence?
For men and all New Zealanders. It is men who perpetrate these acts of violence. They need to be told it is not okay by their male mates and the rest of society, as in Question 4.

Question 9. Successive governments have effectively cut the Domestic Purposes Benefit. Do you believe people raising children alone should have sufficient financial support from the state so that they do not need to go to work until they believe that is the best choice for their family? (Yes or No or No Answer, please)
Yes.

Question 10. Women do the vast majority of cooking and shopping, and increases in food prices are a burden borne disproportionately by women. What do you think our government can or should do to ensure that everyone has access to good food?
Cut gst to 10% for a start and actively help with Working for Families type packages, but aimed at lower incomes.

Question 11. Do you have any further comments that you wish to make about the role of women in our society? Please feel free to share your thoughts here.
Women are our biggest assets and they are our mothers and the mothers of the nation. We should worship them and care for them.

Election Survey: Progressives Party response

Below's response is from Jim Anderton's Progressive party, and you can find a full index of candidate, and party, replies here.

The Questions & Answers
Question 1. What do you believe is currently the single biggest issue facing New Zealand women, and how would you like to address it if you are elected?
While there is no one single issue facing women there are some which stand out as highly significant. The Progressive Party identifies the need to maintain a proper balance between work and family commitments, and the importance of full employment as foremost. As far as the former is concerned the Progressives have in particular initiated the successful implementation of four weeks minimum leave for all, and paid parental leave, both of which have contributed significantly to lifting the position of women in our society. As part of the Labour Progressive government we have also been instrumental in reducing unemployment to some of the lowest levels seen in over two decades, introduced twenty hours paid preschool access for many families, and established a right to pursue flexible working hours.

Question 2. New Zealand women are paid, on average, over $300 a week less than men, and the difference is worse for Maori and Pacific Island women. What do you propose as a first step towards closing the gender pay gap?
Steps taken to date to encourage the voluntary reduction of this gap have clearly proved ineffective overall, and the Progressive Party believes the time is now ripe to review the need for reinstating pay equity legislation which has proved its effectiveness in restricted public sector circumstances in the past, and which was repealed by an incoming National administration as one of its first acts in 1991.

Question 3. Do you think NZ's current approach to reproductive rights (abortion, contraception etc) is correct? (Yes or No or No Answer, please)
If not, what changes would you want to make?
Yes.

However we need to add that the debate over abortion, which has been going on now for some decades, raises a host of complex issues. That debate has never been able to reconcile the contrary positions involved because it entails moral and ethical issues that cannot be the subject of compromise or negotiated solutions in the ordinary political sense, or settled in any final sense by counting votes.

The Progressive Party stance on this issue is based on the recognition that pregnancy termination is a highly personal issue. We support choice because we do not want to return to the days of highly dangerous illegal backstreet abortions and consider that the only real alternative to this is a free, legal and accessible service, and the provision of free contraceptives. We give our highest priority, however, to minimising the need for abortion as an option and place our primary emphasis on education and a responsible approach to human relationships.

The Progressives also believe that the improvement of the economic and social security of New Zealanders, and the achievement of full employment, to all of which we also give a very high priority, will lead to a considerable reduction in the current pressures which can lead to an abortion decision, and consequently will have a significant impact on the numbers of those seeking such interventions.

On the associated question of abortions for girls without parental knowledge, the Progressive Party considers that on the rare occasions when a girl under the age of sixteen has an abortion without parental knowledge or consent this is on the basis of professional medical and clinical judgement. We prefer that such judgements should be made at that level and we would not support an amendment proposed by some lobby groups to the Care of Children Act giving parents a right of veto in such circumstances.

Question 4. The police and the courts do not work in preventing violence against women. What other government actions would you take to ensure women can live without fear?
We contest your contention that ‘the police and courts do not work in preventing violence against women’. The record of both has improved significantly over the last decade. However, that said we agree that the level of violence against women in our society is far too high and that we need more resources devoted to this area. In particular we support the current “It’s Not OK’ campaign and would like to see this extended.

Question 5. Those who do the caring work in our society, paid and unpaid, are often the least recognized and the lowest paid, and they work the longest hours. What do you see as the priority to address these issues for those caring for our sick, our elderly and our children?
The Progressive Party encourages workers in the care professions to take advantage of current industrial legislation (which replaced the pernicious Employment Contracts Act) to organise and bargain collectively through their unions to ensure that their pay and conditions accurately reflect the high value of the work they undertake. We also have encouraged the development and availability of opportunities for professional training and certification in this field for those workers engaging in it.

Question 6. The Ministry of Health has recently launched a campaign to encourage breastfeeding and is now recommending that babies be breastfeed to at least one year old. What do you think the government could do to ensure that every woman who wants to breast feed can?
The Progressive Party supports the encouragement of breast feeding and endorses the Ministry of Health campaign

Question 7. What single measure do you think our political organizations could take to better encourage young women to be involved and take on leadership positions in our communities?
There is no one single measure which will ensure that young women develop into leadership roles in our society to the same extent that men play these roles now. It requires a spectrum of encouragements and initiatives. We instance, however, the importance of role models, and the encouragement of self esteem in education. See also our response regarding pay equity above.

Question 8. Do you see domestic violence as an issue for women, for men, or for all New Zealanders? (Women, or Men, or all New Zealanders please)
If elected, what strategies would you like to pursue to eliminate domestic violence?
This is a problem for all New Zealanders to address, as individuals, as members of families, of communities, and the formal legal, NGO support, and policing structures. See our response to question 4

Question 9. Successive governments have effectively cut the Domestic Purposes Benefit. Do you believe people raising children alone should have sufficient financial support from the state so that they do not need to go to work until they believe that is the best choice for their family? (Yes or No or No Answer, please)
Yes. It is plain common sense that those who are raising children alone should have not only sufficient income to enable them to do so, but should have other income and financial support, such as access to free child care, tax advantages through social transfers, and so on. It is also important that they have ready access to high quality public health care and education. Children are our future whether raised by single parents or both parents and we cheat that future if we fail to ensure that they get the best chances early in life.

Question 10. Women do the vast majority of cooking and shopping, and increases in food prices are a burden borne disproportionately by women. What do you think our government can or should do to ensure that everyone has access to good food?
This is a complex set of questions rolled into one and so is not easily answered. It has been one of the objectives of the Progressives and their predecessors in government to deal with the legacy of the unacceptable and widening gap between incomes in New Zealand which we inherited from the administrations of the eighties and nineties. Recent research suggests that we are making some headway. But we are also aware that there are no easy answers to this conundrum

When it comes to basic prices, there are two ways of proceeding. Because major domestic budget items such as food and fuel reflect overseas prices for our produce or what we have to pay for imported commodities, and because the prices are effectively set by private producers, one way to deal with this would be by micro regulation and control. This would entail the use of such devices and instruments as price control, food subsidies, differential sales taxes and others. But these have proved to be not particularly effective blunt economic instruments in the past requiring a measure of regulatory control over economic activities which is not acceptable to most New Zealanders in our contemporary economy. Thus, although it is a theoretical option it isn’t a politically practical one.

The second is to create a macro-climate in which by reducing the income gap we ensure that when prices for basic items fluctuate (as they are bound to do) this does not automatically create hardship for those on restricted domestic budgets. This is the course we in the Progressive Party favour and it is one in which the government has scored some major successes in the past nine years in our view.

Some of the facts in that regard are compelling. For example although the consumer price index has moved by some 20% over that period the average wage has moved by about 33.7% and the minimum hourly wage rate by more than 70%. The establishment of a ‘floor’ for those in receipt of national super and regular movement with the wage index has resulted in those payments increasing by some 28% over a similar period.

Add to this some of the targeted social transfer payments introduced by the government – major ones are the Working for Families relief package, and the under-writing of GP visits and prescription medicines, as well as income-related rents for state house tenants, together with a significant lift in the threshold of the ‘rates rebate scheme’ – and you will see that we are making significant progress in closing the income gap. We note that the Working for Families package in particular has, according to research conducted by the Ministry of Social Development, lifted fifty thousand children out of the poverty trap.

In the last Budget we took a further step in the form of some tax relief for those on lower and middle incomes to counter the effects of what is known as fiscal drag by lifting taxation thresholds to take account of rising absolute and relative wage and salary levels. There is a limit on such tax relief, of course, because it is constrained by the need to maintain social services such as those noted above. Those who say that there can be further tax cuts without affecting such services are, at best, misleading the public.

Finally we would point to a major advance and that is the reduction of the unemployment rate to close to its lowest level, at about 3.8%, for more than two decades. Our policies have led to the creation of something like a thousand new jobs week in and week out for the last eight years. By ensuring that there are fewer and fewer people living on a benefit we progressively lift people out of the poverty trap.

We wouldn’t say that we are out of the woods yet in closing the gap between better and less well off in this country to somewhere nearer where it used to be by any means, but I think that we have made a good deal of progress and if returned to government we intend to continue to move down that track.

Question 11. Do you have any further comments that you wish to make about the role of women in our society? Please feel free to share your thoughts here.
New Zealand has come a long way since the proud day in 1893 when we led the world in introducing universal adult suffrage. We were the world’s first democratic nation and we have retained our fundamentally egalitarian ethos since. But we have quite a way to go before we can say that women can take their place as fully equal citizens, and the Progressive Party is committed to seeing that happen.

Election Survey: Kate Sutton (Labour)

This response is from Kate Sutton, Labour's candidate for Epsom and number 63 on the Labour Party list. You can find a full index of all responses to date, including a party response from Labour and individual replies from several other Labour candidates, here.

The Questions & Answers
Q1. What do you believe is currently the single biggest issue facing New Zealand women, and how would you like to address it if you are elected?
I believe that the biggest issue facing all New Zealanders is the state of the economy. It is very important that all Kiwis jobs are protected at this time and that kiwi families are supported. Labour has an economic plan to help kiwis save and for the government to invest significantly in infrastructure during this time to promote economic growth.
Labour understands that investing in our people through education and our infrastructure will make us a more productive country.

I think it is vital that we look after all kiwis during this difficult time.


Question 2. New Zealand women are paid, on average, over $300 a week less than men, and the difference is worse for Maori and Pacific Island women. What do you propose as a first step towards closing the gender pay gap?
Labour has a good record in this area and we are committed to improving the economic well being of all women. We recognise that there is a gender pay gap and have worked hard to reduce it by getting rid of the Employment Contracts Act and replacing it with the fairer Employment Relations Act and importantly establishing the Pay and Employment Equity taskforce which has begun to address the gender pay gap in parts of the public service, the public health and education sectors. We need to return a Labour government to ensure this work continues.

Question 3. Do you think NZ's current approach to reproductive rights (abortion, contraception etc) is correct? (Yes or No or No Answer, please)
If not, what changes would you want to make?
I think that NZs approach to contraception is correct, we have made doctors visits cheaper and put more funding into health services in schools.
With regards to abortion, as a conscience issue in parliament it is important to remember that this is my personal opinion and not that of the Labour government. I personally believe in a women's right to choose with regards to abortion and any women's health issues. I believe that there is still more to do with regards to access, affordability and quality of abortion services in New Zealand

Question 4. The police and the courts do not work in preventing violence against women. What other government actions would you take to ensure women can live without fear.
It is important for me to say that the "Its not okay" campaign has made big difference towards our attitudes to reporting domestic violence but there is more to do to reduce the incidence of domestic violence in New Zealand

Labour in government will enact legislation that, in particular, provides for police-issued 'on the spot' protection orders; strengthens penalties for protection order breaches; and requires closer Family Court scrutiny before protection orders are discharged.

Question 5. Those who do the caring work in our society, paid and unpaid, are often the least recognized and the lowest paid, and they work the longest hours. What do you see as the priority to address these issues for those caring for our sick, our elderly and our children?
At the core of my values is making sure all New Zealanders get a fair go and have decent working conditions and a fair wage.
Under Labour the minimum wage has increased nine times, and we've committed to increasing the minimum wage with inflation or tied to the average wage – whichever is greater.

Labour recognize the need to support and develop workers who provide valuable support to older New Zealanders and our children and we know that low pay and high staff turnover have been a major issue in aged care, health and education. We want to see wages rise in these sectors.

Question 6. The Ministry of Health has recently launched a campaign to encourage breastfeeding and is now recommending that babies be breastfeed to at least one year old. What do you think the government could do to ensure that every woman who wants to breast feed can?
Labour introduced paid parental leave to give new mums more time with their babies. Labour supports all measures to help new mums breastfeed for as long as they want too.
We have introduced flexible worked hours and employers now have to provide breaks and facilities for mums to breastfeed at work.
Labour with the Greens are the only parties who have shown commitment to supporting mothers in this area

Question 7. What single measure do you think our political organizations could take to better encourage young women to be involved and take on leadership positions in our communities?
The Labour Party has 36 percent female MPs, we have a female Prime Minister who is personally a role model to me. Within the Labour Party we take gender equity very seriously and practise it at every level.

Nevertheless, finding women in leadership roles within our economy is still an exception, rather than the norm. Labour recognises that we still need to encourage greater participation by women on public and private sector boards as well as positions of leadership in the public sector.

We have worked hard with the Ministry of Women's affairs to increase female participation on public sector boards but we still have more to do and only a Labour led government has a history of recognising the importance of women in leadership and will continue to work hard in this area.

Question 8. Do you see domestic violence as an issue for women, for men, or for all New Zealanders? (Women, or Men, or all New Zealanders please)
If elected, what strategies would you like to pursue to eliminate domestic violence?
Domestic violence is an issue for all New Zealanders but we need to recognise that women are more likely to be the victims of domestic violence and we cannot let this out of our sights.

Labour will continue to support the work of the Taskforce for Action on Family Violence and their It's Not OK! campaign. We are committed to providing ongoing support and security of funding for community groups who are at the front line. And we will strengthen the Domestic Violence Act to better protect victims and enable police to crack down on perpetrators of domestic violence.

Question 9. Successive governments have effectively cut the Domestic Purposes Benefit. Do you believe people raising children alone should have sufficient financial support from the state so that they do not need to go to work until they believe that is the best choice for their family? (Yes or No or No Answer, please)
Yes.

Labour values the job that sole parents undertake when raising children and do not believe there is a need to adopt a punitive approach - punishing beneficiaries only means their children suffer the most.

Labour actively encourages people into work where possible. The key point is that the government, through incentives such as Working for Families, abatements and 20 Hours' Free early childhood education, supports people into the workforce when they are ready.

Question 10. Women do the vast majority of cooking and shopping, and increases in food prices are a burden borne disproportionately by women. What do you think our government can or should do to ensure that everyone has access to good food?
Labour is committed to affordable basics for all Kiwi families – that is why we cut taxes at the lowest rate and increase benefits, Working for Families and Superannuation every year to help families meet rising costs. We are committed to doing what we can to help ease some of the pressure. While we can't control global prices, we are committed to ensuring that the most vulnerable Kiwis are always able to access affordable food for their families.

Question 11. Do you have any further comments that you wish to make about the role of women in our society? Please feel free to share your thoughts here.
There is still so much to do. As you have pointed out in your questions - Women still earn less than men, women are still not equally represented in leadership roles, there are still barriers to some areas of women's health, there are still barriers to raising children and working. there are still traditional gender roles at play in our households which can limit the choices that women may have in their lives and most importantly, for me, women are still the victims of domestic violence. Overwhelmingly this violence is perpetuated by people these women know and may have been intimate with - its not okay!

I am a Labour candidate because I know that Labour is the Party that will represent the needs to kiwi women in parliament and that we will deliver for all kiwi families.
I am a Labour candidate because I believe that every New Zealander no matter what their background, ethnicity, gender, age have every opportunity to achieve their potential.

Election Survey: Rita Beckmannflay (Independent)

Rita Beckmannflay is running, as an independent, for the electorate seat of Waitakere. Her response to our survey follows, and here's an index of all the responses to date. Rita is the only independent to respond so far.

Dear Julie,

These questions have been very timely for me because I am still in the process of completing what my thoughts are in regards to Women’s Issues to be placed under “Issues” on my campaign website.

The questions have highlighted some very important points that throughout my life’s experience have arisen time and time again, that is coming from a family upbringing with violence in the home, growing up with one parent only to become a single parent and somehow continue working to enable myself and my child to be living comfortably and not on or below the poverty line.

Here are my answers;

Question 1. What do you believe is currently the single biggest issue facing New Zealand women, and how would you like to address it if you are elected?
The single biggest issue facing New Zealand women today is low self esteem or low sense of self worth.

For this issue to be addressed (like anything in life that has worth) is a process and an understanding that process takes time, time to accept responsibility for our lives and the decisions we make, a time to listen and learn from other women’s experiences, a time to allow ourselves to heal, and a time to make a positive stand.

In a perfect world the process of one building a positive, healthy self esteem begins at home. As a baby/infant right through to young adulthood we should be given positive affirmation of who we are, nurtured and loved by (ideally) two parents, but we all know this is not a perfect world and as women we are often trying to fill in the gaping holes that have been left by inadequate or no parenting.

A practical measure would be to encourage women in the community who have experienced what it is to be a victim of domestic violence, single parenthood, sexual abuse etc., to enable them to become trained and receive a NZQA qualification, then by way of bond return to their communities so they can in turn, reach out to others experiencing similar hardship. Their own personal experiences will enable them to show empathy and compassion without judgement. I believe this process will build and solidify their self esteem and sense of self worth.

Another positive action is; choose your friends wisely, surround yourself with people who love and accept you, support and encourage you. This will certainly build a sense of belonging and self worth.

Question 2. New Zealand women are paid, on average, over $300 a week less than men, and the difference is worse for Maori and Pacific Island women. What do you propose as a first step towards closing the gender pay gap?
As a Maori working woman today, I have never questioned what my colleagues are getting in their pay packet or whether they are male/female, European or not.

Finding employment that brings me job and pay satisfaction is my own responsibility. I can choose to upskill which will enhance my ability to find a higher paying salary but does not guarantee getting one. I believe that knowing your own worth will attract the right employee with the right job and salary. When I go for a job interview I see my prospective employee not only as them choosing me but also about me choosing them. I ask myself some key questions like; will working for this company allow me to remain true to myself? Do they portray fairness in the work place? Does the salary reflect the job description?

If you do not feel you are being paid what you know you are worth, than look for another job where they do recognize your abilities and reward you for them.

A first step toward closing the gender pay gap is; recognize that we are all individuals and each one of us unique in what our gift or talents are. As a child we will have dreamed of who we would like to be when we grow up, it is our responsibility to try and fulfill our dream otherwise we will never feel we have accomplished anything in our lives. To enable us to accomplish our dreams we need a healthy self esteem, and belief in oneself.

Question 3. Do you think NZ's current approach to reproductive rights (abortion, contraception etc) is correct? (Yes or No or No Answer, please)
If not, what changes would you want to make?
No;

I believe parent/s should be given the option of being there to support their child throughout the decision making process of issues like contraception, abortion etc.

The policy in some secondary school’s is; if a 16 year old plus female feels she may be pregnant she is able to be referred to an external doctor without the parent/s knowledge or consent. This means if they are given a contraceptive pill (morning after pill), they are responsible for taking it and any side effects that may follow. The information handed to them while at the doctors’ states that the taking of the morning after pill will not cause infertility but gives no real evidence to support that statement. What a huge responsibility for a young person to make when it could be a life altering decision (literally), especially in a pressure situation.

I would like see a clear definition of when a parent is no longer responsible for their child.

An example of where the boundaries are confusing or show a double standard is; where a young female is responsible for her own choice; that is contraception and abortion etc, without parent consent, but when a single young person chooses to enter tertiary education they are means tested against their parent/s income for the student allowance.

Question 4. The police and the courts do not work in preventing violence against women. What other government actions would you take to ensure women can live without fear?
My answer to Question 1, I believe would aid in ensuring women live without fear, because it is about taking ownership and restoring one’s belief in self.

A practical action could be to involve the community because violence touches all of us in some way. If we reach out to those who fear for their lives and encourage them to come to a community facility where they feel safe with staff who are NZQA qualified and have come from similar situations, I believe we will help prevent further abuse (in whatever forms abuse comes) and we will aid in preventing further deaths. (See www.rita.org.nz under “Issues” for Security/Feeling Safe in our Community)

… “It takes people and community to stop abuse”.

Question 5. Those who do the caring work in our society, paid and unpaid, are often the least recognized and the lowest paid, and they work the longest hours. What do you see as the priority to address these issues for those caring for our sick, our elderly and our children?
I am responsible for the choices I make and therefore if I chose to stay home and look after my child/ren then I reap the rewards. The rewards far exceed monetary gain. There is no shame in being an at home Mum or Dad. Some may chose to return to work and place their child in daycare, which is also okay.

To provide a safe and caring environment for our children, elderly and sick, it is important that all prospective caregivers be vetted and there must be an understanding of their responsibility to the vulnerable and the community in which they work.

To attract or retain excellent Caregivers wages must be competitive to encourage a sense of value and a desire to stay.

Question 6. The Ministry of Health has recently launched a campaign to encourage breastfeeding and is now recommending that babies be breastfeed to at least one year old. What do you think the government could do to ensure that every woman who wants to breast feed can?
Again, this is about choice. If you choose to breastfeed take ownership of it. You can be discreet and learn to gauge each situation as it arises. I believe you create your own environment and people tend to follow what you portray. Being confident comes with knowing your worth.

The Government does not need to be involved. Leave the parenting to the parent.

Question 7. What single measure do you think our political organizations could take to better encourage young women to be involved and take on leadership positions in our communities?
As per my answer to Question 1.

A practical measure would be to encourage women in the community who have experienced what it is to be a victim of domestic violence, single parenthood, sexual abuse etc., to enable them to become trained and receive a NZQA qualification, then by way of bond return to their communities so they can in turn, reach out to others experiencing similar hardship. Their own personal experiences will enable them to show empathy and compassion without judgement. I believe this process will build and solidify their self esteem and sense of self worth.

Question 8. Do you see domestic violence as an issue for women, for men, or for all New Zealanders? (Women, or Men, or all New Zealanders please)
If elected, what strategies would you like to pursue to eliminate domestic violence?
All New Zealanders;
As per my answer to Question 1
A practical measure would be to encourage women in the community who have experienced what it is to be a victim of domestic violence, single parenthood, sexual abuse etc., to enable them to become trained and receive a NZQA qualification, then by way of bond return to their communities so they can in turn, reach out to others experiencing similar hardship. Their own personal experiences will enable them to show empathy and compassion without judgement. I believe this process will build and solidify their self esteem and sense of self worth.

As per my answer to Question 4
A practical action could be to involve the community because violence touches all of us in some way. If we reach out to those who fear for their lives and encourage them to come to a community facility where they feel safe with staff who are NZQA qualified and have come from similar situations, I believe we will help prevent further abuse (in whatever forms abuse comes) and we will aid in preventing further deaths. (See www.rita.org.nz under “Issues” for Security/Feeling Safe in our Community)

… “It takes people and community to stop abuse”.

Question 9. Successive governments have effectively cut the Domestic Purposes Benefit. Do you believe people raising children alone should have sufficient financial support from the state so that they do not need to go to work until they believe that is the best choice for their family? (Yes or No or No Answer, please)
No;

A parent raising child/ren alone should have sufficient financial support from the state up to a set age of the youngest child, at which point they receive a partial subsidy according to their income while working on a part time/casual basis with a view to increasing their hours to full time employment once they believe that is the best choice for their family. The part time job may be voluntary or paid. I believe this process will bring a sense of worth to the parent and be a positive influence for their child/ren to want to go out and work when they are of age.

Question 10. Women do the vast majority of cooking and shopping, and increases in food prices are a burden borne disproportionately by women. What do you think our government can or should do to ensure that everyone has access to good food?
This again is the responsibility of the individual, not the government.

We all have access to good food it really is down to whether we feel we deserve to eat it or not. It is about knowing one’s worth and about allowing ourselves to have good things in our lives, like good food.

Question 11. Do you have any further comments that you wish to make about the role of women in our society? Please feel free to share your thoughts here.
If we learned to encourage one another, our husbands/partners, children, family, friends, and work colleagues, I believe our home, neighbourhood, and community and beyond would be a much better place to live. A saying I remembered when I was a child was, “If you want a friend, be a friend”, how much this still applies to today.

I believe it is us the individual who can make a positive change in our community.

Thank you for the opportunity to share my thoughts with you.

Election Survey: The National Party's response

Below is the official National Party response to our survey, after I sent a second gentle reminder to them on Sunday. I have queried whether this means we'll be getting any individual responses from their candidates and will let you know what the answer is.

Update: A National staffer from their Leader's office has clarified as follows:

"We have responded as a party because if MPs responded individually to each request they would never get out into the electorate to campaign, such is the number that have come in. Hence there will be no individual answers. But thanks for the opportunity."

Make of that what you will, dear readers.

The Questions & Answers
Question 1. What do you believe is currently the single biggest issue facing New Zealand women, and how would you like to address it if you are elected?
The economy is a major concern at the moment. Women are worried about paying the bills, feeding their family, and job security. They are worried about rising prices and paying the mortgage. Many women are employed in lower-skilled areas and they are worried that their employment may not be secure. Women are also concerned about rising debt levels. National will be stronger economic managers than the Labour Government has been. National understands the importance of financial certainty in these tough economic times. That is why we are committed to a responsible programme of on-going tax reduction on 1 April 2009, 1 April 2010 and 1 April 2011. This is in addition to maintaining all existing Working for Families and paid parental leave entitlements.

Question 2. New Zealand women are paid, on average, over $300 a week less than men, and the difference is worse for Maori and Pacific Island women. What do you propose as a first step towards closing the gender pay gap?
The National Party wants to lift the wages of all workers, irrespective of gender or occupation. It’s interesting to note that the gender pay gap has not budged under the Labour Government. It’s true that women tend to be clustered in low-paid occupations and that’s why National has policies that support economic growth and education. Lifting wages will mean women will be better able to save in retirement, will have more money to help raise children, repay student debt, and have more disposable income which ultimately will give them greater choice. Economic growth means that as a wealthier country we will be able to do more for our citizens and be able to afford the best medicines, afford good healthcare, social and education services, and pay for things like the extension of paid parental leave. The Labour Government has tried a range of bureaucratic mechanisms aimed at pay equity, but without success. National believes anti-discrimination legislation is still the most effective tool to secure equal pay for equal work.

Question 3. Do you think NZ's current approach to reproductive rights (abortion, contraception etc) is correct? (Yes or No or No Answer, please)
If not, what changes would you want to make?
Abortion is a conscience issue.

Question 4. The police and the courts do not work in preventing violence against women. What other government actions would you take to ensure women can live without fear.
National has already announced that it plans to enable police to issue on-the-spot protection orders in situations where a woman and/or her children are under serious threat from an abusive and violent partner. We are troubled by the fact that though recorded incidents of domestic violence have increased, the number of applications to the courts for protection orders has declined by 26% over the past six years. Not surprisingly, many victims simply don’t apply to the court for a protection order, either because of the associated delays and costs, or for a fear of the repercussions. We think empowering the police to take immediate action will ensure potential victims are protected until courts are able to fully deal with the matter. In turn, it is incumbent upon police to treat breaches of protection orders with the severity they deserve.

Question 5. Those who do the caring work in our society, paid and unpaid, are often the least recognized and the lowest paid, and they work the longest hours. What do you see as the priority to address these issues for those caring for our sick, our elderly and our children?
National will increase access to respite care for those caring for aged family members. We will expand access to dedicated respite beds by $5 million per year. More respite beds means more support for unpaid caregivers so that the stress of caring doesn’t affect their health.

We will also provide an additional $18 million per year to help rest homes support and retain nursing staff. Currently, registered nurses working in residential care facilities are generally paid less per hour than those working for DHBs, and this pay differential has been increasing.

National’s programme of ongoing tax reductions will improve the financial circumstances of parents caring for their children. In addition, National will increase from $80 to $100 the amount that beneficiaries can earn before their benefit is affected. This will take effect in April 2009. It has not been increased since 1996. We have also pledged to keep all existing Working for Families and Paid Parental Leave entitlements.

Question 6. The Ministry of Health has recently launched a campaign to encourage breastfeeding and is now recommending that babies be breastfeed to at least one year old. What do you think the government could do to ensure that every woman who wants to breast feed can?
Breastfeeding is important. Please see our maternity policy for more information.

Question 7. What single measure do you think our political organizations could take to better encourage young women to be involved and take on leadership positions in our communities?
Focus on education. A National Government will focus on education standards because education is the essential rung on the ladder of opportunity. For example, we will introduce national standards in numeracy and literacy, and we will introduce a Youth Guarantee so all 16- and 17-year-olds can access, free of charge, education towards school-level qualifications.

Question 8. Do you see domestic violence as an issue for women, for men, or for all New Zealanders? (Women, or Men, or all New Zealanders please)
Domestic violence is an issue for ALL New Zealanders, because its effects are felt across the spectrum of our society, and we have a collective responsibility to do something about it
If elected, what strategies would you like to pursue to eliminate domestic violence?
A National Government will also ensure there is good collaboration between those agencies with a role in responding to domestic violence – something that the recently released evaluation of Family Safety Teams found was lacking. It has also taken too long for the Labour Government to establish a process for reviewing deaths from family violence, which would potentially add to understanding of its causes and contributing factors. Finally, we would also like to see the current social marketing campaign move towards providing preventative strategies for the perpetrators of domestic violence to better manage their behaviour. Too much of the current focus puts the onus on victims to come forward and open up about their situation, and not enough responsibility has been placed on the perpetrators to address their offending.

Question 9. Successive governments have effectively cut the Domestic Purposes Benefit. Do you believe people raising children alone should have sufficient financial support from the state so that they do not need to go to work until they believe that is the best choice for their family? (Yes or No or No Answer, please)
By convention, benefits are increased each year according to movements in the CPI. However, indexing benefits to the CPI is not guaranteed by legislation which means that beneficiaries do not have the same certainty that superannuitants enjoy. Therefore, National will cement the CPI- indexing of benefits into legislation.

National believes that work is the best way out of poverty. The OECD has said that the DPB creates poverty traps for sole parents and another OECD study from 2007 concluded that ‘It is in the long-term interests of all families, including sole parent families to engage in paid work, as this is the most effective way of reducing the risk of family poverty, enhancing child development, and generally giving children the best possible start in life.’

National will introduce a part-time work obligation of 15 hours per week of employment, training or job-seeking activities for DPB recipients once their youngest dependent child turns six. International studies show that having a working mother does not have a detrimental effect on measurable child outcomes. For more disadvantaged families, including sole parent families, studies have found positive effects from a mother working.

Question 10. Women do the vast majority of cooking and shopping, and increases in food prices are a burden borne disproportionately by women. What do you think our government can or should do to ensure that everyone has access to good food?
As with the response to Question 1, the key to increasing access to good food is to aim for higher household incomes. Lifting the performance of the New Zealand economy is crucial to lifting household incomes. Higher incomes will mean more money in the pockets of Kiwis and more money to buy fruit, vegetables and fresh meat. National will also be keeping the Working for Families package which will give support to households during these tough economic times.

Some commentators have suggested that the removal GST on certain items could be used as a means of decreasing the cost of food. However, this fails to appreciate the cost of such a scheme on consumers. Exempting food from GST would inevitably lead to calls to exempt other things, such as books, children's clothes, and shoes and so on. Such exemptions would complicate the tax system and result in a red tape nightmare as can be seen in the following examples of Australia’s differential GST system: If I had a dairy and sold bread and butter, it would be tax free; but if I put butter on the bread and sold it, it would be taxable. Cold cooked chicken is GST free. Hot cooked chicken is taxable.

National shares the sentiments of an increasing number of New Zealanders concerned about the rising cost of living, and are resolute in our commitment to an ongoing programme of phased tax cuts that will give real money back to all hard-working New Zealanders. .

Question 11. Do you have any further comments that you wish to make about the role of women in our society? Please feel free to share your thoughts here.
(no answer given)

Election Survey: Lyn Murphy (Act)

Lyn Murphy is number 14 on the Act Party list, and standing in the seat of Manukau East. You can find her answers to our survey below, and a whole lot of other responses, including many others from Act candidates, over here.

The Questions & Answers
Question 1. What do you believe is currently the single biggest issue facing New Zealand women, and how would you like to address it if you are elected?
The economy. Reduce increases in government spending to the rate of inflation

Question 2. New Zealand women are paid, on average, over $300 a week less than men, and the difference is worse for Maori and Pacific Island women. What do you propose as a first step towards closing the gender pay gap?
Ensuring quality education choices are avaliable for all

Question 3. Do you think NZ's current approach to reproductive rights (abortion, contraception etc) is correct? (Yes or No or No Answer, please)
If not, what changes would you want to make?
Yes

Question 4. The police and the courts do not work in preventing violence against women. What other government actions would you take to ensure women can live without fear.
Zero tolerance to crime

Question 5. Those who do the caring work in our society, paid and unpaid, are often the least recognized and the lowest paid, and they work the longest hours. What do you see as the priority to address these issues for those caring for our sick, our elderly and our children?
Increasing the size of our economy so there is more money to pay for much needed services

Question 6. The Ministry of Health has recently launched a campaign to encourage breastfeeding and is now recommending that babies be breastfeed to at least one year old. What do you think the government could do to ensure that every woman who wants to breast feed can?
The ACT party believes in individual choice

Question 7. What single measure do you think our political organizations could take to better encourage young women to be involved and take on leadership positions in our communities?
All people should be enpowered to reach their full potential

Question 8. Do you see domestic violence as an issue for women, for men, or for all New Zealanders? (Women, or Men, or all New Zealanders please)
If elected, what strategies would you like to pursue to eliminate domestic violence?
Zero tolerance for crime

Question 9. Successive governments have effectively cut the Domestic Purposes Benefit. Do you believe people raising children alone should have sufficient financial support from the state so that they do not need to go to work until they believe that is the best choice for their family? (Yes or No or No Answer, please)
No

Question 10. Women do the vast majority of cooking and shopping, and increases in food prices are a burden borne disproportionately by women. What do you think our government can or should do to ensure that everyone has access to good food?
Less tax will allow more discretionary spending for all

Question 11. Do you have any further comments that you wish to make about the role of women in our society? Please feel free to share your thoughts here.
(no answer given)

Election Survey: The Labour Party

The below response is from the Labour Party, in addition to the individual candidate responses received from Labour candidates to date (which are listed in the index). I must say I'm quietly surprised, and impressed, to get a response from Labour, as a party, and it's nice to add them to the Greens, the Kiwi Party and the Maori Party who have all sent party-wide responses. Still nothing from National...

The Questions & Answers
Question 1. What do you believe is currently the single biggest issue facing New Zealand women, and how would you like to address it if you are elected?
Currently, the biggest issue facing all New Zealanders is the state of the economy. With New Zealand facing an economic downturn, our shared challenge is to ensure that all New Zealanders are supported through these tough times through strong employment and access to affordable food, healthcare, housing and education.

New Zealand women can feel assured that Labour will continue to invest heavily in education and skills training for them and for their children. Changes to social assistance, Working for Families and the minimum wage will increase family income and improve circumstances for many women in New Zealand.

Question 2. New Zealand women are paid, on average, over $300 a week less than men, and the difference is worse for Maori and Pacific Island women. What do you propose as a first step towards closing the gender pay gap?
Labour is committed to improving the economic wellbeing of women by ensuring steady jobs and good pay for women who choose to enter the paid workforce. After restoring the balance to workplace relations with legislation that included the Employment Relations Act and the Holidays Act, Labour established the Pay and Employment Equity taskforce and has begun to address the gender pay gap in parts of the public service, the public health and education sectors.

Question 3. Do you think NZ's current approach to reproductive rights (abortion, contraception etc) is correct? (Yes or No or No Answer, please)
If not, what changes would you want to make?
Yes.

In general, Labour has sought to give women access to affordable primary health care services and good information so they can stay healthy and a safer environment in which they may address their own reproductive health issues. Under Labour, doctors’ visits and prescription costs have dropped significantly and access to nationwide screening programmes for women, such as breast and cervical cancer, have been widened and given new impetus.

The issue of abortion is a conscience issue for Labour MPs, therefore individual members will be free to take their own position.

Question 4. The police and the courts do not work in preventing violence against women. What other government actions would you take to ensure women can live without fear?
We believe that every single incidence of domestic violence is one too many. While the success of the ‘Its Not OK’ publicity campaign has confirmed that we have made some progress in changing attitudes, our priority is to improve protections for women against violence, and improve access to health and parenting support services for women.

To bring effect to a review of the Domestic Violence Act, Labour will enact legislation that, in particular, provides for police-issued ‘on the spot’ protection orders; strengthens penalties for protection order breaches; and requires closer Family Court scrutiny before protection orders are discharged.

Question 5. Those who do the caring work in our society, paid and unpaid, are often the least recognized and the lowest paid, and they work the longest hours. What do you see as the priority to address these issues for those caring for our sick, our elderly and our children?
Labour believes all workers deserve a fair wage and decent working conditions; and we’re going to work hard to make sure all New Zealanders get that entitlement. Under Labour the minimum wage has increased nine times, and we’ve committed to increasing the minimum wage with inflation or tied to the average wage – whichever is greater.

We recognize the need to support and develop workers who provide valuable support to older New Zealanders and our children and we know that low pay and high staff turnover have been a major issue in aged care, health and education. We want to see wages rise in these sectors.

Question 6. The Ministry of Health has recently launched a campaign to encourage breastfeeding and is now recommending that babies be breastfeed to at least one year old. What do you think the government could do to ensure that every woman who wants to breast feed can?
Labour is dedicated to ensuring that all New Zealanders have the very best start in life, and we believe there are great health benefits from more babies being breastfed and breastfed for longer.

We introduced paid parental leave to give mothers more time with their newborn. We changed the law so parents can ask for flexible working arrangements and employers are now required to provide appropriate facilities and breaks for employees who wish to breastfeed or express. Labour will continue to promoted breastfeeding and do whatever we can to make it easier for mothers to breastfeed for longer.

Question 7. What single measure do you think our political organizations could take to better encourage young women to be involved and take on leadership positions in our communities?
The Labour Party has a proud history of encouraging gender representation. Currently 36 per cent of our MPs in Parliament are female, led by Prime Minister Helen Clark. Our female MPs make a major contribution to the party and we are always looking at ways of encouraging more women to get involved in decision making.

Nevertheless, finding women in leadership roles within our economy is still an exception, rather than the norm. Labour recognises that we still need to encourage greater participation by women on public and private sector boards as well as positions of leadership in the public sector.

Labour will develop initiatives that increase the percentage of women on public sector boards and encourage greater representation of women on private sector boards. For women in business, there should be help where they need it.

But reaching the top also involves role models and sharing a sense of the achievable. Labour will encourage mentoring schemes for women interested greater leadership participation and development. Labour will also develop policies that support women in the public sector to attain senior management positions.

Question 8. Do you see domestic violence as an issue for women, for men, or for all New Zealanders? (Women, or Men, or all New Zealanders please)
If elected, what strategies would you like to pursue to eliminate domestic violence?
Family violence is one of the most serious problems facing all New Zealanders. We will continue to support the work of the Taskforce for Action on Family Violence and their It’s Not OK! campaign. We are committed to providing ongoing support and security of funding for community groups who are at the front line. And we will strengthen the Domestic Violence Act to better protect victims and enable police to crack down on perpetrators of domestic violence.

Question 9. Successive governments have effectively cut the Domestic Purposes Benefit. Do you believe people raising children alone should have sufficient financial support from the state so that they do not need to go to work until they believe that is the best choice for their family? (Yes or No or No Answer, please)
Yes.

Labour values the job that sole parents undertake when raising children and do not believe there is a need to adopt a punitive approach - punishing beneficiaries only means their children suffer the most.

Labour actively encourages people into work where possible. The key point is that the government, through incentives such as Working for Families, abatements and 20 Hours’ Free early childhood education, supports people into the workforce when they are ready.

Question 10. Women do the vast majority of cooking and shopping, and increases in food prices are a burden borne disproportionately by women. What do you think our government can or should do to ensure that everyone has access to good food?
Labour is committed to affordable basics for all Kiwi families – that is why we cut taxes at the lowest rate and increase benefits, Working for Families and Superannuation every year to help families meet rising costs. We are committed to doing what we can to help ease some of the pressure. While we can't control global prices, we are committed to ensuring that the most vulnerable Kiwis are always able to access affordable food for their families.

Question 11. Do you have any further comments that you wish to make about the role of women in our society? Please feel free to share your thoughts here.
In New Zealand today, women’s participation in the paid workforce is increasing, the level at which they participate is improving, and more women are moving into self-employment. Government-funded, paid parental leave is available to assist women to balance paid work commitments and family responsibilities. Across a number of indicators, improvements can be seen in women’s general health and women are performing particularly well in education. These are some of the advances achieved for women in recent years, despite persisting inequalities.

But Labour understands that despite these improvements, we cannot rest on our laurels. Work will go on to ensure that Kiwi women have access to affordable healthcare and food; that they are protected from the uncertainties of the economic downturn through opportunities to work for good pay; and they can raise families in a New Zealand free from family violence.

Election Survey: Sue Bradford (Greens)

Sue Bradford is number 3 on the Green party list, a current MP, and the Greens candidate for East Coast Bays. As per all the Green responses to date, she's answered questions 1 and 11, and there'll be a link below to the Green Party response to questions 2 to 10. You can find a full index of all candidate responses to date here, including several others from the Greens.

The Questions & Answers
Question 1. What do you believe is currently the single biggest issue facing NZ women, and how would you like to address it if you are elected?
I think the biggest issue facing many NZ women is poverty. Hundred of thousands are living in quiet desperation either on low incomes or on benefits, often struggling to bring up children as well.

Overcoming poverty is a huge, complex job, but to start with:
- the minimum wage should be lifted to $15 an hour right now, then indexed annually to 66% of the average wage
- benefit levels should be raised so that they are actually enough for people to live on
- we should accelerate our state and community sector housing programmes to provide safe, healthy, affordable housing for all who need it.

Green Party combined response to questions 2 to 10.

Question 11. Do you have any further comments that you wish to make about the role of women in our society? Please feel free to share your thoughts here.
Despite all the advances of the last thirty years, our society still lives and breathes much structural discrimination against women.

This is seen, for example, in the ongoing high rates of violence and abuse of women and girls, mainly in their own homes, and in the fact that many women continue to earn proportionately less than men.

My biggest fear is that as we go into a time of economic recession and environmental vulnerability, we risk going backwards in all sorts of ways.

We women must be vigilant and strong, across all generations, to protect what we’ve achieved – in defending our rights to work; to reproductive and sexual choices; to fair incomes; to the DPB; to live our lives free from rape and violence to the maximum extent possible; and to participate fully in our country’s democratic processes.

Election Survey: The Maori Party

The Maori Party have offered a collective response to our election survey, as the Kiwi Party has done (and the Greens also, for most of the questions), which you'll find below. A full index of candidate responses to date can be found over here. We have now had responses from either the party and/or at least one candidate from all current Parliamentary parties except National, NZ First and the Progressives.

The Questions & Answers
Question 1: What do you believe is currently the single biggest issue facing New Zealand women, and how would you like to address it if you are elected?
With 27% of Maori children already living in poverty, and 150,000 children categorised as living in ‘severe and significant hardship’, the most critical issue facing women and families today is that of poverty. To address the entrenched and increasing poverty in Aotearoa, the Maori Party has a range of policies to lower living costs, such as removing GST off food, and raising the incomes of low-income families by exempting those who earn $25,000 or less from tax and by raising the minimum wage to at least $15 per hour. We will also reinstate (and rename) the in-work tax credit to all children, regardless of the source of parental income. Significantly, the Maori Party will establish an official poverty line in Aotearoa, and set a date, 2020, for the elimination of poverty.

Question 2: New Zealand women are paid, on average, over $300 a week less than men, and the difference is worse for Maori and Pacific Island women. What do you propose as a first step towards closing the gender pay gap?
The Maori Party will raise the minimum wage to at least $15 per hour and we would support the introduction of pay and employment equity legislation to address the lower pay rates of occupations and industries which are predominantly populated by women.

We are also very concerned to address the income inequalities still existing on the grounds of ethnicity. In 2007, the average weekly income for Europeans was $723, while for Māori it was $526, and $477 for Pacific Peoples. We are committed to addressing the double whammy of both gender and ethnicity discrimination in our consistent advocacy of pay and employment equity.

Question 3: Do you think NZ's current approach to reproductive rights (abortion, contraception etc) is correct? (Yes or No or No Answer, please). If not, what changes would you want to make? (have broadened to focus on reproductive rights in general rather than abortion specifically)
The Maori Party does not have a specific policy on either abortion or contraception.

However, our commitment to whanau ora – literally the life-force of whanau – instructs us that every decision to do with an individual member of a whanau, will always impact on the health and wellbeing of the wider group. The protection and enhancement of whanau and whanau self-determination is one of the Maori Party’s three foundational commitments.

This commitment has two important implications, the first being decisions around reproduction rights are decisions for whanau to make. The second is that families should have real choice in making decisions on reproduction, i.e. that mothers and families can be assured of appropriate income, medical and childcare support so that financial considerations are not the determining factor. Enhancing whanaungatanga is also important, where extended family networks are sufficiently supported by policy to be enabled to take up the care of children if their parents are unable or unwilling to do so.

Question 4: The police and the courts do not work in preventing violence against women. What other government actions would you take to ensure women can live without fear.
There is an urgent need to address domestic violence in Aotearoa, and as such, there is an urgent need for a greater investment by government in whanau restoration programmes which address violence in a collective context, and ‘whole of whanau’ initiatives to ensure the active participation and engagement of all whanau members. For the Maori Party, what is also critical for whanau wellbeing, is the need for initiatives to create drug and alcohol free homes. We will support and resource providers with a track record of success in attaining mauriora and in preventing family violence We are also committed to supporting child, whanau and families, and are proposing a Neighbourhood Renewal Fund which may include incentives to encourage living more collectively.

Violence in homes, however, cannot be properly addressed unless the violence in our communities and society at large is also addressed, including that of racism. The Maori Party supports the elimination of institutional racism, and the development of a cultural audit framework to ensure that government systems responding to whanau do so in culturally safe ways. We promote cultural competence as an employment standard in justice, health, education and social services.

Question 5: Those who do the caring work in our society, paid and unpaid, are often the least recognized and the lowest paid, and they work the longest hours. What do you see as the priority to address these issues for those caring for our sick, our elderly and our children?
The Maori Party will promote and strengthen whanau-based and home-based care options for older people and people with disabilities to choose to remain in their homes, connected to their family and social networks. These options need to be better resourced – particularly the pay rates and training of home-based carers; and the respite care arrangements for whanau-based carers.

The current rates of pay in the aged care sector are far too low, and vastly beneath comparative rates received by health care assistants in DHBs. The Maori Party supports the call from the NZNO for pay parity across the aged care sector.

We know that aged care workers are often Maori and Pasifika women. The 2006 Census revealed that the median annual income for Māori women aged 15 years and over was $17,800. We have a problem with embedded low wages in this country, and this burden more often than not falls on Maori and Pasifika women. Pay disparity is obviously a major issue for Maori women. We have called for the minimum wage to be raised to at least $15 per hour, as we believe this would lead to a massive improvement in the lives of those that currently have to subsist on the minimum wage.

Currently, caregivers are compromised by high staff to patient ratios, meaning that our elderly people and people with disabilities are not being given the level of care they deserve. This is hard on staff, those being cared for and their families. We will support measures to see minimum staffing levels introduced, as this is critical for the provision of safe, quality care.

Safe care also requires adequate training for all staff, including cultural safety training. We support the need to improve access to training and education for aged care workers who want to upskill or achieve national qualifications. A more skilled workforce has positive ramifications for the entire sector.

Core benefit levels need to be increased across the board, along with accommodation supplements, including those for sole-parents. In addition, the in-work tax credit needs to be extended to include all children regardless of parental income. Our poorest families have been denied this crucial $60 per week payment for over 10 years, at a collective cost to them of around $4 billion. In this time of economic uncertainty, the last thing laid-off workers need to contend with is the loss of another $60 per week.

The Maori Party would increase investment in early childhood education to better ensure the availability of affordable, high quality childcare for parents and whanau. Our particular priority of the Maori Party is to extend the 20 hours fee childcare to all kohanga reo and playcentres. Only 25% of kohanga reo are able to access this funding at present.

We also advocate for better pay for early childhood teachers, which would impact positively on recruitment and retention in the sector. We are passionately in support of changing attitudes to the teaching workforce so that our communities value teachers. A key part of our interest in valuing teachers is to ensure that they are paid what they are worth.

Question 6: The Ministry of Health has recently launched a campaign to encourage breastfeeding and is now recommending that babies be breastfeed to at least one year old. What do you think the government could do to ensure that every woman who wants to breast feed can?
There are a number of policy and legislative changes that can be made to increase breastfeeding rates which continue to be low in Aotearoa, particularly for Maori and Pacific mothers. It is our view that increased investment in maternity services to address the midwifery shortage is critical for mothers to receive breastfeeding education and support.

In the 48th Parliament, the Maori Party voted in support of the Employment Relations (Breaks and Infant Feeding) Amendment Bill which requires facilities and breaks to be provided for employees who wish to breastfed in the workplace or during work periods. However, the New Zealand Government has not yet ratified ILO Convention 183 (maternity protection), which requires not only facilities and breaks to be provided, but for the breastfeeding breaks to be paid breaks. The Maori Party supports ratification of ILO Convention 183.

In our 2008 Policy Manifesto, He aha te mea nui, we have also signalled our support for encouraging whanau and communities to live more collectively, including providing post-natal support for parents.

Question 7: What single measure do you think our political organizations could take to better encourage young women to be involved and take on leadership positions in our communities?
Research on the cost of tertiary education and student debt, and their impacts on participation, retention and completion rates in tertiary education shows that cost is a strong determining factor, with too many young people deciding not to study or studying shorter courses as a result of their concerns about debt repayment. These concerns are particularly experienced by women. For the Maori Party, education is a front-end investment in the future of the nation, and we will introduce a debt reduction policy to reduce fees to a nominal level and also introduce a universal student allowance, pro rated for part-time students.

In addition, rangatahi (young people) require vehicles through which to be mentored in community leadership and development roles. The Maori Party has advocated for the creation of Regional Rangatahi Councils that would interface with local and regional authorities.

Question 8: Do you see domestic violence as an issue for women, for men, or for all New Zealanders? (Women, or Men, or all New Zealanders please). If elected, what strategies would you like to pursue to eliminate domestic violence?
Reiterating from response to question 4 above, domestic violence continues to be a priority issue in Aotearoa. For the Maori Party, solutions must lie in investing in rejuvenating whanau; in whanau restoration programmes which address violence in a collective context, and work to ensure the active participation and engagement of all whanau members. We will also investigate and implement initiatives to promote drug and alcohol free homes.

Question 9: Successive governments have effectively cut the Domestic Purposes Benefit. Do you believe people raising children alone should have sufficient financial support from the state so that they do not need to go to work until they believe that is the best choice for their family? (Yes or No or No Answer, please)
Yes. Core benefit levels need to be increased, along with accommodation supplements, and the in-work tax credit needs to be extended to include all children regardless of parental income.

Question 10: Women do the vast majority of cooking and shopping, and increases in food prices are a burden borne disproportionately by women. What do you think our government can or should do to ensure that everyone has access to good food?
The Maori Party is advocating a GST off food policy, as is currently in place in Australia, England and Ireland. Food should be exempt from GST on the grounds that GST hits low-income people disproportionately.

Question 11: Do you have any further comments that you wish to make about the role of women in our society? Please feel free to share your thoughts here.
The need to equally recognise mana wahine and mana täne is reflected in the Maori Party’s constitution which requires the appointment of both a male and a female co-leader. In the 2007 Hui-a-Tau of the Māori Party a recommendation was also unanimously passed to ensure there is a male and female vice-president. Particular attention to the representation of women was given to the party’s list as part of the selection criteria.

As such, the Maori Party has five women in the top 10 of our Party list. They are: Tariana Turia, Co-Leader and candidate for Te Tai Hauauru (No 1); Angeline Greensill, candidate for Hauraki-Waikato (No 5); Rahui Katene, candidate for Te Tai Tonga (No 7); Naida Glavish, List candidate (No 8); and Iritana Tawhiwhirangi, List candidate (No 9).

Election Survey: Erin Ebborn-Gillespie (Labour)

Erin emailed us to say she appreciated our survey but unfortunately doesn't have time to answer the questions. So I asked if we could publish her email, as a non-question-answering response, (a la Peter Tashkoff), which she was fine with. I've added in the links to her candidate profile etc. A full index of candidate responses can be found here.

Hi Julie and the women at The Hand Mirror,

My name is Erin Ebborn-Gillespie and I am the Labour candidate for Wigram (list number 51). My work/life imbalance is such that I haven't had a chance to answer your questionnaire even though I agree the issues raised remain relevant.

My background is that I am a family lawyer. I have previously been on the trust board for Camellia House in Palmerston North which provides emergency accommodation to women and children. I have been involved with the NZ Law Society Women's Consultative Group and with local women's legal associations. Last year I interned for 3 months at the Women’s National Commission in London. Currently I have an interest in the proposed teen parenting unit at Hornby High School.

While women have made many gains, and I believe Labour's policies continue to assist with this, it concerns me that within the community there seems to be a perception that women have already made it and there is no more work to be done. Or, worse, that we have gone too far!

I was surprised at the Women’s Expo recently that a young woman did not know that New Zealand led the world in granting women’s suffrage. What is happening to our herstory?

The women's movement has always been about empowering women. Over the last few years we have seen a greater collective voice from men's groups. I acknowledge that there are men's issues and gender issues relevant to men deserve to be addressed. But it is important that this is done in a way which enables both genders (and transgender etc) to move forward together. Improving one gender's place in the community should not be done by impeding gains made by the other.

From my experience as a family lawyer, the Family Court has reacted to address issues raised by men's groups - not as extensively as those groups wish - but I have certainly noticed a change. Women did not respond with a strong collective voice to those challenges.

My view is that violence is an issue which affects all members of our community – young, old, male, female, gay, straight etc. It concerns me when violence against women is responded to with “but women are violent too.” While some women are violent, just as only some men are violent, this response excuses violence against women. To me, family violence remains a gender issue first and foremost even though all forms of violence within our extended family need to be addressed. A key step is the message “It’s not OK” but also to address alcohol/drug issues and provide support to our families so that stressors do not lead to violence. I do not believe that greater punitive measures address the root problems of violence.

I endorse the comments Anjum has made about the negative attacks on women in positions of responsibility. We remain targets for comments about our appearance, sexuality, marital status and family life.

I also acknowledge there are different challenges faced by Maori, Pasifika and ethnic women.

New Zealand has led the world on women’s rights, social welfare and our stance on being nuclear free. We need to continue to keep women’s rights and human rights to the forefront of our agenda.

I had intended to simply acknowledge the importance of the issues raised in your survey and to thank you for it. My reply has become lengthier than I intended however women’s issues remain one of my passions.

Kind regards
Erin Ebborn-Gillespie

Election Survey: Katherine Ransom (Democrats for Social Credit)

Katherine Ransom is the candidate for Tauranga for the Democrats for Social Credit, and is also number 4 on the Democrats for Social Credit's party list. Her answers to our survey are below, and a full index of responses to date are here. This is the first response from a DSC candidate, and Katherine has been commenting here recently.

The Questions & Answers
These answers are based on Democrats for social credit (DSC) policy.

Question 1. What do you believe is currently the single biggest issue facing New Zealand women, and how would you like to address it if you are elected?
The single biggest issue continues to be the invisibility and the devaluation of women, both in the workforce and in the essential nurturing work many women do. All too often I hear people (even other women) say: "We've got equality now." Excuse me, no we don't.

My first action would be to ensure that the community groups and nationally organised societies that contribute so much to the well-being of society, largely through women's unpaid work, are properly funded to function effectively. I would implement DSC policy on incomes, by paying a guaranteed basic income to every citizen. This would go some way towards giving women working as full time mothers or in other nurturing roles some economic independence. I would also strengthen and expand the little bit of government work already being done to address gender issues (pay, promotion, etc.) in workplaces, by better funding, more staff and mentoring programmes.

Question 2. New Zealand women are paid, on average, over $300 a week less than men, and the difference is worse for Maori and Pacific Island women. What do you propose as a first step towards closing the gender pay gap?
(See the last sentence of my answer to question 1.) I would raise the minimum wage, initially remove income tax from the first $20,000, and progressively replace all income tax with a Financial Transactions Tax set at less than 1%. There will be no exemptions or loopholes to this tax, which will collect the most revenue from those who have the most, especially previously exempt financial services, while being hardly noticeable to those on the lower incomes.

Question 3. Do you think NZ's current approach to reproductive rights (abortion, contraception etc) is correct? (Yes or No or No Answer, please) Yes.
If not, what changes would you want to make?

Question 4. The police and the courts do not work in preventing violence against women. What other government actions would you take to ensure women can live without fear.
While I absolutely accept that the majority of violence is perpetrated by men against women and children, some violence women are guilty of, to their partners and most damagingly to their children. Why do we do this, and fail to protect our weakest and most vulnerable?
As well as continuing to improve the culture and attitudes of police and courts, I would increase the level of legal aid so that more lawyers are available to handle protection orders. (In rural towns this is a very big problem. There are no lawyers in Matamata who will take on legal aid.) I would also make a percentage of 'pro bono' work a requirement for law firms to retain their licence to practice. I would work to change the rules of evidence that protect the past of an accused rapist but leave the victim to the mercy of invasive questioning and character assassination.

I would also look at the root causes of violence. I suspect that the pressure of living in the modern world, the demand for 'productivity' and success, the disenfranchisement and disempowerment of whole sectors of people, and the general feeling of helplessness and hopelessness has a lot to do with why we are violent. There is some evidence that the dehumanising effect of gratuitous violence in the media creates in children a callousness and disregard for others. Too many parents work too long and too hard just to make ends meet, and don't have quality time with their children. While I certainly don't think the problem is simply an economic issue, I believe a more just financial system would go a long way towards easing the pressure of living in the modern world, and reducing our violence towards one another.

Question 5. Those who do the caring work in our society, paid and unpaid, are often the least recognized and the lowest paid, and they work the longest hours. What do you see as the priority to address these issues for those caring for our sick, our elderly and our children?
DSC will provide a guaranteed basic income for all citizens, a National Dividend as a share of the country's wealth. In addition, those with extra needs will have these funded, including adequate housing, respite care, and any special equipment required. DSC will fully fund and staff a world-class health system, and provide education and training to tertiary level free of charge. Caregivers will be recognised as essential to society and paid accordingly.

Question 6. The Ministry of Health has recently launched a campaign to encourage breastfeeding and is now recommending that babies be breastfeed to at least one year old. What do you think the government could do to ensure that every woman who wants to breast feed can?
Support groups like Plunket and La Leche League need far more funding and resourcing. In my long experience as a breastfeeding mother and La Leche League leader, I know the importance of woman-to-woman support in the success of breastfeeding. It is not something we know instinctively, but something we once learned to do from watching our mothers, sisters and friends. We need those women, or the nurses and midwives who replace them, to even get breastfeeding established. Paid Parental Leave for at least a year is essential to feeding a baby for that long. Instead of enticing mothers back to work with 20 hours free childcare, proactive steps should be taken to enable women to stay home. And again, a basic income would help a lot, relieving a family of financial pressures, and allowing a woman to relax into motherhood and breastfeeding. Breastmilk is like tears - it responds to emotion.

Question 7. What single measure do you think our political organizations could take to better encourage young women to be involved and take on leadership positions in our communities?
Political parties can be proactive about choosing candidates with gender equity in mind. Education and mentoring are important, but finding issues that young women care about is the first step. The National Council of Women has started an email forum called 'GirlTalk' which includes older women, boomers, Gen X and Gen Y, all with opinions they are ready to discuss. Having said that, the biggest male club is the private sector boards of directors. Is our challenge to encourage our young women to go hard for power and extreme wealth?

Question 8. Do you see domestic violence as an issue for women, for men, or for all New Zealanders? (Women, or Men, or all New Zealanders please)
All New Zealanders.
If elected, what strategies would you like to pursue to eliminate domestic violence?
DSC would like to change the economic paradigm. We would like to take the usury out of the economy, and establish the creation, ownership and control of our own money supply through the publicly owned Reserve Bank of New Zealand. This may seem like a strategy far removed from domestic violence, but as I mentioned in question 4, it is the pressure of our modern society that I feel underpins our destructive behaviours. We are angry and sad too much of the time, and we are borrowing ourselves into slavery. When we can stop borrowing from overseas banks (and that will get harder and more expensive to do anyway) we can stop paying billions of dollars every year in interest payments alone into the pockets of the obscenely rich. Instead we can afford fully resourced health and education systems, environmental projects, energy research and development beyond Peak Oil - whatever we think is important to do. We can own our own country again. Most importantly, we can all stop working so hard.

Question 9. Successive governments have effectively cut the Domestic Purposes Benefit. Do you believe people raising children alone should have sufficient financial support from the state so that they do not need to go to work until they believe that is the best choice for their family? (Yes or No or No Answer, please)
Yes.

Question 10. Women do the vast majority of cooking and shopping, and increases in food prices are a burden borne disproportionately by women. What do you think our government can or should do to ensure that everyone has access to good food?
Abolish GST. I am also convinced that a national programme to improve soil health would make a big difference. It is nearly the magic bullet: organically fertilized land stops leaching nitrogen into our ground water, sequesters tons more carbon per acre than chemically fertilized land, and best of all it grows better yields of food that is more nutritious. (Not to mention enhancing our clean, green image and boosting our export earnings.) I understand that our food is 60% less nutritious than it was 40 years ago, and if that's true, it is no wonder we have growing obesity and malnutrition. I would like to see every primary school in the country adopt a programme of teaching children to grow vegetables and plant fruit and nut trees, engaging older people as mentors. We must not lose our gardening skills to the supermarkets.

Question 11. Do you have any further comments that you wish to make about the role of women in our society? Please feel free to share your thoughts here.
Women are the main sex. We are stronger, longer lived and better educated than men. Although the gender pay gap is an issue, sometimes I think that life's too short and too precious to waste chasing after lots of money. Perhaps unconsciously a lot of women feel like that, and we see more important things to do, like nurturing and volunteering, than spend all our waking hours making a gazillion dollars. Which is not to say I wouldn't like more money at times, and I know there are many, many women who desperately need the choices that money could give them.

What I would really like to see women have is more control over their own lives, more say in what happens to them and their families. This is what I work towards in everything I do. I am not just a candidate, I am also a member of Citizen's Advice Bureau and involved in the National Council of Women, presently as convener of the Economics Standing Committee. All of the issues raised in this survey are important to NCW, and as an umbrella organisation with many individual and group members, we are increasingly consulted by government on current issues. I am proud to be associated with the strength of our collective voice that refuses to be silent.

Politically, I feel that Democrats for social credit has more to offer women in the way of income, support and control over their lives than any other party.