Monsignor Gerard Burns said his deepest concern about this bill is that it shakes the relationship of trust between the State and the citizens of Aotearoa New Zealand.

"Because a healthy society can only function on trust and because the State is more powerful than individual citizens, those citizens need to be able to know and trust that the State will not abuse its position. The range and extent of surveillance powers given to the State in this bill has a chilling effect on the ability of citizens to freely express their views, to associate and organize for social change, to defend the rights of others." said Burns.

He listed has his particular concerns:

• not sufficient oversight or remedies.
• potential and actual abuse of powers.
• access of foreign powers to intimate information about NZ citizens (via Echelon).
• waste, inefficiency and potential fraud in computing systems (intransparent budget).
• use of surveillance to continue economic and political inequality and injustice.
• no role for conscientious objection and whistle-blowing in the Bill.

In his submission Burns emphasised that his submission was being made in his capacity as a New Zealand citizen. They were, he said, his his personal views; they were not an official submission on behalf of his Church.

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In a written submission Caritas says the speed of consideration was unreasonable and unrealistic. Only 11 working days were provided between the first reading of the Social Security (Youth Support and Work Focus) Amendment Bill on 27 March and the close of submissions on 13 April. Now hearing dates for the Social Services Select Committee considering the Bill are being condensed to only two days in Wellington this week.

Caritas Director Julianne Hickey says that despite the Bill being introduced shortly after the consultation period on the Government's Green Paper for Vulnerable Children, there is no coherence or integration of government social policy. "There is insufficient time to consult and consider how people and communities, particularly the most vulnerable members of our society, may be impacted by this legislation," she says.