Abuse in care survivors vow to fight on after government opts against new compensation scheme

RNZ News

09-05-2025

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Minister Erica Stanford.
Photo:
RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
Abuse in care survivors have described the government's changes to the redress system as an insult, a broken promise and a kick in the guts.
The government will not be setting up a new compensation scheme for survivors, as Prime Minister Christopher Luxon had indicated at November's apology to survivors and as the Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry had recommended.
Instead, $774 million would be spent improving the existing system and to make changes to New Zealand's care system.
Average payments to survivors would rise from about $19,000 to $30,000 and previously settled claims could be topped up by 50 percent. However, those who had suffered abuse at the hands of faith-based organisations or other non-state providers were excluded from the scheme.
Survivors had consistently called for the Royal Commission's recommendations to be actioned, including the establishment of an independent, survivor-led and survivor-informed redress system for all those who suffered abuse in the past, present and into the future, whether it was committed at the hands of the state or faith-based institutions.
Keith Wiffin, who entered state care at 10-years-old and sat on the Redress Design Group which provided a report to the government in late 2023, said the work of the design group and the government's ultimate announcement bore no similarity.
"They are poles apart," Wiffin said.
"Today's announcement is essentially a miniscule amount of topping up a thoroughly rotten process, governed by the very same people who have always opposed us and disrespected us."
The key aspect of the group's scheme and the Royal Commission's recommendation was its independence from the Crown and the government departments responsible for abuse and the failure to protect children and vulnerable people.
"This should've been a day when we were celebrating something meaningful . . . like we celebrated after the apology. We should have been celebrating the implementation of that scheme in some form," Wiffin said.
Annabel Ahuriri-Driscoll, who was co-chair of the design group, said the government's increased payments to survivors were still well short of those offered in comparable schemes overseas.
"What's been proposed, not only has it appeared to take very little heed of what survivors were advising, but it also don't match the scale of the abuse and harm," Ahuriri-Driscoll said.
"That's the key feeling.
"The payments proposed are still considerably lower than other jurisdictions, which is really disappointing."
In Canada, Indian Residential Schools settlements averaged about $100,000. In Ireland, it was about the same.
In Australia, the National Redress Scheme payments averaged about $84,000. But in recent years those who had sought justice through the courts in Australia had received hundreds of thousands and even millions of dollars in compensation.
Darryl Smith, who was abused in state and church care facilities from the age of 7, said he saw the government's Lead Minister Erica Stanford less than a fortnight ago at his investiture ceremony for his King's Service Medal for services to survivors of abuse care.
She promised he would be surprised by the redress announcement, but he did not expect it would be an unpleasant surprise, Smith said.
"To Erica Stanford and to the Prime Minister and to all the National government, resign immediately," Smith told RNZ following today's announcement.
"What you have done is offensive to survivors, offensive to the people of this country, and offensive to survivors around the world."
Survivors were also outraged the government was picking and choosing who redress applied to, with survivors of abuse in faith-based institutions, and those whose claims sat with school boards or other non-state providers excluded.
Ihorangi Reweti-Peters, who was uplifted by Oranga Tamariki when he was 7-months-old, said it was the wrong approach.
"All survivors should be treated equally and they should all have an opportunity to apply for redress and get redress via a single redress system, but, again, it's another broken promise," he said.
Terry Kingi, who was abused by the church and in state care facilities from a young age, said he was angry and gutted at the government's decision.
"For us survivors, especially those in the 60 and 70 age groups, this is a total kick in the guts and has virtually made the apology of last November a total waste of time," he said.
Survivors told RNZ today did not mark the end of their fight, but simply the start of another one.
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