We need better, more consistent sex education in secondary schools, focusing on making consent a compulsory part of our curriculum, as it is not currently, as well as teaching healthy relationships with LGBTQI+ inclusion. We're calling for Hekia Parata and any following ministers of education to commit to make consent and healthy relationships a compulsory part of the curriculum. To achieve this, we are suggesting that Mates and Dates, a healthy relationships course for secondary school students, is introduced into all high schools in New Zealand.

Dear Minister, Please remove the BMI test from B4 School Checks. It is an unreliable measure and discussing children's weight in term of being 'fat', 'overweight' or 'obese', can plant the seeds that lead to disordered thinking around food and exercise, leading to eating disorders in the future. As a Government that is committed to improving the mental health of New Zealander's, we would like to see greater emphasis placed on eating disorder prevention, given that it is the number one cause of mental health-related deaths.

In light of the current social upheaval and economic crisis in Sri Lanka, the wider Kiwi Lankan community and allies are calling for the New Zealand Government to: - Condemn the numerous and severe human rights breaches by the current Sri Lankan government. - Provide humanitarian aid to the people of Sri Lanka. - Liaise with, and support Kiwi Lankan communities in Aotearoa to respond to the ongoing crisis and conflict in Sri Lanka. - Extend the visas of Sri Lankan nationals onshore - Process the visas of people offshore - Provide family reunification pathways

The Right Honourable Christopher Luxon Prime Minister of New Zealand we call on you to enforce standards of conduct across your Government, including investigating and calling into line members of your cabinet who breach the Cabinet Manual.   We are particularly concerned about the campaign of online harassment and intimidation against university scholars that is being orchestrated by Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour. We call on you to immediately investigate this matter and address this serious breach of the Cabinet Manual.  

We call on the Inquiry into Mental Health and Addiction to recommend that all people with mental distress or addiction have open access to a full menu of services, so that no-one who seeks help is turned away and everyone is offered more than medication. Sign the open submission to support open access to a full menu of services. By signing you agree to be contacted by Peerzone and ActionStation about this and similar campaigns. To read or download the full submission, The Wellbeing Manifesto for Aotearoa New Zealand, go to: https://www.wellbeingmanifesto.nz/

We support Dame Anne Salmond's call for an Independent Waterways Commission and ask all political parties to sign a cross-party accord to establish it. We need an independent and well-resourced Waterways Commission. A Commission that can implement and enforce its recommendations, that puts the viability, sustainability and sanctity of our water at it’s centre, and that works with the diverse interests to create a national water strategy that protects, restores and sustainably manages this precious resource.

Photo Credit: Anna Swartz / Mic (https://www.mic.com/articles/162185/trump-s-newest-pick-is-a-defender-of-puppy-mills-an-industry-of-torture) We want the Ministry of Primary Industries to stop the sale of puppies at pet stores and online OR implement stronger regulations to ensure that puppies being bred and sold under these conditions are bred and cared for following the Animal Welfare Act and a new breeder licensing system. This system will require breeders to be fully responsible for the health and wellbeing of the puppies they sell, and provide a clear code that breeders must abide by in order to sell the puppies legally including policies overseeing welfare procedures in place and records of trading.

We are calling on the Government to urgently address the maternity crisis in Aotearoa, and to ensure that all pregnant people, parents and babies have the support they need to thrive. Our maternity sector is in crisis, with major under-staffing and under-resourcing putting lives at risk. A lack of capacity across the country is leaving maternity units unable to care for any more patients, and delaying necessary medical care to people in need. Suicide is the leading cause of maternal death in Aotearoa but our maternal mental health teams are stretched beyond their limits. Glaring gaps across the sector are disproportionately affecting Māori women and babies, who experience ongoing systemic inequality and a lack of access to healthcare. Our maternity sector is disintegrating under strain, and our midwives, doctors and nurses are burning out from over work. This is a crisis in the true sense of the word and we are calling on the government to act with urgency to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all birthing parents and babies in Aotearoa. We call on the government to: - Implement ALL recommendations from the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RANZCOG) 2020 ‘Briefing to Incoming Ministers’ including the development of a collaborative Women’s Health strategy across the Ministry of Health and The Office for Women. - Implement ALL recommendations as laid out in the 14th Annual Report (Appendices B–F) from the Perinatal Maternal Mortality Review Committee (PMMRC), including all recommendations that create a Tiriti-compliant system where it is safe for Māori women to give birth in Aotearoa. - Ensure that Māori have equal voice in all decision-making and the development of health policy, process and practice in order to achieve equitable health outcomes. - Guarantee ongoing funding and strengthen the roles of advisory groups including the National Maternity Monitoring Group (NMMG) and Perinatal Maternal Mortality Review Committee (PMMRC). - Allocate adequate budget to fill the existing gaps, and to allocate further substantial budget to invest in staff training and retention, pay equity, and capital investment in maternity facilities across regional and rural centres, as well as tertiary hospitals. - Work with professional unions and representative organisations to understand and address the serious issues facing the sector, including ways to address staff under-resourcing, burnout, retention and remuneration. - Create sustainable pathways into the maternity workforce, including more supported training for Māori and Pasifika trainee doctors and midwives, specialty pathways for complex care midwifery, and clear frameworks for staff retention across the sector. - Remove barriers to care for pregnant people by providing financial assistance where required, and by ensuring that all maternity care is free including removing co-pays for scans. - Engage patient-advocates at all levels of decision making to ensure that changes made at the policy level reflect the need for change at the real-world level.

We, the undersigned, call on you to permanently extend the Winter Energy Payment to all people receiving government income support.

We, the undersigned, object to the application for a liquor licence for a new bottle store at 13-15 Ellis Avenue, . We object to the issue of this licence as another off-licence bottle shop in the area will reduce the amenity and good order of the locality significantly. We oppose the application for the following reasons: - there are already plenty of off-licence alcohol stores in the area - proximity to a number of sensitive sites such as schools, early childhood education centres, and places of worship - existing issues around anti-social behaviour in the broader area, much of which appears to be the result of alcohol consumption