Submission on the Summary Offences (Move-on Orders) Amendment Bill

  • Submission on the Summary Offences (Move-on Orders) Amendment Bill

    Use this form and Common Grace Aotearoa will print and deliver your submission to Parliament on your behalf. Deadline 9am on Monday 29 June. Alternatively, you can make your submission directly on the Parliament website until 11:59 on 2 July. Link here: tinyurl.com/moveonorders

  • Contact details

    All of the below fields must be filled in to ensure your submission is treated as valid.
  • I wish to make an oral submission (speaking to the Select Committee for 5 or 10 minutes, usually by Zoom)*
  • I am submitting*

  • Submission: I wish to make the following comments

    Note - what you write in the following boxes will be published on the Parliament website. Do not include your contact details. We DO recommend you make the submission uniquely yours!
  • I am writing to*

  • State your position on the bill and why

    In this section we strongly recommend drawing on your own experiences. You could draw on your Christian faith or other beliefs. There is no right or wrong way to structure your answer.

    • Eg. I am writing to oppose the Summary Offences (Move-on Orders) Amendment Bill.
    • As a person of faith, I believe that every person in our community carries inherent, God-given dignity. Our laws should support the flourishing of all people, particularly those our systems have pushed to the margins. The proposed "move-on" powers do the exact opposite.
    • I want to see the government invest in solutions to poverty, rather than policing people who need homes and support.  

  • State one or two reasons why you are concerned about the Bill. You may like to talk in practical terms about the impacts of the Bill if it passed. 

    • It criminalises poverty: In practice, this will target our neighbours experiencing homelessness or mental health crises. Forcing someone to move is not a solution; it is an act of displacement that strips away their dignity.
    • It lacks compassion: This policy arrives without a corresponding package of support. Without investment in housing or social services, these orders simply push the issue out of sight, and away from the supports they need.
    • It displaces homeless whānau from their networks and may shift them away from support services. 
    • It is punishment, when people need support: A fine or a prison sentence for being visible in a public space does nothing to address the root causes of poverty. It will pull more people, including 14 year olds, into the justice system by giving them fines and prison time.
    • Social services, businesses, the Police Association and the Government’s own ministries disagree with this approach. Housing and Justice ministries have advised against Move-On Orders. The Police Association has said it will drain resources and be ineffective. Business associations have written to the Government saying that this is not a legitimate response. And social service leaders have called it superficial and unhelpful.  
    • We should focus on real solutions: such as resourcing Housing First, kaupapa Māori housing, public housing, and the outreach and support services people need.

  • Recommendations

    Tell the Committee what you’d like them to do next. Request an oral submission if you would like one, then wrap up politely.

    For example:

    • I recommend that the Bill be dropped in its entirety.
    • Instead of Move-On Orders, I would like to see the government:
      • Roll back emergency housing changes and resource immediate housing solutions.
      • Fund addiction, health, mental health and outreach services that work with those rough sleeping.
      • Implement duty to assist legislation, which will mean government agencies and social services will have a duty to prevent homelessness.
      • Build public housing at scale.
    • If this Bill is to go ahead I recommend survival behaviors such as begging, rough sleeping and ‘intent to inhabit a space’ are removed from the Bill. I recommend the age be raised to 18 years.
    • I would like to make an oral submission.
  • Should be Empty: