3. Question No. 3—Social DevelopmentHon LOUISE UPSTON (National—Taupō) to the Minister for Social DevelopmentQuestion No. 3—Social Development3. Hon LOUISE UPSTON (National—Taupō) to the Minister for Social Development: Does she stand by all her statements and actions? Hon CARMEL SEPULONI (Minister for Social Development): Yes in particular the statement that both the Prime Minister and I have made that where people are able we need to be supporting them to be learning earning caring or volunteering. That's why as a Government we have taken action by boosting skills training with the announcement of a new education to employment brokerage service; raising the minimum wage to $17.70; investing $26.3 million in improving employment and wider wellbeing outcomes for disabled people and people with health conditions; investing nearly $50 million into Mana in Mahi to support our young people into sustainable work; and investing over $76 million into front-line Ministry of Social Development (MSD) case management to deliver more effective employment services. Hon Louise Upston: Why did she falsely claim in the House yesterday—SPEAKER: Order! Hon Louise Upston: Why did she claim in the House yesterday that the appalling performance in relation to work outcomes was due to a two-year time lag in the data when in fact it is this year's data? SPEAKER: No. Before the Minister answers I'm going to give the member one more chance to ask that question correctly. Hon Louise Upston: Why did the Minister say in the House yesterday that the performance in relation to work outcomes was due to a two-year time lag in the data when it was actually last year's data? Hon CARMEL SEPULONI: I was very clear that there is a footnote on the pages that discuss the impact indicators in the annual report that that member was referring to. That states that some of the indicators would be impacted by two years previously and so I was not claiming falsely. Hon Louise Upston: Would the Minister like me to read out the work outcomes performance on page 30 of the MSD annual report which clearly states that data is for 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2019 and the data is getting worse? Hon CARMEL SEPULONI: The member can read out whatever she likes from the report and if she likes she can also refer to footnote 12 on the second page of the two pages that I referred to yesterday. Hon Louise Upston: If so many jobs are being created by this Government why is she failing to get people off benefit and into jobs? Hon CARMEL SEPULONI: We've been very clear in the House this week that actually just this week we received the information on the most up-to-date employment figures. It is currently 4.2 percent. We have to say in terms of unemployment in this country that the three best results that we've received in over a decade have come under this Government. We've heard a lot in the House today about the investment that this Government has made into front-line work-focused case management and I do want to refer to a report that I saw which shows there were 300 less budgeted fulltime-equivalent staff at MSD from 2015 to 2019. On top of that I want to say that the previous Government denied there was a housing crisis sold off State houses— SPEAKER: Order! Hon CARMEL SEPULONI: —which put—SPEAKER: Order! Order! Hon CARMEL SEPULONI: —more pressure on MSD front-line staff. SPEAKER: Order! The member will now stand withdraw and apologise and if she does not cease her answers when I call her to order and stand she will leave the Chamber next time. Hon CARMEL SEPULONI: I withdraw and apologise. Hon Louise Upston: What does she say to people stuck on the dole who see the Government talking about all these jobs and a low unemployment rate and who are still wondering why MSD can't help them get a job? Hon CARMEL SEPULONI: I think that the investment that this Government has put into upskilling and training people on benefit and the investment that this Government has put into front-line work-focused case management was long overdue. The fact that we are in the situation now where employers are crying out for skilled workers is actually a result of the neglect that we encountered because of the lack of action under the previous Government. Hon Louise Upston: Does the Minister think that the fact that MSD can't get Kiwis the jobs they want and need is the reason why clients trusted MSD more under National than they do under Labour? Hon CARMEL SEPULONI: I reject the premise of that question. As I've said on a number of occasions this Government is taking a much more balanced approach to how we respond to the needs of New Zealanders who come through the welfare system and need support from the welfare system. It is about—as I've said so many times before—providing support for those that are in financial hardship as well as ensuring we're providing support for upskilling and training and getting into work. It was a very imbalanced focus by the previous Government and as we saw over consecutive years the actual punitive approach that was taken didn't work. Did they receive zero percent unemployment during their time in Government? No—that wasn't the case. We're focused on New Zealanders reaching their potential and we're going to keep doing the work that we're doing.