Time for a change

A recent commentor wrote;

Welfare is as much part of the NZ scenery as the Southern Alps.

I have two conflicting views about this. The first is that I despairingly believe the statement to be true. NZ has now accepted that there will always be a huge pool of people reliant on the state. We have 'officially' one of the lowest unemployment rates in the developed world and crow about it, while a quarter of a million people can't or won't work. Bill English says there are no more people to put into jobs. There is a general attitude that this is as good as it gets. Societies are structured differently now. One parent families are as useful as two parent even though the majority are not self-supporting. The levels of crime, violence, drug and alcohol abuse mean that we need the benefit system more than ever and everybody deserves support regardless of whether or not their problems are self-inflicted. The welfare state has expanded (WFF) to take in more and more recipients so being reliant becomes more 'normal' and there is only a minimal residual stigma attached. Hand-outs are renamed tax credits to blur the lines.

But there is a second view which logic tells me is the correct one. A study of countries with longer welfare histories show that a cycle operates. Or a pendulum swings. The welfare blow-out of the past forty years is a first experience for New Zealand. The US and the UK first experienced it in the 1830s. And they acted on it. By changing laws they pulled back from widespread reliance on 'outdoor relief' and then moved into the Victorian age which saw values of thrift, independence and temperance holding sway. From one extreme to another.

Societies are dynamic; constantly changing. People change their values and laws. It's a two-way flow. Add to this the ageing phenomena - 65+ will make up an ever-growing proportion of the population - and one can see our expectations about welfare are going to have to change.

If I live another 40 years I expect to see substantial reform. The important thing is to make the reform as effective and kind as possible. The sooner we act the greater the chance of achieving both.

Welfare isn't as much a part of the New Zealand scenery as the Southern Alps. But it is part of the current wallpaper. It's not really a very nice wallpaper. Those of us who don't much care for it should keep saying so.