Social Development Minister Anne Tolleyis attempting to heal a social experiment that has failed miserably.

During the last 40 years the New Zealand taxpayer has poured billions of dollars into all things Maori without any idea as to what all that money has produced.

A panel of experts find that 35 per cent of all Maori children but only 11 per cent of non-Maori children came to the notice of Child, Youth and Family, in their first five years.

Once again, tribal elite within institutions, universities, charitable trusts, Maori corporations etc are doing well financially while the whanau at the other end of the ladder are deprived of the basics needed to grow healthy, happy children.

A job, home, warm clothes, a full belly, appropriate reading material, someone to teach them morals and ethics and most importantly, lots of love and attention.

This is not the fault of politicians, they are not responsible for how our young fry turn out. It is 100 per cent the fault of the parents, families/whanau and the community at large.

So, yet again, more money will be thrown at ‘the lost cause' because those responsible for the deprivation will not uplift their obligations to raise their children correctly.

MJ Anderson, Pyes Pa.