The Government is under fire already for its plans for a Rainbow Desk' telephone service to be set up for GLBT New Zealanders who may experience discrimination and disadvantage. A news item in the Dominion Post today seemingly calculated to cause outrage starts with the line "Gay or transsexual and feeling picked on? Phone the government" and goes on to discuss a document from the Social Development Ministry, describing the Rainbow Desk as "one of several teams to be set up within the ministry to make sure the views of special interest groups are heard". ACT's Dr Muriel Newman says that the $127,000 service would be duplicating work already being done by the Human Rights Commission, labelling it "politically correct". A spokesman for Social Development Minister Steve Maharey said that the proposal had not been to Cabinet yet but that the policy tied in to Labour's promise to Labour had promised to amend all remaining laws that cause unfair discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation.
Credit: GayNZ.com News Staff
First published: Saturday, 23rd August 2003 - 12:00pm