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Labour MP Winnie Laban wants a full parliamentary inquiry into the aged care sector.
It follows the launch of investigations into two separate rest homes in Palmerston North.
The MidCentral District Health Board terminated the contract of one of them, the Rose A Lea rest home, after receiving photographs of a 103 year-old woman tied to a bed.
Winnie Laban says with increasing concerns about the poor quality of care being experienced by vulnerable elderly people, it's imperative the government supports her request.
She says Deputy Health and Disability Commissioner Rae Lamb has given more evidence of the need for an inquiry, citing a significant increase in complaints regarding rest homes and aged care in the past year.
And nurses want the government to provide more money for the aged care sector, to ensure staff know what they are doing.
Nurses Organisation spokeswoman Rob Haultain says everyone who works in a rest home needs to be trained.
But she says there is no commitment from the Government to drive training for caregivers and very little commitment from most employers.
Haultain says there needs to be some sort of minimum requirement for working in the sector.
