Ngaro Alfred: Social Security Amendment Bill (No 3) — Second ReadingText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeNgaro Alfred: Social Security Amendment Bill (No 3) — Second Reading[Sitting date: 17 February 2015. Volume:703;Page:1622. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]ALFRED NGARO (National): First of all this is my first speech in the House for 2015 so can I say happy New Year to you Mr Assistant Speaker Mallard. Can I also acknowledge your marriage during the break and wish you well. I also want to take time to acknowledge that although it has been a great start to the year there has also been a tinge of sadness. I just want to acknowledge my friend and colleague Mike Sabin who is no longer with us. He will be a loss to the House to the electorate and also I believe to the country for the work and effort that he has put in for Northland as well.Also it is a sad loss—and I know there have been tributes to Celia Lashlie. Can I just briefly acknowledge her work the work that she has put into the community. I have been a part of some of those initiatives particularly when she was in Nelson and the work she did in particular with Nelson College. It was called the Good Man project—working with young male students. I also did quite a bit of work with fathers and sons in that work there and I know that the work that Celia had put through influenced a lot of that. When I met her she came across as quite a tough cookie—took no prisoners in the work that she did. But really she was well respected for that. I think she was a great New Zealander and I want to take just a moment to acknowledge the significant contribution that she has made to New Zealand as well.We are talking about the Social Security Amendment Bill (No 3). The previous speaker Sue Moroney talked about a brighter future and she is absolutely right. I am glad she is saying those words while wearing her bright green jacket—saying that New Zealanders and our students do have a bright future in New Zealand. We hear it all the time. We are seeing it all the time. I know that because my two youngest sons are currently in tertiary study. They are seeing it all the time too. They are seeing students who are seeing the opportunities that are coming to them not only to complete their tertiary studies. If we talk about the completion rate for tertiary studies we can see that—and Kris Faafoi will also know this—for Pasifika we have got the highest rate of completion which is continuing to grow around tertiary studies for young Pasifika students. That is a great future for both Māori and Pasifika students who are coming through which has not happened under previous Governments. So it is definitely a brighter future that we are seeing and students are giving that feedback to us. That is really important as well. So we do keep saying it. We do believe in it.We believe that this Social Security Amendment Bill (No 3)—the previous speaker Mrs Moroney was absolutely correct—was introduced back in the 49th Parliament.During that time during the select committee process it was not a huge bill. It is a bill that as was rightly said is closing a loophole and I think that is really important. In that loophole there are some technical issues there that need to be remedied. That recommendation came through. I think there were two submissions that were put forward and only one of those was an oral submission and the New Zealand University Students’ Association made that submission as well. The thing that the submitters wanted to put forward in the bill which also came through in the regulatory impact report was around ensuring that there was fairness and equity around this and that is what this bill is about. It is about fairness it is about equity and it closes a loophole that allows some students and beneficiaries to receive varying levels of income support inside this.One of the things that is also important in the provisions of the bill is that it clarifies weekly compensation which includes weekly compensation whether it is paid by ACC or an accredited employer. We think that is important because the deductions should apply equally to compensation whether it is paid by ACC or an accredited employer. It is inequitable that claimants in essentially the same circumstances are treated differently as well. Just to give you one example: if a DPB recipient is paid $100 in weekly compensation with no other income but the DPB they would have their benefit reduced by $100 if the compensation is from ACC. And if the compensation is paid by an accredited employer their benefit will not be reduced at all. These are just some of the examples that I know of that came through the select committee which talked about some of the inconsistencies that it was seeing as well.I just want to briefly talk about the student allowance component of this bill. This bill does not have many parts to it but there are parts that are important I think to people who are listening and also to students. The accommodation supplement is intended to assist low to middle income people who do not receive a student allowance or a loanwith their accommodation costs. A loophole in the Social Security Act 1964 allows students to access the accommodation supplement if they choose to not receive a student allowance. We believethat for example for a solo parent with two children in Auckland the maximum amount that can be paid in accommodation supplement is around about $225 a week compared with $60 for the accommodation benefit for students on a student allowance. The returns from study accrue to individuals as well as to society so the clear policy behind the student loan and allowance system is to share the costs with students.Phil Twyford: Are you reading that?ALFRED NGARO: It is important to get those little details right Mr Twyford—who sometimes does not get those details right—because it is important to the people who are listening. They need to know that this is not a large bill but it is a bill that has many little technical issues that are absolutely important to New Zealanders as well.What is also important we think is a retrospective application of the amendment. By changing legislation retrospectively we confirm previous understandings of legislative and administrative policy and practice. We believe that the changes that we are making small as they are to both ACC and also the student allowance will be significant in how they are impacting on our students as well.I know that the previous speaker Mrs Moroney talked about students and the impact on students. Yet again the feedback that we are getting is that although this is not a huge bill for a number of the students what they are seeing though are the opportunities that are growing through opportunities for employment and opportunities that we are seeing constantly for them to further their tertiary studies and to further their opportunities overseas as well and that is really important.Again as I have said the number of Pasifika students completing Bachelor’s degrees has increased—just to give a little bit of detail here—from 980 students in 2008 to 1530 students in 2013. That is a 56 percent increase and I know that Mrs Williams and also Mr Faafoi will relish that information and that little statistic as well. In 2013 over 10000 more Māori students achieved qualifications across all levels of tertiary education than in 2008 and over 5300 more Pasifika students did the same. That truly is an achievement that we are very proud of as well which is making a difference.National is committed to increasing achievement in the tertiary sector. Having more people achieving tertiary qualifications means that we are moving to a higher level of skilled people in the labour market—higher skills meaning higher-paying jobs for all New Zealanders and their families. We know that back in the 2000s previous Governments threw more and more money at tertiary education and the number of people achieving degrees stayed at around the 20000 mark. With a focus on performance and results we have lifted that now to almost 26000 degrees with virtually the same amount of funding right across the sector. Overall the total number of qualifications achieved in the year by all students both domestic and international remained at a historically high level at around about 162000 which is more than 20 percent higher than 5 years ago.I want to just summarise some of the parts of my speech and my contribution to this bill the Social Security Amendment Bill (No 3). Just finally on ACC this Government is reducing ACC levies. By 1 July next year we will have put back around $1.5 billion into New Zealand families’ pockets.Hon Member: How much?ALFRED NGARO: $1.5 billion. Mr Twyford might be interested in that. It is a detail. I know that he might not be interested in the details but $1.5 billion is going back into the hands of families—into their pockets.Tracey Martin: Not students.ALFRED NGARO: All families Mrs Martin. This includes reducing the average motor vehicles levy from 1 July this year from around $330 to $195 a year as well leaving more money in your family’s pocket.We believe that this bill though small in nature is significant and we know that it receives support. It is a pity that the rest of the speech from the previous speaker did not continue to be positive about the direction that the Government is taking. It truly is making a difference. We think that the Government is in a great space. It is actually making a brighter future for all students and in particular I want to speak out for Māori and Pasifika students who are really important—I know that Mr Ball being part Kiribati will appreciate that as well—and we are seeing the difference that it is making.The Opposition might not celebrate those results. I do not hear those members talking about and celebrating those numbers but we do because they are making a difference. If those members are serious about those students Māori and Pasifika in particular then why are they not putting out press releases and celebrating not only what the Government is doing but more important the achievement and the results of these students as well? That would be great.Thank you for the opportunity to make this contribution. I commend this bill to the House.