Bradford Sue: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Bradford Sue: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:623;Page:18236] 
5.  
SUE BRADFORD (Green) 
 to the  
Prime Minister 
: How does she expect New Zealanders living on a benefit or low wages to “establish … a savings habit” and join the “ownership society”? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK (Prime Minister) 
: 
 The key to moving in that direction is to help New Zealanders who are living on benefits to move into the workforce and to support those who are in the workforce to get more skills so that they can improve their incomes. Compared with 5 years ago over 100000 fewer working-age adults are dependent on benefits and 126000 people are now in industry training. Lower unemployment and more skills training are critical to raising incomes and to moving down the track that I spoke about in my speech yesterday. 
Sue Bradford 
: How can people save for a house when over the last 5 years average household expenditure has risen by 16 percent and average income by only 12 percent and when the minimum wage even after the rise coming up in March will be only $9.50 per hour? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: Clearly rising house prices have had an impact—and quite a big impact—on affordability for low-income people particularly in a big city like Auckland where prices are higher than the norm. That is why I emphasised in the statement yesterday the work the Government is doing on savings and is looking at how it can reverse the trend against homeownership that has occurred over a number of years. 
Gordon Copeland 
: Does the Prime Minister agree that if those on low incomes are not assisted to develop a savings habit then they risk entering retirement both asset poor as well as income poor? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: Yes I most certainly do because for New Zealanders their main asset has traditionally been their home. Also in the past many more people had superannuation. Government superannuation was canned in the early 1990s and although we have restarted a scheme—with 46 percent of eligible people coming in pretty well straight off—there is obviously still quite a way to go. So building up assets is a feature of new policies that the Government is developing in the areas the member has identified. 
Nandor Tanczos 
: Does the Prime Minister think that a generation of New Zealanders burdened by $7 billion of student debt stands a fair chance of participating in the ownership society; if so can she tell us why she thinks that? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: My understanding is that the average debt per student is actually decreasing because this Government has done a number of things to improve affordability—like the frozen fees for the first 3 years then putting the cap on rises through the fee maxima policy and also because students are not accruing interest on their loans any more while they study. In addition the repayment terms are fairer. Of course students are still borrowing but my advice has been that the average amount is decreasing. 
Sue Bradford 
: What savings does the Prime Minister think home-care workers can make when they earn as little as $4 to $5 an hour or less after paying their own travel costs and time for travel; and when can we expect an announcement about improved funding for the aged-care and disability-care sector as possibly predicted in the Prime Minister’s statement to the House yesterday? 
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK 
: I think the member is right to identify the poor salaries of home-care workers. In the moves just before Christmas some more money was put into the elder-care sector. In my speech yesterday I identified as the member said that finding long-term solutions to provision in this area is very important to us. But I acknowledge the low pay of those workers and over time it is desirable not only to help them increase their skills but also to look at the wage levels. 
Hon Brian Donnelly 
: I seek leave of the House pursuant to the response by the Prime Minister to table information from the Parliamentary Library demonstrating that in fact the average student debt has increased. 
Document by leave laid on the Table of the House.