Bennett Paula: Estimates Debate — In Committee 
Bennett Paula: Estimates Debate — In Committee 
[Volume:656;Page:5815] 
Hon PAULA BENNETT (Minister for Social Development and Employment) 
: 
 I stand to speak about Vote Social Development. It was an interesting process to be there in front of the Social Services Committee. I expected a harsh examination and that morning I had heard via Twitter that members were out to get me and that I should be prepared for a fierce examination before the select committee. But there was not one question on unemployment benefits from the Opposition members—not one question on how Work and Income might be able to help those who were going on to benefits in such increasing numbers. There was not one question I tell members on youth employment or youth unemployment. Thank goodness for the Government because that was where the questions came from on child abuse statistics which we just heard the member before me the Hon Tariana Turia speak about. 
At the select committee we talked about 12116 children who had been assessed as abused or neglected—a number that was up from 9654—and that figure is our nation’s shame. But our nation’s shame should also be that 1356 of those children were abused again within a 6-month period. Yet there were no questions from the Opposition on that issue. Actually Ms Dyson did ask a question about unallocated cases. To be clear about this Government’s priorities I tell the Committee that in June 2005 under Labour there were 1054 unallocated cases with Child Youth and Family. This year on 30 June we had 254 unallocated cases. That is the lowest number of unallocated cases in the history of Child Youth and Family. That is where this Government’s priorities lie. 
This is a Government of action. For three consecutive quarters under the previous Labour Government the number of people on the unemployment benefit rose but did we see anything done? No. As this country went into recession Labour quite frankly hid its head in the sand. But this Government is a Government of action. Within weeks we had introduced Restart a package that thousands of New Zealanders have benefited from. This is a Government of action. 
Within weeks we had turned the focus of Work and Income into one that was about jobs jobs and more jobs. We asked how we could open up those opportunities for people who were coming through our doors and how we could focus our people who were there working to help those coming in to go the right way. This week alone we have had 1123 new jobs come into Work and Income. That is more than ever before—1123 new jobs coming into Work and Income. That is because we have people who are solely focused on working with employers and people who are on benefits to match them up and to get people back into the workforce. When we talk about action we mean that within weeks of the Job Summit we had introduced the Job Support Scheme with the help of the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions and Business New Zealand. 
We heard the call from community organisations. They were facing a decrease in funding from non-Government sources but an increase in demand in many places where people were asking for more of their services. We spoke to the community got representatives in put them around the same table and discussed the best way forward. What we came up with was the Community Response Fund. It has already had its first meeting. It has taken 293 applications. Decisions are very close to being signed off. I have heard there has been a very robust discussion into where that money will go within our communities and those decisions will be announced within the next couple of weeks. It will deliver $104 million to the sector over the next 2 years. We heard what the community sector was saying. 
As I heard the honourable member before me say we heard that young people were going on to the unemployment benefit at a rate of nearly one in three of all those who were then on the benefit. One in five young people were already on that benefit so quite frankly we had to open up opportunities and we had to see other things coming in to make sure that our initiatives worked. Currently 590 jobs through Job Ops have come through our door. Over 270 organisations are stepping up with Community Max. This is quite clearly a Government of action.