Sio Su'a William: Social Assistance (Future Focus) Bill — First Reading 
Sio Su'a William: Social Assistance (Future Focus) Bill — First Reading 
[Volume:661;Page:9909] 
SU’A WILLIAM SIO (Labour—Mangere) 
: 
 The Minister in introducing her Government’s Social Assistance (Future Focus) Bill talked about the future. I suspect that she was referring to a National Government future a future of division—of “divide and rule” and of the rich versus those who are in need—a future aimed at destroying our clean green image by digging up our precious conservation areas and a future aimed at undermining our democratic processes by running roughshod over the Auckland super-city. That is not the kind of future that the Labour Opposition supports and that is not the kind of future that New Zealand society supports. 
In 1999 Labour inherited about 161000 people on the unemployment roll. In 2008 when Labour left office there were only 20000 people on that roll. That is the number we gave over to National when it took office. At the end of 2008 the number of unemployed people had gone up to about 37000. It was acceptable at that time because people generally recognised that there was a recession. So we went with that because there was a recession. However there was no mini-Budget at the end of 2008 and there was no jobs budget in 2009; but there was much ado about a Job Summit and many of us today are still waiting to see what the jobs were that were created from that Job Summit. To this day I do not know whether any jobs were ever created in our community. Things are worse now and not better. There was a freeze on public sector pay. The Government kept talking about putting a cap on the workforce instead of making a cut in the workforce. More and more people have been added to the number of unemployed until at the end of last year about 168000 were on the unemployment roll. Those numbers continue to rise. 
There was also a bit of a splash about a $50 million cycleway. It was predicted supposedly to produce 4000 jobs. Again we ask where those jobs are. And I have to say that many in my community are asking who can afford a $100 or $200 bicycle for the cycleway. 
If we are talking about the future as this Government seems to believe it is doing by targeting the unemployed solo parents and sickness beneficiaries then let us ask the Government what it will do for the children and young people who will be affected if these benefits to needy families are cut. What will the Government do for families who will struggle with meeting the day-to-day rigours of life and the cost of living and whose children will end up going without? The future is about our youth about strengthening our economy and about looking after and strengthening the workforce which is predominantly Maori Pacific and Asian in areas such as Manukau and Mangere. What is this Government doing to strengthen our future workforce so that we can expect this future generation to pay for future superannuation? What will this Government do about strengthening the future workforce so that young people today will be able to pay for the future health-care that this country will need? What will this Government do to prepare the younger generation the future workforce in order for them to be able to pay for the education that the young generation will need in the future? These reforms will not achieve that. They will not achieve that at all. 
One has to wonder why last week the Government made this particular announcement. My colleague the Hon Annette King said that this was dog-whistle politics and she is absolutely correct. She is absolutely correct. Why was this announcement made when the Government was constantly under attack by New Zealanders because it was looking to mine all our conservation areas? It was a deflection; it was about deflecting the issue. Again this is sending out dog-whistle messages to the rednecks out there to those who do not understand the hardship that many families are going through and the hardships that some families have no control over. 
I want to read an example from someone who came into my office but I will not say who this person is. This person was made redundant in 2009 from Fletcher Construction in Penrose. He was paid a redundancy and all of that went on the bills. He has been going back and forth to Work and Income for any assistance that he and his family can get but because his wife works and because she earns a mere $300 net per week Work and Income has advised him that he is not eligible for any kind of support. He is on the books of New Zealand Labour Hire but only as a casual because assignments are very short and few and far between. My office referred this family to the Mangere budgeting service and when it went through the books to determine his income and outgoings there was a total household deficit of $287.41. 
That is an example of the families in my electorate and no doubt throughout Manukau and other parts of New Zealand who are struggling. This Government seems to label everybody in this way and say that they are trying to— 
Hon Steve Chadwick 
: Labelling them as bludgers. 
SU’A WILLIAM SIO 
: Yes it is labelling them as bludgers. Again it is a stereotype that is not true. Many of those people in Pacific communities and in Maori communities and many other people who are unemployed want to work. The dole is not any place for our families. The dole is not any place for people who want to get ahead. People want to get ahead and the only way that they will get ahead is through having a job. That is why we have asked the Government: “Where are those jobs?”. 
We saw images on TV not too long ago of 3000 people in line applying for 150 measly low-paid jobs at a local supermarket. Three thousand people were out there early in the morning with their CVs and applications because they wanted to work. Where are those jobs? What will the Government do with the solo mums who will now be put under pressure? Will they stand in line behind those 3000 job applicants or behind the 168000 people without jobs? Is that the future for the community out there? I hope not. But that is the kind of future that this Government is talking about. 
I have had numerous emails from New Zealanders across the country who on hearing the announcement by this Government are outraged. I want to read out some of them. This is from a woman who is a resident of Wellington. This is what she said: “These are my thoughts around this matter.” referring to the Government’s welfare reform. “I have noted that whenever National gets into Government there is a pattern of stigmatising the beneficiaries. It is often the women who are demonised for having the children despite the fact that Aotearoa needs a growing population to support the growing aged cohort who I might add need medical treatments to keep them alive. It seems ironic that it’s the aged cohort who support National’s policies and yet it’s now the young generations that are funding it. How the heck do they think they’re going to maintain the gold card and the demands on the health sector? The aged generation needs the young generation employed or otherwise. These ridiculous statements cause divisions within our society in terms of class divisions. It continues to be the children of the families on benefits who are penalised by having to go without some of the fundamentals in life. The National Party have cleverly put a woman in charge of the MSD portfolio so that the feminists and other women can’t protest. Presently people who are applying for jobs are finding they are overskilled for the job. What makes the Government think that unskilled parents are going to have a chance at obtaining employment that is family friendly? National policies are harsh and ridiculous. Where are the thousands of jobs that the National Party promised?”. 
What we want from this Government is job creation and skills development. That cannot happen if the Government continues to cut areas where it should be investing.