Youth Affairs Minister Nikki Kaye will tomorrow open Youth Parliament 2013 to 121 Youth MPs and 20 Youth Press Gallery members.
Youth Parliament runs Tuesday 16 and Wednesday 17 July and each Member of Parliament has selected a Youth MP for a tenure that runs until the end of the year.
Youth Affairs Minister Nikki Kaye has today released the select committee topics for Youth Parliament on 16 and 17 July 2013.
Youth Parliament is seeking public submissions on the topics - ranging from New Zealand’s international obligations to environmental issues - to be discussed by the 121 Youth MPs during the Select Committees of Inquiry at Youth Parliament.
Youth Affairs Minister Nikki Kaye today announced the names of the Youth Members of Parliament and Youth Press Gallery, as well as the topics they’ll be discussing at Youth Parliament 2013.
“Tonight I am hosting a Youth Week function at Parliament to recognise young Wellington school leaders and announce the young people to take part in Youth Parliament,” Ms Kaye said.
Youth Affairs Minister Nikki Kaye says everyone should take the time to acknowledge the contributions made by New Zealand’s young people during Youth Week 2013.
Youth Week began yesterday and runs until Sunday 12 May.
“Youth Week is an opportunity to recognise the many young Kiwis making a difference in communities and businesses across the country,” Ms Kaye says.
Broadcasting Minister Craig Foss and Youth Affairs Minister Nikki Kaye are encouraged that New Zealand’s home-grown music scene continues to go from strength to strength, as the 13th NZ Music Month gets underway.
More than 350 events are planned across the country this month to promote and celebrate Kiwi artists.
Youth Affairs Minister Nikki Kaye has announced a decision to continue $4.5 million of funding so 46 service providers can continue working with young New Zealanders.
“This funding is to support youth service providers to deliver services to improve the lives of young people,” Ms Kaye says.
“These services include entrepreneurial skills, mentoring, and supporting young people to achieve through leadership initiatives.
Youth Affairs Minister Nikki Kaye announced that from today the Ministry of Youth Development will be accepting applications to the Youth Development Partnership Fund from city and district councils.
There is a total of $889,000 for allocation with a minimum of $10,000 and a maximum of $70,000 per project.
“This fund supports councils working with young people to develop the skills, knowledge, and experience to participate confidently in their communities,” Ms Kaye said.
Youth Affairs Minister Nikki Kaye today announced funding for six organisations offering diverse services to young people.
“I am allocating a total of $59,000 across six organisations providing initiatives ranging from helping disadvantaged youth to giving cultural opportunities to young people in rural communities,” Ms Kaye said.
The Minister of Youth Affairs, Hon Nikki Kaye, has opened the selection process for Youth Parliament 2013 and is inviting young people aged 16-18 to contact their local MP and apply to represent their community.
A further 80 schools will be covered by the expansion of Social Workers in Schools (SWiS) when students return to classrooms from this week.
Social Development Minister Paula Bennett announced the expansion of SWiS to all decile 1-3 schools last year, with coverage planned to increase from 285 to 673 schools.
There will be 35 new full time social workers starting the 2013 school year at primary schools in Kaipara, Greater Auckland and the South Island.
Youth Affairs Minister Paula Bennett congratulates the 100 young people accepted onto the Prime Minister’s Youth Programme which is running this week.
The number of people on benefits in New Zealand is the lowest it’s been at the end of a December quarter since 2008.
Social Development Minister Paula Bennett says the number of people on benefits decreased by nearly 12,000 in the last twelve months.
“But with 339,095 people on benefit in New Zealand, there is much more work to do.”
“We are very much in a transitional phase with the first stage of Welfare Reform currently being implemented and the second stage yet to begin,” says Mrs Bennett.
Children in care are benefiting from a life-changing government initiative to ensure health, mental health and educational needs are addressed.
Social Development Minister Paula Bennett says the $43.7 million Children in Care package has been well justified.
Children come into State care because they have been seriously abused or neglected and their life experiences often include exposure to domestic violence, drug abuse, gang culture and criminal behaviour.
Social Development Minister Paula Bennett today announced the launch of a new contestable fund to improve youth mental health information for parents, families and friends.
“We need better information for those closest to young people, who’re often the first to notice signs of mental health problems but don’t always know when to be concerned and what to do,” says Mrs Bennett.
Social Development Minister Paula Bennett is delighted to announce that former Governor General the Rt Hon Sir Anand Satyanand will lead the Expert Advisory Group on Information Security.
The Group will oversee implementation of the Vulnerable Kids Information System (ViKi) and new Risk Predictor Tool which have the capacity to better protect children from abuse and neglect.
Social Development Minister Paula Bennett today announced two new appointments to the Families Commission.
Sir Peter Gluckman and Belinda Milnes have been appointed to the Board of the Families Commission for a period of three years.
The Families Commission is currently undergoing a restructure to assume its new role providing independent monitoring, evaluation and research.
“We’ve appointed the best people for the job to oversee a major change programme within the Families Commission,” says Mrs Bennett.
Social Development Minister Paula Bennett has announced the second Vulnerable Children’s Team will be rolled out in Whangarei.
“Children who are at risk of abuse or neglect need professionals who bring their expertise to the table and work in a coordinated manner putting the child at the centre of all decision making.”
“Professionals from a range of disciplines can act before children suffer serious abuse and prevent the worst from happening,” says Mrs Bennett.
Social Development Minister Paula Bennett announced the first Children's Team will be trialled in Rotorua to local community groups today.
"A vital initiative in the White Paper will be local Children's Teams that bring professionals together to make individualised plans for vulnerable children."
"These teams will in most cases be acting before children have suffered serious abuse, so we can get ahead of the problem," says Mrs Bennett.
Social Development Minister Paula Bennett has released the White Paper for Vulnerable Children today at the Jigsaw national conference in Wellington.
"We will target support and services to our most vulnerable children through more than 30 new initiatives introduced in the White Paper," says Mrs Bennett.
"Too many New Zealand children are seriously abused and neglected. In many cases of extreme abuse a range of people held some information but no one put all the pieces together, it is time for fundamental change," she says.
Holiday programmes introduced by the National Government have been enjoyed by more than 65,000 children from high need communities.
Breakaway programmes for 11 to 17-year-olds are targeted to young people who wouldn’t normally have access to school holiday programmes.
“Young people from stressed families in high-deprivation areas often have little to do in the holidays. We wanted to provide a fun, structured and safe environment for young people to enjoy, which won’t cost their parents a cent.”
Social Development Minister Paula Bennett is visiting social workers today as part of National Social Worker’s Day.
“Every day around 1,300 Child, Youth and Family social workers head out the door to work with this country’s most vulnerable children and their families and they literally save lives,” says Mrs Bennett.
CYF social workers deal with more than 400 notifications of abuse and neglect every day in New Zealand.
Social Development Minister Paula Bennett today introduced the second stage of legislation to comprehensively reform the welfare system.
“In line with our manifesto commitments, the Government is taking an active, work-based approach,” says Mrs Bennett.
The Social Security (Benefit Categories and Work Focus) Amendment Bill includes simplified benefit categories, a greater work focus, new expectations for partners of beneficiaries, work preparation activities.
Social Development Minister Paula Bennett has announced further detail on the investment approach and the actuarial valuation of the welfare system.
“The lifetime cost of the current beneficiary population has been put at $78 billion by experts,” says Mrs Bennett.
“The investment approach will change the entire focus of the welfare system so that support is invested where it will make the biggest difference.”
