Minister for Disability Issues. The DPO Coalition met with Hon Poto Williams, Minister for Disability Issues. The Coalition thanked the Minister for her proactive response to the concluding observations made by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. They then discussed how to implement the recommendations … Read more
Office for Seniors. The DPO Coalition held a workshop with the Office for Seniors. They identified several common issues that affect both disabled people and people who are aging. They discussed the “Better Later Life” Action Plan, and some key actions including: The Office for Seniors will continue to provide … Read more
United Nations Examination of New Zealand’s implementation of the Disability Convention. In August New Zealand was examined by the United Nations on how it is implementing the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The DPO Coalition appointed a delegation of five people and two meeting assistants … Read more
Establishment Unit, new ministry for disabled people (name since confirmed Whaikaha Ministry of Disabled People). The DPO Coalition is very pleased that Whaikaha – the Ministry of Disabled People was launched on 1 July. At our June meeting the DPO Coalition met with Justine Cornwall, Director of the Establishment Unit … Read more
Congratulating Dr Jonathan Godfrey ONZM. The DPO Coalition congratulated Blind Citizens NZ’s representative Dr Jonathan Godfrey for being made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to disabled people, particularly blind and low vision people. Dr Godfrey received his award on the first day of the … Read more
Disability Rights Commissioner The DPO Coalition met with Paula Tesoriero, the Disability Rights Commissioner. They discussed the forum on New Zealand’s implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the inquiry into the experiences of disabled people during omicron. Paula gave an update on … Read more
Accelerating Accessibility Legislation. The DPO Coalition met with the team from the Ministry for Social Development who are working on the Accelerating Accessibility Legislation. The Accelerating Accessibility work is about establishing a new system to identify and remove wide-spread accessibility barriers. The DPO Coalition discussed how it should be governed … Read more