Beyer Georgina: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Beyer Georgina: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:608;Page:5900] 
2.  
GEORGINA BEYER (NZ Labour—Wairarapa) 
 to the  
Minister for Social Development and Employment 
: What is the Government doing to assist more New Zealanders into paid employment? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY (Minister for Social Development and Employment) 
: 
 The Government’s efforts have assisted a record number of people to move from unemployment into paid work. Unemployment now stands at 5 percent. There are under 100000 people on the main unemployment benefit and more New Zealanders are working than ever before. That is the result of a focus on training apprenticeships youth transitions partnerships with communities and business and moving people into real jobs with real wages. It is a story of success. 
Georgina Beyer 
: What reports has he seen on alternative approaches to the Government’s welfare policy? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: Alternative approaches often rely on such policies as the work-for-the-dole scheme time-limited benefits vouchers for the poor and penalties targeted at low-income families. Those policies were prevalent during the 1990s and can be found in the previous National Government’s Code of Social and Family Responsibility which was rejected by a public that did not want to go down the road of beneficiary bashing. 
Hon Roger Sowry 
: In the light of the fact that the number of invalid and sickness beneficiaries has skyrocketed under Labour and that the bill for those benefits is predicted to increase by $650 million by the time of the next election when will the Minister tell us what his solutions are? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: The Budget figures demonstrate that $269 million less will be spent this financial year on working-age welfare than was forecast in 2001. When the National Party was in power working-age beneficiaries peaked at 410000 and they are now at 345000. That is a story of success. 
Hon Roger Sowry 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. The question was about the fact that invalid and sickness beneficiary numbers are skyrocketing under Labour and asked what his solutions were for that. In no way did the Minister come anywhere near to addressing that question. He did not refer to sickness and invalid beneficiaries at all. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: No. I listened to the Minister’s reply carefully and he did address the question. 
Hon Roger Sowry 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I want to know how you can determine that the Minister addressed a question on sickness and invalid beneficiaries when he got up and talked about a completely separate group of beneficiaries the unemployed. On that basis he could be able to get up and talk about any group of beneficiaries regardless of what was asked. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: If that was all that the Minister had done I would have called him up. He did actually address the question. 
Sue Bradford 
: What progress is the Government making on extending and improving the abatement regime which has such a negative effect on people moving between benefits and work and when does the Minister expect to be able to announce the shape of any likely reforms to the system if there are any? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: There has been excellent progress. The domestic purposes benefit reforms that we passed through the House late last year are now being implemented. We have seen a major change in the abatement regime whereby for example a person in a part-time job will retain up to $35 or $40 in his or her hand as a result of those changes. We will watch those changes closely during this year and as the Minister of Finance has signalled if circumstances carry on as they currently are with there being surpluses we may be able to move on abatement across a wider range of beneficiaries. 
Judy Turner 
: How does the Minister reconcile the paradox between the significant number of people who still remain on the unemployment benefit and the claims of skill shortages around New Zealand? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: The paradox as the member puts it is simply one of often finding people in the wrong place with the wrong skills around the country. If we were to go to a place like Tasman-Marlborough today we would find that the register dropped to as low a level as 80 people over the summer period because of the success of the seasonal worker programme. If we have the right skills with people in the right places we will get them employed. 
Judy Turner 
: In the light of the fact that employment shortages and surpluses tend to be geographically concentrated does the Minister then agree that it makes sense to encourage internal migration in order to reduce those disparities and will he consider extending assistance to those who are prepared to move to take up work? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: Yes I do agree that it is an idea for people to shift although it is not as easy as it sounds. For example people are often tied into a community by the fact that they own a house and their ability to shift is therefore always subject to those kinds of conditions. However we already do offer relocation allowances. We often literally drive people from one town to another via a bus to ensure that they can take up a job so we are doing those kinds of things already and will do more. 
Judy Turner 
: Does the Minister agree that a form of compulsory training for the unemployed would be more effective than a compulsory work scheme given that it focuses on getting people into real jobs rather than keeping them occupied in building an autobahn from Auckland to Wellington? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: Yes I do. I seek leave to table  
Towards a Code of Social and Family Responsibility 
 which is the response to the report in 1998. 
Document by leave laid on the Table of the House. 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: I seek leave to table the Work and Income evaluation report  
The Outcomes and Impact of Expanded CTF and Community Work 
. 
Document by leave laid on the Table of the House.