Lindsay Mitchell

Yesterday I took the kids with me to spend the morning with my friend and her 4-year old daughter. The little girl, who has developed a mutu...

Media Release MINISTER MISTAKEN OVER GROWTH IN INCAPACITY BENEFITS Friday, April 13, 2007 In defence of growing incapacity benefit numbers, ...

A new survey about public perception of government performance conducted by Massey University, based on 1,350 responses from 18+ year-olds,...

In addition to the table below you can add the following welfare expenses (millions); social rehabilitation and compensation $145 department...

It has taken me a while to find any accounting of the In Work payment and I am very glad to see it is still being classed as a benefit by T...

While poking around in Treasury I came across this interesting graph. The top blue line shows core expenditure against gdp. That recent rise...

I asked someone, given all of the good news about dropping beneficiary numbers, what would you expect to be happening with spending? They ga...

It beholds me once again to give you the full story. Minister of Maori Affairs, Mr Parekura Horomia is thrilled to bits that Maori unemploy...

Published last month, this report summarises patterns of reconviction amongst almost 5000 offenders who were released from prison over a tw...

I had forgotten I sent this out last month. It was published in today's Hutt News under the by-line of Eastbourne-based welfare commen...

I'll be talking to Larry Williams on NewstalkZB at around 4.10pm this afternoon about teenage parenthood, welfare dependence, etc.

How this is greeted will be as interesting as the research findings themselves. Just published; Christchurch Health and Development Study, ...

Here's Sam in her genuine, bought-at-Old-Trafford Man U shirt, getting ready for the soccer season.

Ah Sweden. That utopian paradise our wanna-be social democratic government hankers after. Last week a visiting Swedish professor, Joakim Pal...

To Barnardos and Plunket, can I be uncharitable and say, it serves you right. Murray Edridge says about the loss of support they are experi...

My eight year-old recently inquired whether her daddy and I would be splitting up. Obviously concerned (had we been fighting in front of the...

A glance through the Sunday Star Times confirms a culture of blame is thriving in Aoteoroa New Zealand. The Police and the Motor Trade Assoc...

I get a feeling in my gut that this is a very sick idea. That's my emotional response to it. I asked my almost 13 year-old what he thou...

There can be no doubt that the level of family violence reporting will increase after the Crimes Amendment Act comes into force. I have be...

Police are blaming the violent Waikato (I always read the Waikato Times because stuff happens there) on drunken youth. Alcohol really is ge...