Ardern Jacinda: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeArdern Jacinda: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 14 May 2014. Volume:698;Page:17828. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]10.JACINDA ARDERN (Labour) to theMinister of Finance: Does he believe families with newborn babies are currently receiving adequate support via Government-funded tax credits and paid parental leave?Hon BILL ENGLISH (Minister of Finance): Yes but of course we can always do better. The support that they currently get of course sits alongside significant subsidies for early childhood education which have increased quite dramatically over the last 4 or 5 years free visits to doctors for children under the age of 6 and extensive maternity and maternal support services.Jacinda Ardern: Of the almost 95 percent of new parents eligible for an income boost through Labour’s Best Start policy which of those parents does he think should not get anything?Mr SPEAKER: In as far as there is ministerial responsibility the Hon Bill English.Hon BILL ENGLISH: I could answer that question if Labour knew what its policy was. Unfortunately I thought the policy was the one that its leader announced on the day but apparently I am told that is not its policy because the document coveredsomething else. So when Labour members clear up that confusion among themselves then I may be able to answer the question.Jacinda Ardern: Does his previously expressed concern that a large number of parents are not eligible for either paid parental leave or the parental tax credit extend to parents who might be in receipt of a Government benefit when their baby arrives; if not why not?Hon BILL ENGLISH: The Government is concerned about those parents who do not qualify for paid parental leave and in particular the most vulnerable of that group who are young parents of young children. In fact I think figures used in this House indicate that as a result of the very good work done by the Minister for Social Development and others the number of sole parents under the age of 20 has in the last 5 years dropped from 4300 to 2600. The Government provides an intensive support and supervision service for each one of those parents. That is how much care and regard we have for them and their aspirations. I have to say that that is something that the previous Government did not think of let alone do.Jacinda Ardern: Did work on the rumoured additional support that he is considering for families with newborn babies start before or after Labour announced its Best Start policy and Sue Moroney’s paid parental leave bill?Hon BILL ENGLISH: As I said I could answer that question if Labour’s policy was clearer but I guess it indicates that Labour is more concerned about the politics of whether it can claim credit than it is about the very real progress that the Government has made with the most vulnerable families. I look forward to the member congratulating the Minister for Social Development on the excellent work that she has done for New Zealand’s most vulnerable children and they are the young children of teenaged parents.Jacinda Ardern: Does he agree with Steven Joyce’s sentiment that investing in a child’s early years amounted to “bribing” the people “the moment we get a lift in the economy”?Hon BILL ENGLISH: I think the Minister was referring to Labour’s shambolic policy announcement not to the families who may be the victims of it. The Government has demonstrated its willingness to invest now for pay-offs later. It has developed a comprehensive analysis and performance framework that enables us to confidently do what we have done and that is to spend millions of dollars over and above our welfare benefits on those most vulnerable families with a pretty good level of assurance that we will get long-term pay-offs. I look forward to the Government getting re-elected because we could take that framework an awful long way in New Zealand in the next 3 or 4 years. If the Government did change the framework would get trashed.