Media Release
MINISTER MUST STICK TO HER GUNS
Friday, 19 December, 2008
The Minister of Social Development, Paula Bennett, has welcomed the Human Rights Tribunal finding against the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) claim that children of beneficiaries are discriminated against because their parents do not receive the In Work tax credit.
Welfare Commentator , Lindsay Mitchell, noted however that the Associate Minister of Social Development, Tariana Turia, may not join in celebrating the good sense the Human Rights Tribunal has shown. "The Maori Party strongly supported the action of the CPAG. Many children of beneficiaries are Maori and the DPB is an integral part of the Maori community, " she said today.
"Fortunately Ms Bennett is able to grasp the bigger picture and appreciate that preserving an incentive for parents to work, which is in the long term best interests of children, is vital. As the CPAG is now seeking a meeting with the government to plead its case directly, it is to be hoped that they do not aim to play one minister off against the other."
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4 comments:
Yeah right. Paula defending WFF.
If the government has changed, and if ACT is in coalition I haven't noticed!
If only she'd come out and said: "we are pleased the court has found in favour of the policies of the last government. However, the latest fiscal figures, with the last government having left New Zealand 100 BILLIION dollars in the red so we are cancelling WFF, the DBP, and the Dole, and our own economically illiterate restart package immediately"
Now that is leadership. That's decisive. That's the first 100 days.
That is what is actually required to plug the holes in NZ books.
"Now that is leadership. That's decisive. That's the first 100 days."
Abnd that's an idiotic knee-jerk reaction.
Look, Anon I'm about as right-wing as you'll see around here but simply cancelling WFF, the DPB and the dole may look like a great idea but the consequences would be huge--and not at all what some of us would like.
I object strongly to my hard-earned dollars being handed to lowlife breeders and to middle-class welfare beneficiaries--and to those who refuse to work.
That said, cancelling the DPB and the dole overnight would result in a huge increase in crimes against property and violence against kids.
The answer-surely--is to hedge those benefits with gradually tightening conditions and qualifications, to make them less attractive as lifestyle choices?
eg no further DPB payments for kids born to parents already on them, a six-month time limit for the dole etc.
There are literally hundreds of government departments, quangos etc which could be axed immediately, along with hundreds of local council rules, regulations and peripheral "social" programs and that alone would save the taxpayer billions of dollars and free up the taxpayer from the dead hand of bureaucracy in this country.
Let's start with what's possible!
Until those who see the state as their source of income are disabused of that notion - nothign willchange. Cut all the quangos you like, but until breeding on welfare is not subsidized, spending on welfare will increase forever.
Brian Smaller
"..but until breeding on welfare is not subsidized, spending on welfare will increase forever."
Indeed it will Brian--I was just pointing out that it's simply not practical to end it overnight. :-)
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