Don’t veto me!

Written By: - Date published: 6:52 pm, June 17th, 2013 - 4 comments
Categories: babies - Tags: ,

Have you done this yet?

Send a message to John Key & Bill English that kids are important.  We’ve done many posts on the important improved long-term financial and social outcomes of paid parental leave.  It’s investing in our country’s future.

So send them a message.

4 comments on “Don’t veto me! ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. QoT 1
    17 June 2013 at 10:39 pm

    Get on it, people!

  2. Puddleglum 2
    17 June 2013 at 10:52 pm

    Done.

    It’s a simple way of making this society more humane in a number of ways.

  3. Rosetinted 3
    18 June 2013 at 10:46 am

    I point out that parenting is a demanding job and parents need help to manage all their work required in a modern society. I ask that government ensure that parents are given much help and assistance in the demanding times of pre and post birth.

    From the time of conception babies are affected by the mother’s health, nutrition and environment. The health of both mother and baby is aided by consideration of their needs both before and after birth. To have children, guide and help them to adulthood, see that they get the education and other things they need, so they can progress without traumas through their teenage years to adults is a joy, but involves much work by at least one parent.

    The child can take three months to adapt to life outside the womb, and needs constant oversight and positive interaction with its carers. Until the child grows more and settles it can be very wearying to parents if sleep and feeding habits are unsettled and continuing. Parents need time away from other work to attend to this caring work. Looking after a helpless, vulnerable baby is work and the first year of life is a growth exponential.

    That’s what I feel like saying but I’ll see what seems right for the submission.

  4. Nick 4
    18 June 2013 at 12:12 pm

    This is a good initiative but I also think its important to email or write to Bill English and/or John Key directly. I get the sense with recent pathetic rhetoric coming from Key that he feels like he’s on a roll of dismissing the opposition outright without any consideration of the issues presented.

    I guess its good to have numbers coming through an initiative like this form, but individuals emailing without the Labour banner might be harder for the government to dismiss.

    On that note I emailed Bill English back in April 2012 stressing the importance of this bill, but also, more strongly, the implications for the democratic process if legislation passes parliament with a majority but the government not only uses a veto but threatens it before the first reading in an attempt to pour cold water on the debate and the public support for the bill before it even gets started.

    As the veto can only be used in extraordinary circumstances and only at the third reading it premature to threaten to veto before costs, benefits, public support and submissions are properly understood.

    (He sent a letter in reply that said that the government’s financial situation can’t support this even though they don’t actually know what the costs and benefits are and that the surplus is all important)

    I think the default message on Labours form doesn’t stress the situation strongly or clearly enough (and maybe I don’t either!). There are two parts to it in my view, the importance of the bill itself, the extension of paid parental leave and the benefits associated with that – and the effect on due process of having the government loudly and prematurely yelling veto at the top of their lungs to stop any sensible debate from occurring.

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