Logie Jan: Social Security Amendment Bill (No 3) — Third ReadingText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeLogie Jan: Social Security Amendment Bill (No 3) — Third Reading[Sitting date: 02 April 2015. Volume:704;Page:2886. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]JAN LOGIE (Green):I rise to speak to the third reading of the Social Security Amendment Bill (No 3). The Greens are opposing this legislation because ultimately it is about making things harder for people who are trying to get ahead through study people on ACC who are also on a benefit and people who are caring for family members who otherwise might be in care. It is also I think another example from this Government of the double-speak attack on the vulnerable where we are presented with a piece of legislation and told that this is purely administrative; it is just a matter of fixing up some unintended consequences and delivering on what the Government intended. Yet when we look into the detail of the legislation we see small but actually very significant changes that in everyday people’s lives will make their lives harder. It is just a reality it seems of this political game that things are played in that way and that the impact of legislation on everyday people is not considered and is not put at the front of this process sadly.This seems also to be another example of the Government prioritising its own budgets over the well-being of the country as a whole. As this is possibly my last contribution before the Christian holiday of Easter I would suggest to the Government that it reflects on the messages of Easter. I do not think you have to be a Christian either to consider these messages valuable. At its heart the Easter story is a story of sacrifice and a story of love for the people. This piece of legislation asks people who really do not have many financial resources to sacrifice a bit more. It takes away their options and asks them to sacrifice more for the sake of this Government’s budget. I do not think that is consistent with the Easter message. This piece of legislation I would suggest shows no love for the people. I would again suggest to this Government that it goes back and reflects on the message of Easter and to those members on that side of the House who will be going to church over the Easter period to reflect on those messages think on this legislation and ask yourselves whether it lives up to those values and that love of the people because I do not believe it does.We are told that this legislation closes a loophole for students who are currently eligible for a student allowance but who choose not to apply for it because the accommodation supplement will offer them a higher income. This legislation removes that option and prevents these students from applying for the accommodation supplement. In real terms it prevents them from accessing a higher income. The Green Party wants a well-educated and well-paid society. To get this we know we have to offer enough financial support to students who do not have other means to be able to complete their studies. This is essential support for social mobility. If we are serious about addressing inequality we need to be doing more—not less—to support people on lower incomes to get through tertiary education to get higher qualifications and to be able to get ahead in life.The New Zealand University Students’ Association estimates that as many as one in six students would be better off turning down the student allowance and applying for the accommodation supplement instead. If you live in Auckland are on a low income and pay the average student rent of $220 a week then you would be entitled to a $118 per week accommodation supplement. Almost one-quarter of all students getting an allowance in Auckland receive less than that in total. We are told it is just fixing things up and making the legislation consistent but in real terms it is taking away an option for financial support from students and from families without much in the way of money to be able to support themselves. We do not support that.Another element of this misnamed Social Security Amendment Bill (No 3) is the changes that will result in someone who has been on a benefit while working part-time suddenly having their benefit reduced to zero after having an injury that entitles them to access ACC. I am sure people in this House get letters from people struggling between Work and Income and ACC and the difficulty of that situation. This legislation is just about to make that harder. You are going to get more letters and it is because people are going to be struggling more because of this legislation named the Social Security Amendment Bill (No 3).Another aspect of this bill is supposedly to clarify that the $20 personal earnings exemption which is currently accessible for people caring full time for people who would probably otherwise be in care will no longer be accessible to them. How extraordinary is it that on the eve of Easter when so many people are focusing on the story of love for the people and sacrifice this Government would pass a bill that takes away a $20 personal earnings exemption from people who have pretty much given up their opportunities to work full time who have subjected themselves pretty much assuredly to a low income because they want to care for a family member who is incapacitated? To me that is just mean—and I have been saying this too often in this House. This change has been brought in as a Supplementary Order Paper so it has not been through consultation it has not been to a select committee and those families have not been able to tell this House or Parliament or the country what they think about this change. This is after this House under urgency in response to the Budget took away the rights of people caring for family members to be able to be paid a minimum wage after the courts had ruled that they were entitled to be paid.We are starting to see a pattern here and it is a pattern of taking people for granted—of exploiting them I would say. Here we are again on the eve of Easter a Christian holiday of love and sacrifice just embedding the exploitation of people who are caring for the most vulnerable in our country. I think it is a sad day to be in this House. The Green Party does not support this misnamed bill.