Hereora Dave: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Hereora Dave: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:619;Page:14729] 
9.  
DAVE HEREORA (Labour) 
 to the  
Associate Minister for Social Development and Employment 
: Has Work and Income set targets for placing unemployment beneficiaries into jobs; if so what progress have they made? 
Hon RICK BARKER (Associate Minister for Social Development and Employment) 
: 
 Performance targets for Work and Income New Zealand are set in the statement of corporate intent of the Ministry of Social Development. Recent results show that in the 2003-04 year 52000 people were placed into jobs. That number is equivalent to a job for every man woman and child in Rotorua and is 8000 above target. That performance is especially satisfying given that the pool of unemployed beneficiaries has significantly reduced by 30.4 percent from the same time last year. When there are fewer people in the pool of unemployed it can become harder to find jobs but that has not been so. Although fewer people have needed to find jobs we have been more successful in getting people into work. 
Dave Hereora 
: Is the Minister confident that the downward trend in unemployment figures will continue? 
Hon RICK BARKER 
: Yes I am. That trend has been maintained over a sustained period of time and the Government has established a number of initiatives targeted at assisting job seekers into work. The $105 million Jobs Jolt package kicked off in the 2003 Budget helps to skill people in information technology employment coaching and other work skills. Currently we also have five industry partnerships and expect a further 567 positions from those partnerships with more industry partnerships to come. That is training real people for real jobs. 
Katherine Rich 
: How many unemployed have transferred to the sickness benefit or the invalids benefit from the unemployment benefit in the last 12 months? 
Hon RICK BARKER 
: I cannot find the figures immediately but I will get them to the member. However if the member wants to highlight that there has been a growth in the number of sickness benefits the fact is that the number of people dependent on the State for a benefit since this Government has been in power has plummeted. That is quite contrary to the effect the National Government had. 
Judy Turner 
: How can he state credibly in his press release today that he is “pleased to see that people who have been out of work for a long time have found jobs” when the actual number of those on the dole for more than 3 years has increased from 10789 to 15672 which is an increase of 45 percent? 
Hon RICK BARKER 
: Quite a number of people have been on the unemployment benefit for a long time. It is true to say that a significant slice of those people have been in the 50-year-plus group and it is proving very difficult to get them into jobs but in reducing the number of people on the unemployment benefit and getting people into employment we have exceeded our target. The facts speak for themselves. Unemployment now stands at 4 percent. Last year we put over 52000 people into jobs which I think is an outstanding result. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: I seek leave to table the answer given by Mr Barker on 13 November last year on the question of transfer from unemployment benefit to sickness benefit which he put at above 40000 New Zealanders. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Leave is sought to table that. Is there any objection? There is. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: There is? 
Mr SPEAKER 
: I heard someone say yes. For goodness’ sake! 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: We didn’t know. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: It is early in the week I know.