Wellington - The New Zealand government will not make a formal apology to victims of Britain's past child migrant programme, according to Social Development Minister Paula Bennett.

She was quoted Tuesday in news reports as saying that the 549 immigrants who came to New Zealand were treated better than those who went to Australia, whose government apologized Monday to thousands who suffered neglect and abuse after being sent there.

Bennett acknowledged that life was difficult for many of the children who arrived in New Zealand between 1948 and 1954, but told the New Zealand Herald: "Unlike Australia, the majority of children who came here under the British migrant scheme were deliberately placed into foster care rather than into state institutions. A number of safeguards were introduced to care for the new arrivals."

She said that in 1998, a previous government set up a travel fund to help the immigrants reunite with relatives in Britain and allowed them to apply for New Zealand citizenship at no cost.

Between 7,000 and 10,000 children were sent to Australia from 1947-67 after being taken from poor families and told they were orphans, while their parents believed that they were heading to better lives.

Many were brought up in institutions, by farmers or treated as child slaves.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown will also apologize for the child migrant schemes that sent about 150,000 children ages 3 to 14 to British colonies. (dpa)