Jacinda Ardern said the Labour Party knows it "needs to do things differently" after the internal report into the Young Labour camp incident was completed, but she defended the party's decision to withhold the report.
"The reason the report hasn't been released is it did relate to an event that is now before the courts, it wouldn't have been appropriate for that to have been released," the Prime Minister told reporters in Tauranga today.
The internal Labour Party report , overseen by Maria Austen, investigated how party officials handled allegations after four teens said they were sexually harassed or assaulted during a Young Labour camp, near the Coromandel town of Waihi in February.
Ms Ardern said the Labour Party Council had taken a "cautious approach", however she said the recommendations had been released so the public could see what the Labour Party would do differently.
Ms Austen's report suggested several changes to policies and procedures – among them, an overhaul of the complaints process and a "new, over-arching alcohol policy".
"It was important we look into issues around alcohol use, harassment, make sure that we've got the right policies and protections in place," Ms Ardern said.
"I think what's important is that we take on board what the report has told us about what we need to do. We undertook it for a reason, we know we need to do things differently."
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