King Annette: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers Questions to Members 
King Annette: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers Questions to Members 
[Volume:671;Page:17612] 
4. 
Hon ANNETTE KING (Deputy Leader—Labour) 
 to the  
Minister for Social Development and Employment 
: Does she agree with the Prime Minister that “anyone on a benefit actually has a lifestyle choice … some make poor choices and they do not have money left”? 
Hon PAULA BENNETT (Minister for Social Development and Employment) 
: 
 Yes I agree with the Prime Minister but as per usual the member has taken the quote out of context. He was also right when he said: “this Government has through a number of policies tackled problems that under Labour simply removed hope and opportunities from the lives of those people.” 
Hon Annette King 
: Is she aware that her department is sending 25 people a day to just one budget adviser in South Auckland to have budget reports carried out for them because they cannot pay their bills and has she been advised whether the reason that they cannot pay their bills is poor lifestyle choices or the rising cost of living? 
Hon PAULA BENNETT 
: The member should be aware that changes were made in September last year under Future Focus when we were sending more people for budgeting assistance. So it is hardly a surprise that we are sending more people for budgeting assistance. It is something that was introduced last year as part of policy changes as something that is being productive. 
Hon Annette King 
: Does she consider Major Campbell Roberts of the Salvation Army to be a reliable commentator on social issues in New Zealand; if so what does she say in response to his comments that he could not understand why Mr Key made the remark about beneficiaries and lifestyle choices and called it “a very foolish statement”? 
Hon PAULA BENNETT 
: Actually it is a good opportunity to thank the Salvation Army particularly for the work it has done most recently in Christchurch. That has been really appreciated and has been a time when the Salvation Army has stood out. I think it certainly has a role to play for those people who need it most and its work quite recently has really shown an example of that. So this Government is very supportive of the Salvation Army. 
Hon Annette King 
: Does she agree with the statement 1 month ago by the Christchurch City Mission head Michael Gorman that it is not a matter of the poor making poor choices but of the poor having few options to choose from and could the rising cost of living—including increased costs for rent petrol and milk—account for the biggest rise in food parcels ever given out by the Salvation Army? 
Hon PAULA BENNETT 
: We have seen under this Government an increase in the number of hardship grants that have been issued and also of special needs grants. Next week we will see benefits going up again under the CPI increase by more than 1.75 percent. That will help more than a million New Zealanders. As the Prime Minister has also said we have seen wages increase by more than 16 percent particularly for those on low incomes so I think we are seeing that help go exactly where it is needed. 
Hon Annette King 
: Does she still stand by her statement that a lot of women went off the benefit because of Working for Families and is she prepared to back her comment about National keeping Working for Families when she said “I’m kind of pleased they are” or will she be joining Mr Key and Mr English in their publicly stated determination to change it? 
Hon PAULA BENNETT 
: I am sure that if I started to quote that member’s three-word sentences then I could come up with the same sort of displacement that she just did. But yes I certainly stand by the fact that we have seen women in particular those on the domestic purposes benefit get the balance adjusted between the benefit and the right sort of tax incentives so that work then becomes easier and better for them. Getting that balance right is a key part of this Government’s focus.