The Mayor of South Wairarapa is questioning whether initiatives aimed at reducing family violence are actually working.
The Independent Police Conduct Authority has launched an investigation and police have apologised for being slow to act in more than 100 cases of child abuse in Wairarapa.
Mayor Adrienne Staples says she does not want to criticise the police because she says they have long been under resourced and that is something she will raise with the Government.
But she says the delays in following up on abuse allegations are appalling.
Ms Staples wonders whether anti-violence programmes in New Zealand are working because she says there does not seem to have been a reduction in domestic violence.
Former Children's Commissioner Roger McClay says the delays highlight New Zealand's shameful child abuse record.
He says the backlog is a disgrace and New Zealand should be ashamed of it.
Michelle Ihaka from the Wairarapa Rape and Sexual Abuse Helpline says the delays could lead to people involved in abuse cases being re-victimised if they have to wait for an outcome, having built up the courage to make a complaint.
The father of murdered Wairarapa schoolgirl Coral Ellen Burrows fears another child could die because of the delays.
Police say a new Wellington District Child Protection Team is to be established and officers will audit child abuse files in other regions to make sure the delays are not widespread.
