Logie Jan: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeLogie Jan: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 17 June 2014. Volume:699;Page:18529. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]8.JAN LOGIE (Green)to the Minister for Social Development: Will she support a Child Poverty Act that sets out targets and measures for eliminating child poverty as recommended by the Tick4kids campaign; if not why not?Hon PAULA BENNETT (Minister for Social Development):No. We already measure poverty in a variety of different ways that are all published in the Ministry of Social Development’s household incomes report. We are focused on getting on with things that will make a difference.Jan Logie: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I am not sure whether the Minister heard my question.Mr SPEAKER: Order! I heard the question. I am sure that the Minister heard the question because it has been addressed but the member does have supplementary questions.Jan Logie: Does she think her policies warrant a “tick 4 kids” for September when she will not commit to ending child poverty?Hon PAULA BENNETT: Well that is simply not true. We are getting on with warming up homes we are getting on with immunising kids we are getting on with putting more money into preventing rheumatic fever and we are getting on with making sure that those children are no longer living in welfare-dependent homes. We have got the Children’s Action Plan which fundamentally makes a difference. Those are the things that actually need to be done and that we are doing.Jan Logie: How can she think her policies warrant a “tick 4 kids” when the College of Public Health Medicine says her Government’s investment in children is barely half the OECD average and is “insufficient to reduce the impact of poverty on their health and well-being.”Hon PAULA BENNETT: I would say that for those who are the most vulnerable we have one of the most generous welfare systems in the world. Last year alone we gave out $262 million just in hardship grants let alone what is going to welfare and support for those who need it. So I disagree with those figures but I suppose if the member wants to give me all of the research behind them I can have a look.Jan Logie: How do her policies warrant a “tick 4 kids” when one baby on average dies each week in this country from an illness linked to poverty and yet she refuses to restore real benefits to the level they were before they were cut 23 years ago?Hon PAULA BENNETT: I think the member is making a correlation there that I am not sure absolutely fits. I think we have one of the most generous welfare systems in the world. I have not seen the research behind the figure of 60 children a year. I am not sure exactly where that has come from. What I do support though looking at the Tick4kids campaign is where it says it wants political parties to prioritise children’s access to quality health housing education and welfare to ensure every child has what they need to live a safe happy and fulfilled life. I would argue that so does this side of the House most definitely. That is what we are putting our resources in. As we had a bit more money we put an extra $500 million into those vulnerable children and families just in this past Budget alone.