Beaumont Carol: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeBeaumont Carol: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 06 March 2014. Volume:696;Page:16415. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]7.CAROL BEAUMONT (Labour) to theMinister of Women’s Affairs: Does she have confidence in the Ministry of Women’s Affairs given their 2013 Annual Report shows that six out of seven policy outcomes have stayed the same or gone backwards in the last past year; if so why?Hon JO GOODHEW (Minister of Women’s Affairs): Yes I do have confidence in the Ministry of Women’s Affairs. The seven policy outcomes referred to in the annual report are aspirational targets where the ministry seeks to achieve improved results for women through influencing and informing other departments’ and ministries’ work. When seeking to effect real change it is necessary to aim high. I thank the member so much for allowing me ahead of International Women’s Day on Saturday to expand on the great work that the Ministry of Women’s Affairs is doing and I look forward to many supplementary questions to further expand on a topic I feel very strongly about.Carol Beaumont: As the Minister is “interested in addressing the factors that still hamper women’s success” what steps has she taken to promote the addressing of pay inequality like that faced by aged-care workers receiving wages just above the minimum wage?Hon JO GOODHEW: In terms of actually addressing what is the gender pay gap which in New Zealand is currently at 10.1 percent—therefore it is higher than it should be because no pay gap is really what we should be aspiring towards—the Ministry of Women’s Affairs has looked at the many reasons why in a workforce there is gender bias that stops women from getting ahead. Additional to that there are tools—and I am going to give you one very good example—that will actually make sure that young women choose to be in non-traditional areas of work. I can use as a good example theOccupation Outlook app that the Hon Steven Joyce has launched which gives women the opportunity to see how they can improve their incomes by choosing the sort of qualification where they will get a good income and they can have a pathway that leads to them having a higher income.Carol Beaumont: What efforts has the Minister made to advise her colleague the Minister of Labour about the issue of equal pay for work of equal value which would lift women’s wages and improve their economic independence?Hon JO GOODHEW: I am able to report that I speak with many of my colleagues about the issues that face women. However I do not ever presume to tell them how to do their jobs.Carol Beaumont: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I fail to see how that answers a very specific question about talking to the Minister of Labour about equal pay for work of equal value.Mr SPEAKER: No I think on this occasion it actually did address the question. What we will do to move things forward is I will allow the member an additional supplementary question. In my mind that question was addressed. I accept it was not to the member’s satisfaction.Carol Beaumont: What assurances has she sought from her colleague the Minister of Labour about the gendered impact of changes to collective bargaining which could lead to a driving down of wages for women workers?Hon JO GOODHEW: I note that the member talks about a hypothetical possible result. I have many conversations with my colleagues about outcome improvements for women and these conversations will continue.Carol Beaumont: What representations has she made to the Minister of Justice or other Cabinet colleagues about improving rape prevention education in schools?Hon JO GOODHEW: What I am able to say is that amongst colleagues we are looking at every avenue in terms of addressing sexual violence and that includes talking to other colleagues including the Minister of Education the Minister of Police the Minister of Justice and other Ministers across the whole spectrum. This is a Government that has set a Better Public Services target to reduce crime and violent offending and we have seen—Sue Moroney: Oh whoopee!Hon JO GOODHEW: The member may not be interested but she may not realise that women are overrepresented in the statistics and we have seen real change a real lessening of violent crime and at the same time we are able to say that that means that many women are better off.Sue Moroney: As we prepare to celebrate International Women’s Day this weekend will the Minister vote against the second reading in Parliament next week of my bill to extend paid parental leave to 6 months and thereby keep her record intact as being the only Minister of Women’s Affairs in New Zealand to have ever voted against paid parental leave?Mr SPEAKER: In so far as there is ministerial responsibility the Hon Jo Goodhew.Hon JO GOODHEW: In so far as I have ministerial responsibility what I can say as Minister of Women’s Affairs is that the current Government is looking at changes to the number of weeks under paid parental leave. However this is a Government that seeks to actually balance the books unlike the previous Government. In doing so we have to make difficult but necessary fiscally sound and responsible decisions—something that certainly did not occur to the previous Government.