High profile candidates support Tick for Kids campaign

At the launch of the ‘Tick for Kids’ campaign at Balmoral School in Auckland today, Every Child Counts* called on all local body and District Health Board candidates to confirm their commitment to action for children. High profile candidates, such as Wellington mayoral candidate Celia Wade-Brown and Auckland mayoral candidate Len Brown have already confirmed their support.

“The ‘Tick for Kids’ is an opportunity for councils and DHBs to be part of making the world fit for children and cities that are child-friendly. In this time of recession, when all evidence points to many of the nation’s children being in crisis, community leaders have a responsibility to do all that they can to improve the situation,” says Dennis McKinlay, Chair of Every Child Counts.

“While some people may question whether the interests of children and young people are within the scope of these candidates, both local government and District Health Boards are well placed to impact the wellbeing of children and young people through effective advocacy, policy and investment. Further, they have obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

“Jobs and economic development are a central focus of many councils – and we agree that this is important – but we also want councils to focus on other issues that impact on children and their families. As such, we have developed an agenda for local government, available here. Getting this right will deliver economic savings and benefit everyone.

“Similarly, there are particular issues that we encourage District Health Board members to advance. Child health data is perhaps the best illustration of the impact of poverty, poor housing and a lack of timely access to primary health care and it shows there are significant issues facing the nation. The agenda for DHBs is available here.

“Given that children can’t vote it is important for candidates and voters to keep them in mind. The campaign will call on voters to ensure they’re enrolled to vote so that they can support candidates who are committed to progressing children’s interests. Every Child Counts will provide regular updates on the candidates that have signed up to the agenda and following elections we will communicate with councilors and DHB members to support their efforts to progress the respective agendas,” concludes Mr McKinlay.

*Every Child Counts is a coalition working to increase the status and wellbeing of New Zealand children. The coalition is driven by Barnardos, Plunket, UNICEF, Save the Children and Mana Ririki.

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