“It’s been almost a year since Christopher Luxon and Karen Chhour celebrated the announcement of their boot camps experiment, and yet, we still don’t have any clarity on what exactly is going on,” Labour’s children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime said.
“What’s also worrying is the lack of transparency around a participant running away from the pilot. What went wrong – what lessons were learned? We still don’t know.
“The Government was widely warned this experiment would fail. Decades of evidence shows this, and the Royal Commission uncovered the severe harm that’s happened before.
“When questioned last month, Karen Chhour effectively confirmed her office has been instructing officials to withhold information about the boot camps, which explains the empty update.
“Christopher Luxon and Karen Chhour celebrated the pilot when it was first announced, and now that it’s failed, it’s been radio silence.
“The Minister must stop stonewalling while she is pushing through legislation that will launch boot camps throughout the country.
“If this pilot has failed, New Zealanders deserve to know – it’s their money being spent and their safety that’s at risk,” Willow-Jean Prime said.