The Young Nationals say the passage of a remit for the 1955 Adoption Act to be extended to include civil union partners shows the youth wing is a real force in the party. The remit was passed in a closed-door session at the National Party Conference in Auckland this weekend. New President Sean Topham says it shows that National is in touch with the need for good lawmaking around issues as important as adoption. “This is a victory for the Young Nats who have led this issue in the party,” he says. “The Young Nats are a strong voice in the National Party and have proven again that they do have real influence. The Young Nats have been achieving wins on key issues, including youth mental healthcare.” After the remit passed Key told media the remit could be adopted as a Government bill, but it would need to be considered against the rest of the Government’s work programme. “You have to think through the amount of parliamentary time that would be chewed up on that issue,” he said. “But realistically it’s just not the biggest issue that we face. I know it’s important to those people, but they’re a very small group.”
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Wednesday, 25th July 2012 - 11:10am