Unsurprisingly no other questions followed from the opposition.
Youth Employment—Youth in Employment, Education, or Training
6. MELISSA LEE (National) to the Minister for Social Development: What reports has she received about the number of young people in employment, education or training?
Hon PAULA BENNETT (Minister for Social Development): I am very pleased to report that the latest household labour force survey shows that the number of young people not in employment, education, or training—known as “neets”, of course—continues to fall. The number of “neets” has fallen to 11.3 percent of 18 to 24-year-olds—down from 13.9 percent a year ago. This is the lowest number of young people who are not in any form of education or work since the December 2008 quarter.
Melissa Lee: What support is this Government providing to ensure that young people engage in employment, education, or training?
Hon PAULA BENNETT: This Government has invested heavily in ensuring young people at risk of long-term benefit dependency engage with a Youth Service provider, who can help get them into education or work. Unprecedented in getting results, we are seeing local youth workers working with our youth—getting alongside of them. Currently, there are 38 Youth Service NGO providers who are actively working with more than 9,000 of these “neets”. As a result 63 percent are currently engaged in education or training.
Melissa Lee: Why is it important to provide support to young people to ensure they are in employment, education, or training?
Hon PAULA BENNETT: Young people who are not engaged in work or education are at a high risk of not only going on to a benefit but equally staying on for a very long time. Sixty-two percent of 30 to 39-year-olds currently receiving a benefit first went on welfare as young people. But this Government, through our education policies and through our support via Youth Service, is making a difference, getting alongside of these young people and seeing them get into work and further education.
4 comments:
It is a relief that the current government has realised New Zealand's heavy reliance on welfare - economy good or bad - is fed by a constant inflow of young people.
Oh for goodness sake Lindsay - that's ageist and racist and probably classist as well.
Largest single benefit-dependent group in NZ: white women over 65 on National™ Super. NZ's reliance on welfare is fed by a constant inflow of old white people. The current government plans to do absolutely nothing about all those codger-bludgers - because they vote National™.
Other large benefit dependent groups: Tertiary students ("Free" student loans); state school kids; 3 million people without health insurance; and of course almost everyone with kids - welfare for families or "communism by stealth" has that hot-bed of libertarian monetarism called it on Monday this week.
But hey - let's pretend Basher Bennet's reforms have done something other than rename the benefits. Yep. That'll make a big difference. Whereas Key has sworn to resign rather than do anything to National™ Super.
Banks was all over the radio yesterday arguing for raising taxes!. Just who is right-wing in NZ any more?
oops.
the "hot-bed of libertarian monetarism" is of course Radio NZ National.
Political report 11am Monday.
When Radio NZ is calling Key's policies communist; to the left of Helen Clark; and that the government will "keep moving left"
then something is very very wrong.
Anomymous must be too young to recall how the present National super scheme came about. To call it a benefit is to be totally ignorant of its origin. If you examined the concept of welfare and how it is today you cannot but come to the conclusion that welfare after about the second generation simply rots people's will to provide for themselves. Why for goodness sake are we importing people to pick fruit in this country?
To call it a benefit is to be totally ignorant of its origin.
To deny it is a benefit is to be totally ignorant of its funding!
The Codger-dole is a benefit, it always was a benefit and it remains a benefit. There are no "accumulated taxes to pay for super" there never were and there never can be. Just like all those "free healthcare" and "free hospitals" and "free schools" are nothing but benefits.
And the tax money spend on those three big benefits vastly outweighs the relative pittance spent on the dole and DPB combined.
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