O'Rourke Denis: Oral Questions — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeO'Rourke Denis: Oral Questions — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 10 November 2015. Volume:710;Page:7791. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]3.DENIS O’ROURKE (NZ First) to the Minister of Finance: Is he concerned that Massey University has found that the minimum income needed by a single retiree in the main centres is $489.77 when New Zealand Superannuation is only $374.53 per week and many may have no other means?Hon BILL ENGLISH (Minister of Finance): I reject the premise of the question. In fact the study by Massey University does not report minimum incomes needed or recommend levels of expenditure. In fact it quite specifically says that it is not reporting recommended levels of expenditure. There is an annual survey by the Ministry of Social Development of levels of hardship which shows that levels of hardship among older New Zealanders are low which is one of the reasons that Parliament supports universal national superannuation. The survey that the member is referring to records the average amount spent by households that are on national superannuation—that is income from all sources not recommended minimum expenditure.Denis O’Rourke: How is the Minister planning to address growing elder poverty given the main drivers of this are the cost of accommodation—especially in the main centres—inflation-busting electricity increases and inflation-busting rates increases?Hon BILL ENGLISH: We certainly acknowledge the challenge for some older people of living on a relatively low fixed income for a long time. I think the household expenditure and income survey records that around 40 percent of people over 65 have no income other than their national superannuation. The way that the Government is dealing with it is to fund the significant increases in the weekly national superannuation payment that I referred to in my answer to the last question—that is while those households do feel the pressure of cost of living increases in fact national superannuation over the last 6 years has risen at twice the rate of inflation. So they are in a better position now to deal with those pressures than they used to be.David Seymour: Does the Government face the trade-off between the age of entitlement for New Zealand superannuation and the level of entitlement?Hon BILL ENGLISH: No. We have committed to the policy of keeping the age of entitlement in place and also the current level of entitlement. One of the ways that we are focusing on the long-term ability of New Zealand to pay for that is to deal with all the other long-term liabilities particularly in our welfare system where we have people who are on benefit for 20 25 30 years. We believe that with a more active compassionate and competent welfare State we can get more of those people back into participating in society.Denis O’Rourke: Does the Minister accept that the percentage of the average wage on which superannuation is based needs to be substantially increased; if not why not?Hon BILL ENGLISH: No I do not think it should be increased. We have now had a couple of decades of consensus in Parliament about that particular formula which has been studied in great detail and we believe it is about a fair balance of meeting the needs of older people who cannot earn an income on the one hand and the ability of the wider community to pay for that in the face of an ageing population.Denis O’Rourke: Why has Mr Fin Heads not received the superannuation back-pay and other compensation he is still being deprived of despite the Human Rights Review Tribunal finding in his favour and the Government accepting that section 68 in Part 4 of the first schedule to the Accident Compensation Act needs amendment?Hon BILL ENGLISH: I am aware not of the individual’s circumstances but of the tribunal decision and I understand that matter is under consideration.David Seymour: Can the Minister of Finance confirm his earlier answer that other things being equal there is no trade-off between the age of entitlement to New Zealand superannuation and the level of entitlement?Hon BILL ENGLISH: Yes I can confirm the Government policy which is to maintain the age of eligibility at 65 and to maintain the current level of payment. When we look out ahead over the ability of the economy to pay for that one of the ways we can ensure that is of course a more flexible productive economy and the other is to deal with the other long-term liabilities such as the welfare spending and also control of health spending. In both of those areas we have shown some progress in being able to control spending.Denis O’Rourke: When will the Government next review New Zealand superannuation and can he assure superannuitants and those close to retirement that it will meet their actual needs while also fixing the other obvious injustices and inadequacies?Mr SPEAKER: The Hon Bill English—either of those two supplementary questions.Hon BILL ENGLISH: We are always willing and open to deal with issues that the member might characterise as “injustice”—as I understand in the case he was referring to earlier—but generally we think the settings are about right. There has been much discussion for a long time about national superannuation in New Zealand and New Zealand First should take credit for winning a number of arguments over the last 15 or 20 years about national superannuation. We believe those arguments are largely settled and should remain so.