Children

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• Not available on their website yet.

• Support the development of a senior cabinet position of Minister for Children with all necessary departmental resources, and develop a national Children's Action Plan and legislation to implement it.
• Support universal availability of effective parenting and child development programmes that use culturally appropriate models.
• Promote opportunities for parents to negotiate flexible working hours and location with their employer.
• Develop a strategy to tackle child poverty and ensure accountability of outcomes including introducing a Universal Child Payment, increasing the minimum wage, extending paid parental leave, and setting benefit amounts at a level that is sufficient for all basic needs. 
• Develop a comprehensive strategy to protect children from violence, abuse and neglect. (more here)

• $60 per week for a baby’s first year of life, universal for all families earning under $150,000 per year.
• Up to $60 per week between the child’s first and third birthdays, targeted at modest and middle income families.
• The first year payment will go to around 59,000 households, covering almost 95 percent of children under one year of age. 
• The one and two year old payment will go to around 63,000 families, covering 56 percent of all one and two year olds.
• The Best Start Payment provides desperately needed support to the estimated 50,000 children under three who are currently living in poverty. (more here)

• Support a framework of universal health & wellbeing screening for all babies and children.  One possible model is Te Ara Tukutuku Nga Whanaungtanga o Nga Tamariki, as presented by former Children’s Commissioner Cindy Kiro in 2008.
• Recognise that the work of raising children is as important as paid work; extend paid parental leave for up to one year; and support quality pre-school and out of school education.
• Increase funding and other support for children with disabilities and their families and whānau.
• Ensure that the needs and rights of tamariki and rangatahi are reflected in all policy that may affect them, and where possible, involve children and young people in planning and decision making.
• Ensure quality mental health services for children and young people are adequately funded and available in all parts of the country. (more here)

• Universal well child services to all children under 6.
• Inequality impact statement to be written into all new legislation including the likely impact on our children.
• Establish a Ministry of Families inclusive of children, young people and whānau. The new Ministry will include functions from the Families Commission, the Children’s Commission; Family and Community Services, Ministry of Youth Affairs and Child, Youth and Family and the Office for Senior Citizens.
• The new Ministry’s focus will be on the care and protection of children and the prevention of family violence and sexual violence.
• We will support the delivery of frontline services to whānau to restore safety and wellbeing while still maintaining zero tolerance for violence. (more here)

• Not available on their website yet.

• Not available on their website yet.

• Retain the Families Commission and Children’s Commissioner
• UnitedFuture would also introduce income splitting for couples with dependent children. Each partner is taxed as if they had earned 50% of the household income, which would result in a significant reduction in income tax. It attributes equal value to the different roles each parent plays, whereas our current tax system does not recognise the stay-at-home parent's contribution
• Extend one-stop shop family service centres to meet community needs in a coherent and family-friendly way. A one-stop family service centre would offer parents information on opportunities that exist for them and their children. Centres would provide services demanded by the community, such as health checks, early childhood education and care options, relationship counselling, Working for Families entitlements, other benefit information and budget advice, parent education opportunities and support.
• Support the ongoing funding and development of the longitudinal programme, "Growing Up in New Zealand" and the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study and the Christchurch Health and Development Study.
• Take all necessary steps to safeguard children from harmful internet material, working with the Internet Safety Group and the industry to ensure that filtering software and other appropriate safety measures, including effective Codes of Practice, are adopted. (more here)