2. Question No. 2—Prime MinisterDr SHANE RETI (Deputy Leader—National) to the Prime MinisterQuestion No. 2—Prime Minister2. Dr SHANE RETI (Deputy Leader—National) to the Prime Minister: How many children have been lifted out of poverty between the time she became Prime Minister to the end of June 2020? Hon GRANT ROBERTSON (Deputy Prime Minister) on behalf of the Prime Minister: Under this Government all nine poverty measures have gone down since the 2017-18 data. This is the baseline year as defined under the Child Poverty Reduction Act. We have lifted 22400 children out of material hardship. Using the after - housing costs fixed-line primary measure we have lifted 45400 children out of poverty already exceeding our three-year target for this measure a year ahead of schedule. Overall the data released on Tuesday shows one of the largest policy-driven falls in child poverty. This is because of measures such as our Families Package which increased incomes for hundreds of thousands of families with children. Over 100000 babies' parents received an extra $60 per week through our Best Start payment and over a million New Zealanders have extra income every winter thanks to the winter energy payment. Dr Shane Reti: When she says all nine measures have improved against baseline how many of those measures are statistically significant? Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: I can confirm for the member that the after - housing cost measure is regarded as statistically significant as was the change in material hardship which I know is a measure that the member has been particularly interested in in the past. The before - housing costs moving line is just below what I think would be regarded as a statistically significant shift. Dr Shane Reti: So are the majority of child poverty measures not statistically significant against baseline? Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: No I wouldn't say that. I picked out the three primary measures for the member two of which are and one of which is very close. Dr Shane Reti: Can she confirm this week's data that on six of the Government's nine child poverty measures there are more children living in poverty this year compared to last year? Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: On behalf of the Prime Minister: no I can't confirm that. What I can confirm for the member is that 45400 children have been lifted out of poverty. I would have hoped that members on the other side of the House would celebrate something like that. Dr Shane Reti: Does she agree with Labour leader Jacinda Ardern who promised in 2017 that her Government would lift 100000 children out of poverty by 2020? Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: On behalf of the Prime Minister the Prime Minister is very proud of the fact that she has passed a child poverty reduction Act in this House that means that we are held accountable—as we are being now and as we will be in the future—and very proud of the fact that we have lifted those 45400 children out of poverty. If the member is asking Is there more to do?"—absolutely. There is always more to do and this Government is committed to doing it. Dr Shane Reti: Were 100000 children lifted out of poverty by 2020? Hon GRANT ROBERTSON: I've already given the member the numbers. They are the numbers based on the target set in the Child Poverty Reduction Act—a piece of legislation I might say passed across this House almost unanimously. The member and members on the other side of the House would be very well advised to ask themselves if there were measures such as the Families Package that they voted against where we would be in terms of the number in child poverty were they in charge."