King Annette: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
King Annette: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:670;Page:16969] 
5. 
Hon ANNETTE KING (Deputy Leader—Labour) 
 to the  
Minister for Social Development and Employment 
: Is she confident that the Ministry of Social Development has responded adequately to the Christchurch earthquake? 
Hon PAULA BENNETT (Minister for Social Development and Employment) 
: 
 Yes. I think it has responded more than adequately and I am intensely proud of the work that the Ministry of Social Development staff have done. As well as those numbers I gave in answer to the previous question the list is very long. Staff have fielded more than 94000 inbound calls and they have proactively contacted more than 23200 elderly and vulnerable people. In terms of outbound calls they have sent text messages to more than 18000 students about their payments they opened all weekend for the last two weekends to process payments and provide assistance and they have set up recovery assistance centres. Eight mobile vans have been out to those areas. They have staffed the welfare centres. They have made more than 54000 civil defence payments. It has been quite remarkable. 
Hon Annette King 
: In light of that answer what has the Ministry of Social Development done for older vulnerable superannuitants who do not have telephones or transport in terms of contacting them? 
Hon PAULA BENNETT 
: It has been working alongside non-governmental organisations like the Red Cross and the Salvation Army which have been out door-knocking. It is also part of—sorry I cannot remember the name of the operation; the one that is going door to door in consultation with the Christchurch City Council. It is working alongside it too. 
Hon Annette King 
: What provision has been made to ensure that people who have lost their homes and are now renting properties at inflated prices are able to quickly access the accommodation supplement if their insurance company is not meeting the cost and has the level of supplement been lifted to take account of the spike in rents? 
Hon PAULA BENNETT 
: In answer to the last part of that question no the accommodation supplement has not been increased but there is an accommodation side to the civil defence payments. It is actually quite generous and that is what we have clicked in at the moment. From memory about $1 million has been spent throughout New Zealand but mainly in Christchurch. That is the payment we are using at the moment to cover those accommodation costs on a weekly basis. 
Hon Annette King 
: Will Government decisions on the Welfare Working Group report be applied to the people in Christchurch on any of the benefits; if so when? 
Hon PAULA BENNETT 
: The Welfare Working Group’s report is still being considered and will be considered for some time. I can let the member know that the Future Focus stuff that we introduced last year to do with work testing—those on the unemployment benefit having to come in after 12 months and reapply for it and those on the domestic purposes benefit being work tested when their youngest child is 6—has been halted for 6 months. That went through Cabinet this week.