benefits
Categories under benefits
- welfare (366)
We’re all beneficiaries now
Written By: - Date published: 7:38 pm, March 6th, 2013 - 168 comments
The drought shows how important social protection systems are. When the unexpected happens – your farm dries up, you get sick, you lose your job, you find yourself alone raising your kids – the community steps in by way of tax funded Social Protection.
Welfare is not a pissing contest
Written By: - Date published: 10:37 am, March 3rd, 2013 - 154 comments
Why must we turn welfare, an important safety net and part of the social fabric / contract of our country, into a stupid pissing match about a minister’s “reputation”?
Ageing population
Written By: - Date published: 7:55 am, March 2nd, 2013 - 80 comments
A British report on the implications of their ageing population structure highlights, yet again, the lack of any planning on this issue from the Key government…
Family members of traitors of the Motherland
Written By: - Date published: 1:16 pm, February 20th, 2013 - 85 comments
No-one likes fraudsters, whether they’re ripping us off as beneficiaries or as suit-clad businesspeople. National’s announced some ineffectual steps to ‘crack down’ on the minor amount of benefit fraud that occurs (no similar crackdown on white collar fraudsters). But they’ve gone to far in trying to criminalise people just for being partners of benefit fraudsters.
Economic crime
Written By: - Date published: 12:08 pm, February 13th, 2013 - 35 comments
White collar crime – fraud and tax evasion – is in the news again with a new report on the impact. The costs are estimated as several Billion per year. Meanwhile the Nats put all their energy into demonising and chasing $22 Million in welfare fraud.
Sick
Written By: - Date published: 4:21 pm, January 23rd, 2013 - 90 comments
Bill English’s priority in 2013 will be to “bed in” welfare reforms. Because that’s where the big fiscal savings lie. He’s hoping to cut 44,000 beneficiaries and save $1.6 billion by 2016-17. Which would be fantastic if this was a jobs government focussed on employment growth and those 44,000 were going into decent paying jobs. […]
Pushed off the safety net
Written By: - Date published: 8:19 am, January 21st, 2013 - 76 comments
News from Australia reports an increase in numbers turning to sex work following cuts to welfare benefits. Here in NZ as a similar cost-saving measure we have benefit purges underway – at a time of rising unemployment…
Doing the numbers: benefits & (un)employment
Written By: - Date published: 9:14 am, January 18th, 2013 - 92 comments
Paula Bennett stated that the numbers of people on benefits had dropped over the last quarter. The figures mask the reality of Bennett’s punitive welfare reforms, and the struggles of those living on low incomes. Meanwhile unemployment is still rising. [Update: RNZ]
Beyond the middleclasses
Written By: - Date published: 8:29 am, December 16th, 2012 - 82 comments
Political parties tend to target the middle-classes, while those struggling on low incomes have become increasingly disenfranchised. The MSM tends to focus on the impact of the recession on the middle-classes, and not those really suffering. Who can provide support over the holiday period?
Advocacy activism in precarious times
Written By: - Date published: 5:31 pm, December 11th, 2012 - 25 comments
In these troubling times, it was uplifting to see the flax-roots, practical and collaborative action at the Onehunga Recession Busting rally for beneficiaries today. Volunteers in front of the WINZ office in Onehunga Mall, are giving support and assistance to those most in need.
Killing our kids
Written By: - Date published: 7:42 am, December 10th, 2012 - 81 comments
Over at Stuff Ben Heather is reporting on the Children’s Social Health Monitor and the chilling fact that, in the last five years, 600 Kiwi children have died from poverty related causes.
Who in the House is for beneficiaries?
Written By: - Date published: 11:01 am, December 5th, 2012 - 64 comments
Yesterday Jacinda Ardern questioned Paula Bennett on WINZ paying for beneficiaries to travel to Aussie to get jobs. Did she highlight the government’s poor record on jobs, or inadvertently trigger more MSM bennie-bashing? Do any MPs raise their voices strongly beneficiaries?
Changing Labour: significant issues
Written By: - Date published: 8:38 am, November 18th, 2012 - 4 comments
These are exciting days as the Labour Party becomes more democratic. In their reports on the Conference, the MSM are failing to focus on the important issues: ones requiring a new direction from the Left, such as damaging white collar fraud and the urgent need for affordable housing.
Aotearoa to little America
Written By: - Date published: 11:00 am, November 1st, 2012 - 28 comments
As National cuts services, incomes, and pushes more Kiwi’s into the gutter, their real agenda it seems apart from creating an underclass is removing them from the Government tit, and after that supporting them with charity. Corporations see charity as tax free advertising, with the added bonus of being able to lobby & pressure the Government of the day.
Tax fraud, benefit fraud, proportional response
Written By: - Date published: 8:50 am, October 22nd, 2012 - 38 comments
A Victoria University study shows that tax evasion is costing the country at least 25 times what welfare fraud is costing, while welfare fraud is punished more harshly in court.
Sunday Reading
Written By: - Date published: 9:30 am, October 21st, 2012 - 5 comments
My regular Sunday piece of interesting, longer, deeper stories I found during the week. It’s also a chance for you to share what you found this week too. This week: plutocrats, the New World Order, benefits and solving slavery and extinction.
Backwards to the future?
Written By: - Date published: 8:30 am, October 20th, 2012 - 50 comments
Labour Day celebrates, what was at the time, a cutting edge victory for working people – the 8 hour working day. But the struggles continue for men and women. Now is not the time to be going backwards on issues that impact on workers, people struggling on low incomes, or beneficiaries. Updated.
Children of Men: money or our lives
Written By: - Date published: 11:30 am, October 18th, 2012 - 28 comments
Paid Parental Leave, Charter schools, compulsory early childhood education for beneficiaries: for NAct it’s all about money, and they use ‘shonky’ figures to justify their ‘shonkey’ policies and vetos. This is ostrich and patriarchal behaviour, ignoring the evidence of the wider benefits to communities and society of good quality child care, education and Paid Parental Leave.
Local Bodies: Our Vulnerable Less Safe Under National
Written By: - Date published: 1:25 pm, October 16th, 2012 - 7 comments
Dave Kennedy (bsprout) at Local Bodies writes on crime statistics and the vulnerable in our society.
This is going to be big
Written By: - Date published: 7:43 am, October 15th, 2012 - 230 comments
Keith Ng has uncovered a truly massive breach in MSD’s computer security.
Affordable Housing: the way forward?
Written By: - Date published: 9:40 am, October 7th, 2012 - 29 comments
There is increasing concern about New Zealand’s housing situation, with an escalation in homelesssness, people living in totally unacceptable conditions, and the lack of sufficient affordable housing stock.Update: Government close to unveiling plans for “cheap” housing on city fringe and ‘brownfield’ sites.
National Day of action against Bennett’s welfare reforms
Written By: - Date published: 7:00 am, October 5th, 2012 - 128 comments
Today there have been protests around NZ, against Paula Bennett’s punitive welfare reforms.
Updates: Include ODT article link and extract, photos of Henderson protest, and links to several news articles.
Roofpainter II: Son of the bride of the monster roof painter
Written By: - Date published: 7:00 pm, September 30th, 2012 - 126 comments
David Shearer still doesn’t get why judging beneficiaries from across the road isn’t compatible with leading the Labour Party. QoT perseveres in trying to explain it to him, using short words.
‘Children of the Poor’ 1934 – 2012: Social Security for the Future?
Written By: - Date published: 11:04 am, September 30th, 2012 - 176 comments
Split Enz once sang, “History Never Repeats”… Or does it? Destructive prejudices separating ‘deserving’ and ‘undeserving’ poor have been around a very long time. When the likes of Paula Bennett pander to such ill-informed vindictiveness with punitive social welfare reforms, they will damage large numbers of children – our future citizens.
“Work” and the false economy of Bennett’s welfare reforms
Written By: - Date published: 9:00 am, September 26th, 2012 - 102 comments
Bennett’s reforms aim to cut the costs of government spending on welfare. But what this means is that more of the necessary caring and service work in NZ will be unpaid, or underpaid. It doesn’t mean people will necessarily work harder or longer, and that they aren’t making a significant contribution to society and the economy.
Bennett’s fantasy world breaks down
Written By: - Date published: 7:15 am, September 24th, 2012 - 45 comments
Paula Bennett on Q+A: “I don’t think that every child actually needs to be in early-childhood education” says Bennett. There will be cases where parents can do just as good or better job for their child. Yet, her policy is to take away half the incomes of parents and children on benefits who don’t go to ECE. The gap between Bennett’s spin and what she is actually doing has never before been so clearly revealed.
Fight the ‘War on the Poor’: Opposing Bennett’s welfare reforms.
Written By: - Date published: 11:45 am, September 21st, 2012 - 52 comments
Grant Robertson, in the House yesterday speaking on Paula Bennett’s “Social Security (Benefit Categories and Work Focus) Amendment Bill” – First Reading, gave an impassioned speech. He said many some great points about social obligations and a mutually beneficial social contract (between the state and beneficiaries. However, will the Labour Party’s policies match up to the rhetoric?
Welfare ‘reform’
Written By: - Date published: 6:27 pm, September 18th, 2012 - 101 comments
Paula Bennett’s second welfare changes bill is out – with a nasty added sting in the tail: anyone who refuses a ‘suitable’ job will be blocked from getting a benefit for 13 weeks. Work testing for sole parents with 5 year olds, compulsory ECE for beneficiaries and the widows benefit cut are all in there.
The long game
Written By: - Date published: 7:35 am, September 15th, 2012 - 41 comments
The government recently released a figure of $78 billion as the ‘lifetime cost’ of the benefit system. That number is the estimated answer to the question: ‘how much would we have to have put aside now to pay for the expected future cost of benefit payments to all current beneficiaries’. But the really question is: why would you want to know that?
$1 million well spent?
Written By: - Date published: 12:16 pm, September 13th, 2012 - 22 comments
So the current people on benefits will cost $78 billion over the course of their lifetime. To get this useless $78 billion factoid, National have given an Australian company $1 million of our money – next year, they’ll do it again, to see if the number has changed any. What use is this number? It’s not good for budgeting and doesn’t seem to actually tell us anything useful – so why is the government wasting money while telling us times are tight?
Myth-busting: benefits
Written By: - Date published: 11:44 am, September 13th, 2012 - 47 comments
Some excellent myth-busting via Facebook. What isn’t a myth is that there are 80,000 more people on benefits under National. As with their economic management (which is integrally related) their management of the welfare system has been a complete disaster. They’ve given people no option but the benefit. They’re punishing people for falling into the safety net.
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- Hīkoi (v.24)
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- The ferry to Russell
In an effort to squeeze in as much public transport as possible to the last day of my trip, I caught the ferry from Paihia to Russell/Kororāreka The crossing took 17 minutes and cost me $17 for a return trip. There are three ferry companies operating services across the bay. ...2 weeks ago
- The longest commute, day seven: To the end of New Zealand’s public transport network
Joel MacManus attempts to travel from the bottom to the top of the country without a car or plane. Today: the last hurrah. The mission: Get from Stewart Island to Cape Reinga as fast as possible using only public transport. Wherever I can, I’ll travel by train. In areas that ...2 weeks ago
- I’m not allowed to bike to Cape Reinga
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- The Bay of Islands
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