Minister for Children Kelvin Davis.
Photo: RNZ / Dom Thomas
Davis said chief executive Sir Wira Gardiner had made the right decision in temporarily shutting the facility down after footage emerged of a young person being tackled and held in a headlock. I back him 100 percent. There were a number of factors that fed into him making that decision and it was the right one to make . I support him in making that decision.
He would not be surprised if there was more such abuse, he said, but stopped short of saying it was systemic. That s why there is an investigation going on - a police investigation, so I am limited in what can be said . I wouldn t say systemic child abuse, I would say there are some people who aren t living up to the standards that the country would expect.