Report of the Select Committee on Compensation for Personal Injury in New Zealand
| Published date | 01 September 1971 |
| Date | 01 September 1971 |
| Author | P. D. McKenzie |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2230.1971.tb02348.x |
REPORTS
OF
COMMITTEES
REPORT
OF
THE
SELECT
COMMITTEE
ON
COMPENSATION
FOR
PERSONAL
INJURY
IN
NEW
ZEALAND
IN
December
1067
a Royal Commission of Inquiry delivered a
report on
Compensation
for
Personal Injury
in
New
Zealand.'
The
report generated a lengthy debate within New Zealand and wide-
spread comment abroad.3
It
is perhaps not surprising that the
report aroused controversy in New Zealand. The Commission was
directed to inquire into
"
the law relating to compensation and
claims for damages for incapacity or death arising out of accidents
(including diseases) suffered by persons in employment.
. . .
However, in its report the Commission appeared
to
go much further.
It
recommended a comprehensive scheme of social insurance pro-
viding
"
immediate compensation without proof of fault, and
whether the accident occurred in the factory, on the highway or in
the home."
To provide a basis for discussion of the Woodhouse Report and
give interested parties an opportunity
to
present submissions on it,
the Government produced a White Paper in October
1969
which
gave an explanation of the existing law and outlined the changes
recommended by the report. In addition the White Paper made a
detailed examination of the Royal Commission's estimate
of
the
cost of its proposals. Following the presentation of the White Paper
a Select Committee of the House of Representatives was appointed
to consider and report upon the Woodhouse Report. The Commit-
tee was empowered to hear evidence from interested parties
who wished to make submissions on the report.
The Report
of
the Select Committee has recently been tabled in
the House
of
Representatives and the Acting Minister of Labour has
stated that the Government intends
to
introduce legislation to
implement the Committee's recommendations during
1071.
9,
1
The
Report
of
llie
Royal
Cottimission
of
Inquiry:
Compensation
for
Personal
Injury
in
NEW
Realand,
N.Z. Government Printer,
1967.
The
ohairman
o!,
the
Commission was
Woodhouse
J.
and the report ia popularly Icnown as the
Woodhouse
Report."
2
See in particular Mathieson
(1968) 31
M.L.R.
514
and Atiyah,
Accidents.
Conipensation
and
tlie
Lato
(Weidenfeu
&
Nicholson,
1970),
pp.
Go8-610;
and
also
Szak,ats
(1969) 3
Univ.
of
'Pas.
Law
Rev.
204;
note in
(1968)
42
A.L.J.
283
and Harper and Kimber
(1969) 32
M.L.R.
67.
3
Woodhouse Report, para.
18.
4
Personal
Injtq:
A
Commentaq on
the
Report
of
the
Royal
Conmission
of
Inqrrirtl
info
Compensation
for
Pe~sonal
Injury
in
Nero
Zealand,
N.Z.
Govern-
ment Printer.
1969.
This commentary
will
be #referred
to
later in this
note
as
"
the White Paper."
542
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