29 June 2026
PSNZ has submitted to the Justice Select Committee on the Summary Offences (Move-on Orders) Amendment Bill, submitted this June.
Our submission calls on the Committee to reject this bill, or, at a minimum, to explicitly exclude all persons under 18 from its scope. Our position is grounded in New Zealand evidence showing that young people sleeping rough are victims of systemic failure, and that criminal sanctions will cause lasting harm to their health, educational, and social outcomes.
Key points from our submission include:
- Young people do not choose to sleep rough. The evidence is clear that rough sleeping among rangatahi is driven by adverse childhood experiences, state care, and a chronic shortage of supported accommodation.
- The bill creates a new pathway into the criminal justice system for 14–17 year olds who have no safe alternative destination.
- Families with young children are also affected, with move-on orders creating risks of displacement, family separation, and increased instability for tamariki.
- The bill is inconsistent with New Zealand's obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, as well as the Attorney-General's own assessment under the Bill of Rights Act.
- The disproportionate impact on tamariki Māori deepens acknowledged Treaty breaches.
The full submission is attached below 👇