Media Statement – for immediate release 10 May 2006

Stopping Violence Services Hugely Disappointed at Funding Announcement

Stopping Violence Services are hugely disappointed at the minimal funding increase for family violence announced this morning.

National Network of Stopping Violence Services national manager Brian Gardner labeled the increase insulting.

"Money announced by government today fails to acknowledge the crisis for agencies working to prevent family violence, a critical social problem that costs the country over a billion dollars a year in social costs, criminal justice responses, health care and lost productivity in the business sector.

"The $2.25 million per year over four years could see agencies getting as little as several thousand dollars and for some organizations nothing as the money needs to be tendered for in a competitive funding process where often the best writers not best workers get funded," he said.

"As this is the first increase in 10 years, we are worse off now than we were 10 years ago when inflation is taken into account.

"All the effort that has gone into government strategies and taskforces feels like a waste of time and money, they have spent millions doing these processes and then failed to deliver to the most vulnerable New Zealanders, women and children who are beaten and killed by their partners.

"Over the last two years goverment has put more than $30 million into their own domestic violence services and community agencies who have done this work for 30 years on a shoe string have seen less than a third of this.

"It is disheartening to see government not taking this issue seriously, the workers who are leaving because they are burned out and under paid will continue to leave, agencies will continue to struggle to stay open to provide services and most sadly of all women and children will continue to die in the same numbers."

The National Network of Stopping Violence Services is the umbrella organization for agencies around New Zealand working with victims and perpetrators of domestic violence.

"We are actually trying to stop the violence, we can't do this if we aren't funded properly."

ENDS

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