Labour’s two tier welfare plans

Written By: - Date published: 11:17 am, September 5th, 2020 - 74 comments
Categories: ACC, benefits, Economy, grant robertson, poverty, welfare - Tags: , ,

Could Labour’s first major policy announcement be a permanent unemployment insurance scheme similar to that advocated for by ACT?

Ouch. That’s the headline from a piece at interest.co.nz looking at Grant Robertson’s idea of a two tier welfare system.

The proposal is to have an ACC-like insurance scheme for newly unemployed people. It’s a time limited payment “which gives people security and keeps them connected to the labour market”.

The scheme could payout the same to everyone, or be related to the income they had been earning. Funding would come from government, employer and employee contributions.

He denied it was middle class welfare, in that people who lose higher paid jobs could get paid more than those who lose lower paid jobs or are longer-term welfare dependents, unable to work.

“There are two different debates here. I don’t think it’s useful to draw them together. One is about the adequacy of the welfare system, the other is about what we do in situations when people lose their jobs and how we keep them in the labour market,” Robertson said.

Yeah, thanks Grant. We get it. You are developing separate policy that will help the working and middle classes, while continuing your intentional neglect of the underclass. We fully understand where your priorities are at.

This is entirely consistent with Labour’s approach to social security. They see welfare as a necessary evil, not to be encouraged, and that all problems can be solved by work. Except those that can’t, but that’s ok, because Labour’s plan is to a) stop people falling in a hole, b) pull up the people from the hole that they can, and c) leave the rest in the hole but hidden behind a nice curtain of kindness rhetoric.

Too harsh? Labour have sat on their hands for three years with regards to welfare, almost completely ignoring the WEAG report. They didn’t even have a go at the low hanging fruit, this isn’t real politik it’s ideology.

Maybe welfare is a second term project, but here they are signalling that they want to attend to people who are doing ok and the sound of silence around the underclass is deafening.

Meanwhile, Carmel Sepuloni is talking about how to get people on a benefit to do voluntary work. Not so they can have better lives, but to get them ready for the jobs that Labour believe will heal all ills.

The ironic cruelty here is that the biggest barriers to beneficiaries doing voluntary work come from Work and Income punitive policies that Sepuloni oversees. Some of that is cultural (if you do voluntary work you’re not serious about looking for a job), some of it is bureaucratic (if an interview at WINZ to keep prodding you to look for work clashes with your voluntary job you will be penalised if you priorities the voluntary commitment).

Sepuloni appears to have done nothing about those barriers. Typically, while WEAG advised making volunteering more accessible because it helped beneficiaries be part of their community, Labour want volunteering to be part of their work-ready programme. A programme which has often worked against the wellbeing of beneficiaries and their community.

Thirty years on from Marilyn Waring’s Counting for Nothing and we are still stuck in ideology that paid work is the be all and end all. Yet unpaid work holds up our society. Were we to value that we might put wellbeing at the centre of the economy isn’t of it being a superficial overlay. Helping out at the marae or raising a child on a benefit might not be the big bucks export earner that so many extol, but we are lost without them. Why do we value them so poorly?

For Labour the point of volunteering is to prepare for jobs, but those are jobs that are rapidly disappearing, and many of which were poorly paid with poor employment conditions. Hard to see how the people moving in and out of low paid work are going to be helped by an insurance scheme they don’t earn enough to pay into, but hey, at least they can do unpaid work to keep their hand in.

I believe the kindness stuff is real. I think that Labour has good people in it and many of them value compassion and want the best for people. Unfortunately that’s not enough and it shows in the policies that Labour produce (or don’t produce).

It’s not that I object to Labour making plans around support for people who lose their job. Obviously we are in a major crisis with covid, and this has to be done. What I don’t understand is why Labour haven’t been addressing the equally serious crises around welfare in the past three years and still won’t go there.

And before anyone says ‘oh but the winter energy payment’,

There are real alternatives. From the Interest piece,

It’s questionable whether the Green Party would support such a regime, should it form a government with Labour after the election.

It wants the country’s welfare system boosted in line with recommendations made by the Government’s Welfare Expert Advisory Group.

The Green Party also wants to ensure that everyone who isn’t in paid full-time work, including students and part-timers, receives a ‘Guaranteed Minimum Income’ payment of at least $325 a week after tax. Single, childless people on Jobseeker Support currently receive $251.

The Greens’ GMI is part of a whole package designed to address all the interlocking issues that make up the massive poverty elephant in the New Zealand living room: housing, welfare rates, WINZ culture, barriers to work, racism, sexism.

Now that we’re in a covid world, I fully expect many of the middle classes, even those on the left, to support Labour’s vision of solutions rather than the Greens. Of course they will want to protect their own. But if mainstream NZ votes on that self interest we can no longer pretend we are willing to do much about poverty other than say we want it to end.

If 2017 was the election of a major cultural shift around values, where New Zealand said we want kindness now, then 2020 is the election of putting our money were our mouth is. The left is looking set to win the election, so the choice now is about what kind of left government do we want?

front page photo via Medium.

74 comments on “Labour’s two tier welfare plans ”

  1. Sabine 1

    that two tier system was started with the Covid unemployment benefits. Everything else is just par for the course.

    btw, what happened to Bill?

  2. Graeme 2

    Looking at it from the point of view of the employed it looks more like nationalising, and making universal and more secure, the redundancy provisions enjoyed by some people with strong union representation.

    Hopefully the scheme will also extend to the self-employed who find income protection insurance pretty expensive, and very restricted in coverage.

    • weka 2.1

      I'm sure there will be many that like the plan. Wouldn't nationalising be if they took over the private schemes?

      My main issue here is that Labour understand the necessity to do something given covid, but only for some people. Too bad the others.

      • Graeme 2.1.1

        If it's done as well as ACC was it will effectively collapse the private redundancy and income protection schemes because they won't be able to compete on price and coverage.

        If you are insured you won't have any coverage if your income loss can be linked in any way to the pandemic, and that will be everyone as the economic downturn has been caused by the pandemic. Since most, if not all, redundancy schemes are funded by insurance there could be some sorry tales coming up if there's a major tits up with lots of redundancies.

        Redundancy payments are very two tier as well, some industries and employers, really good, others, nothing.

        • weka 2.1.1.1

          the pandemic isn't covered by private insurers? Why not?

          • Graeme 2.1.1.1.1

            Standard exclusion on any commercial policy for pandemic. It's included in the definition of 'emergency' in the current ADLS commercial lease which caused all the kerfuffle with leases through lockdown because landlords couldn't claim the loss through insurance.

        • Draco T Bastard 2.1.1.2

          If it's done as well as ACC was it will effectively collapse the private redundancy and income protection schemes because they won't be able to compete on price and coverage.

          Yes, this is true, the private sector simply cannot compete with the efficiency of a government department run well.

          Probably explains why the governments of the last four decades have gutted and fucked over government departments.

    • Pat 2.2

      Nationalising my arse…its a privatised scheme to provide an income stream to the insurance industry…there is no advantage to anyone except those who will clip the ticket and the politicians who will be able to disown control

      • Graeme 2.2.1

        And how's this privatisation? Would you prefer accident insurance to be private too?

        • Pat 2.2.1.1

          "And how's this privatisation?"

          A couple of points…first off the scheme has been floated without detail so we cannot say whether it is or not, but in the absence of detail I will assume the worst until such time as they front up. And I further note ACC has been 'reformed' numerous times and prepared for sale by previous administrations and as stated earlier it is not time limited (yet). The fact that the self employed may find income insurance expensive and restricted is neither here nor there, those policies are discretionary and not a requirement of doing business but more importantly the self employed are entitled to the unemployment benefit should the circumstance arise the same as everyone else. its not as if they dont have 'cover' now. Redundancy discrepancies are also moot, the fact some employers offer (and honour) redundancy clauses in contracts is disconnected from unemployment benefits, and I suspect most employers prefer it that way.

          This is simply one more step away from Government responsibilities….the bathtub awaits.

          • Graeme 2.2.1.1.1

            This is simply one more step away from Government responsibilities….the bathtub awaits.

            Sorry, I see this as the exact opposite. I see this as the government stepping in to provide where the private sector is going to fail, and fail big time. Government has the ability to handle much more risk than private, and do it more efficiently by socialising that risk over the whole population. Just like ACC does with accidents.

            Just as ACC allows us to enjoy many high risk recreational activities, tramping skiing fishing hunting are examples, without it costing us an arm or leg in premiums or risk of getting sued if there's an accident, having a comprehensive state income insurance scheme will allow employees and employers to handle a bit more financial risk as our economy transforms because of this pandemic, changes in work, climate change and all the other upheavals we seem headed toward.

            I'll concede that details are pretty light but from what's been given, comprehensive, shared state employer employee funding and sheer scale it's looking pretty similar to the ACC model.

            • Pat 2.2.1.1.1.1

              "Just as ACC allows us to enjoy many high risk recreational activities, tramping skiing fishing hunting are examples, without it costing us an arm or leg in premiums or risk of getting sued if there's an accident, having a comprehensive state income insurance scheme will allow employees and employers to handle a bit more financial risk as our economy transforms because of this pandemic, changes in work, climate change and all the other upheavals we seem headed toward"

              As I commented to KJT yesterday….its a win win for business/politicians, all at the expense of the workers/unemployed.

              And my original question remains unaddressed….what are the unemployed expected to do after the (max) 6 months?

              • Aurelius

                Once insurance runs out, you would still be able to apply for the regular unemployment benefit.

                My feelings on unemployment insurance are mixed. On the one hand, the rate suggested by Robertson and the Council of Trade Unions (80% of your average salary for the past six months) is extremely generous and would put New Zealand in the same level of generosity as Scandinavia. As Jonathan Boston wrote in Transforming the Welfare State, welfare is far more accepted when it is insurance-based, because of the illusion that it is your own money (ACC and Kiwisaver are examples). In this system, short-term unemployed would have far better lives and beneficary-bashing would be eliminated. Welfare cuts would be far more difficult to either execute or justify.

                On the other hand, if you barely surviving to begin with, 80% still might not be enough, and in an especially poor economy, you may not be able to find a decent job within six months of redundancy, and end up at the mercy of WINZ anyway. For this reason, I think that while the insurance option should be explored, it should be paired with the Green Party's Guaranteed Miminum Income for those whose insurance expires.

    • Draco T Bastard 2.3

      Hopefully the scheme will also extend to the self-employed who find income protection insurance pretty expensive, and very restricted in coverage.

      Perhaps, if they weren't cooking the books so much, they'd get the coverage that they need.

      • Graeme 2.3.1

        Well in our case we would have a huge loading because my partner has had MH issues requiring admission, and we have variable / cyclic turnover and profit. So cover is fucking expensive and based on the bottom of the cycle. And we'd get nothing right now because of pandemic exclusions.

        I know someone who had income and business insurance for communicable disease (childcare industry, so identifiable risk), had been buying it for years only to have the company cancel the policy on 20 March. She wasn't very happy.

        ACC Cover Plus is the best, and a pretty good, option for accident, but doesn't give an help for medical or redundancy / tits up because your industry's gone ta ta for the foreseeable. Standard ACC doesn't do much for self employed because of how tax laws work.

        • Draco T Bastard 2.3.1.1

          I know someone who had income and business insurance for communicable disease (childcare industry, so identifiable risk), had been buying it for years only to have the company cancel the policy on 20 March. She wasn't very happy.

          So, the company realised that they couldn't afford to payout on the policy without going bankrupt and that it was no longer going to be profitable to offer such a policy (because they realised that they'd have to pay out rather than getting what amounted to free money) and so cancelled it.

          That is capitalism, why are you surprised?

          Thing is, I know small business people who boasted of paying very little in tax and ACC and then who had the gall of complaining that they were only getting 80% of their reported income from ACC. Their actual income was, of course, much higher but they weren't paying the proper amount of taxes on it.

          • Graeme 2.3.1.1.1

            That's all reasons why this isn't 'two tier welfare' but vital protections of workers' welfare.

            Under / no insurance is rife in business, and not just small. Same people who minimise their ACC premiums will have minimised other insurance as well. All good until something goes wrong when it rapidly turns pear shaped for all involved. Add into that the standard commercial exclusion for pandemics and the pandemic related redundancies are likely to get very messy when employers discover they don't have insurance cover for the redundancy payments because the insurance co. is arguing is't due to pandemic.

            Much better to have a comprehensive universal state system that's there when it's needed.

            • Draco T Bastard 2.3.1.1.1.1

              Much better to have a comprehensive universal state system that's there when it's needed.

              Yes, we could call it the unemployment benefit and make it available to everyone.

              And we could even do it without creating a two tier citizenship as this policy from Labour seems set to do.

              • Graeme

                So we get rid of redundancy payments and just stick people on the dole?

                • Draco T Bastard

                  Did I say anything about redundancy payments?

                  We're talking about Labour's policy that will make NZ a two tier citizenship society.

  3. Jum 3

    Meanwhile, nats and act and nzfirst must be laughing their way through this one. Who needs enemies when you've got 'friends'?

    Divide and conquer has always been a very focussed strategy always employed by one side to reduce the other. When will Labour and the Greens ever learn?

  4. Kay 4

    Don't hold back Weka! smileyprobably not harsh enough…

  5. bwaghorn 5

    The clues in the name , The LABOUR party .

    Although they ain't that good at looking after labourers either the.

  6. Chris T 6

    Kind of fluff isn't it?

    Putting aside it shows Robertson might as well be in National, the Greens would never vote for it.

    • Rapunzel 6.1

      However he's not & that's because there's "more than one way to skin a cat" sometimes you need to take the long way round to get it done but at least it will have a chance of happening

      • Chris T 6.1.1

        I don't agree with it happening, as much as Robertson and ACT suggest it might.

        I actually can’t believe Labour supporters would seriously justify a 2 tier benefit system depending on hierarchy of status

        • Rapunzel 6.1.1.1

          The closest to "purest" from National or Act are the usual vague "promises" that aren't what they seem like Collins "baby bonus" which will suit the hardliners. What was necessary now to shore up the listing ship in the face of the virus is not a long term two-tier system that will remain in place. Post election, with more everyday NZers having become "beneficiaries" it will be far easier to implement a fairer system long term perhaps I should have said "a means to an ends" than "skin a cat" and again "at least it will have a chance of happening"

  7. Corey Humm 7

    This makes me sick. So clearly labours not releasing it's policies because it's gonna be next level neoliberal.

    The winter energy payment and rent freeze ends two weeks before the election, the most vulnerable people in NZ many who vote labour are gonna lose $40 and $60 and have a rent increase right before an election and many of my unemployed friends will stay home instead of voting green, they simply don't understand the electoral system and how it works my friends and many people I come across like them anyway.

    The family package does nothing for solo beneficiaries. Nothing.

    The two tier welfare system is a disgrace and anyone who thinks their covid benifit will last long after the election when labour doesn't have to worry about the newly unemployeds votes is lying to themselves, you'll be chucked in a regular benifit.

    The idea of an employment insurance being touted by the labour party is the biggest example of we know welfare is unlivable but bugger them they'll vote Labour and if they don't they'll vote green (no they'll stay home) ugh labour is a disgrace if this is where they are going

    Why can't disabled and mentally unwell people get covid benifit rates atleast? Labour and nz in generals attitude to mental health "we care about mental health our suicide rates are horrible" but privately "get off the couch stop crying and get a job you bum"

    Labour absolutely in no uncertain terms cannot achieve a sole majority and the greens including Marama now, need to be in cabinet to stop this crap. I have been furious with the greens and alienated by them for a while but hell no. If this is the direction labour intends to go, two ticks green and I'll never vote for a labour electorate candidate again. Ever and I live in a swing seat. Bugger this bugger labour.

    Release your policies labour so we can see where you plan on taking this country. No more hiding behind kindness. I talk a lot of crap about labour but I am labour to my bones… Not after this and never again IF this is where they are going they need to change their name to the liberal party, immediately.

    • weka 7.1

      "Why can't disabled and mentally unwell people get covid benifit rates atleast?"

      This is why I believe it's ideological. If it weren't there would have been changes made in this area at least.

    • weka 7.2

      I share your frustration. I still hold some hope that a L/G govt without NZF and with more Green MPs could do some good things with welfare. But the Greens need enough negotiating power post-election.

    • rod 7.3

      Pray tell us who are going to vote for then C H ? Jude ?

    • Anne 7.4

      Release your policies labour so we can see where you plan on taking this country. No more hiding behind kindness. I talk a lot of crap about labour but I am labour to my bones… Not after this and never again IF this is where they are going they need to change their name to the liberal party, immediately. (My bold)

      Well you said it Corey H (my bold) so how about you get with these abnormal times.

      We're in the middle of a pandemic which has the potential to decimate the human race and destroy the economic well-being of the world. Who is going to be the worst hit if that happens? The so-called under-class. So, it is in their interest for the Labour-led government to concentrate their efforts on avoiding the worst of the effects. That might mean a few nice to have policies have to go on the back burner for a wee while longer. Maybe not – we will soon know.

      I think some of you are getting ahead of yourselves. The official campaign begins on Sunday 13th of September – a week away. Be prepared for the unveiling of their policy planks around that time. No political party releases the details too early to avoid their opponents stealing them. National has a history of doing so.

      Only then will we be able to pass informed judgement on whether their polices are neoliberal ideology inspired or – far more likely – taking into account what can and what can't be achieved in the current very shaky times we live in.

      • weka 7.4.1

        "That might mean a few nice to have policies have to go on the back burner for a wee while longer."

        Did you just describe policies that help beneficiaries not live in poverty as 'nice to haves'?

        • Anne 7.4.1.1

          No weka. Policies to help beneficiaries was not on my mind.

          I've been there. I know what it is like. I've been on the receiving end of it – not the least from Winz itself back in the 1990s. Being treated like a loser as a result of circumstances over which I had no control.

          They even put me under surveillance at one point, but unfortunately for them they targeted a wrong person – someone able to write them a ‘very sharp and educational letter’. They ran for cover!

          • weka 7.4.1.1.1

            I think that paragraph was unfortunately phrased, because it read like Labour should focus on the pandemic rather than welfare policy.

      • Sabine 7.4.2

        Consider please that the only reason we are not in early election now is because it got pushed out. the original date was 8 th September if i am not mistaken.

        So by now Labour could/should have already unveiled some policies. Last i spoke to the contender here in middle nz she too was not 'going to speak about policies'.

        The question really is why would anyone consider voting for someone who does not want to talk about the future. And yes, i hope that the green school gets dumped in favor of a few pennies for the poor. And for that matter any other project like that – should not be funded currently by government.

    • Morepork 7.5

      " Labour absolutely in no uncertain terms cannot achieve a sole majority "

      I wouldn't be so sure. If NZF and the Greeens vote dips below 5%, the Labour could well have a majority over the centre right parties.

      • Draco T Bastard 7.5.1

        If Labour keep launching policy like this then we can expect to see their vote declining and the Greens going up.

        • Morepork 7.5.1.1

          You could be right. I was reflecting on the backlash to the private school funding. This may well push any wayward green voters back into their corner.

  8. sumsuch 8

    I feel the loss of the Alliance. Can you imagine their howls and growls about this. Versus the Greens.

    • Draco T Bastard 8.1

      The Alliance still exists – somewhere.

      Can't hear them.

      • Dennis Frank 8.1.1

        Schrodinger's cat situation:

        The party was formally deregistered with the Electoral Commission at its own request on 26 May 2015. Without registration, the party cannot contest the party vote. As of May 2020, the party's website remains online with an active blog. The website describes a conference planned for August 2016 but it is unclear if this went ahead.

        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alliance_(New_Zealand_political_party)

        • Draco T Bastard 8.1.1.1

          Earlier this century I was a member but it became obvious that the party was in decline and that it wasn't coming back and so I left. There appears to still be some die-hards there.

          It is a pity that the time that the Alliance was the most successful was also the time that it was least effective. With 27% of the vote and only two seats in parliament.

  9. Nic the NZer 9

    The underlying issue is that since the 1984 election the government has abandoned its commitment to create full employment. The fairly regular result of this policy is for there to be insufficient jobs to employ everybody who wants to work.

    As the voluntary work changes imply people who are in work do find it easier to get other (more rewarding) work. The cost of the country maintaining a pool of unemployed (for economic policy purposes) is not only the direct loss of their contribution but also the lack of career development which impacts later (on their productivity) even after they do find work.

    The is something very vulgar about the constant work ready testing regime applied to beneficiaries which doesn't even acknowledge the simultaneous govt policy of unemployment being at least x%. Its certainly obvious to all that not everyone is going to be able to find work regardless of how hard they are incentivised to try.

    • weka 9.1

      do you know what Robertson means by "the other is about what we do in situations when people lose their jobs and how we keep them in the labour market"

      How does giving more money to a selection of wealthier recently unemployed people mean they are more likely to get another job? Is it as simple as having the resources to look for work and have nice clothes for interviews? Although most people aren't going ot lose their nice clothes in the first 6 months. So what is it?

      The volunteering thing makes sense in the abstract (looks good on the CV), but if there aren't enough jobs all this means is that the people with the better CVs get the limited jobs, not that more people get jobs.

      I think full time work for everyone is gone now and we should be looking at other models. We didn't have all adults in full time *paid work until relatively recently in history and then we lost it again quite quickly, so I'm not convinced it's a sustainable way to run things.

      • Gabby 9.1.1

        It looks as if Grant believes the middle class unemployed are entitled to be comfy and the poor can pay for that. Unless he sees the recently unemployed getting no more back than they have paid in?

      • Brigid 9.1.2

        I wondered about Robertson's 'keep them in the labour market' claim too.

        It suggests that those already unemployed are by definition not worthy of being kept 'the labour market'. What ever the fuck that means.

        It's just bullshit talk to justify bullshit.

        [Fixed typo in user name]

        • Draco T Bastard 9.1.2.1

          It's just bullshit talk to justify bullshit.

          Yep.

          It's not designed to fix the problem that is a system that has high unemployment as normal. He's trying to keep the failed neo-liberal paradigm in place and so things are going to keep getting worse under Labour.

      • Draco T Bastard 9.1.3

        I think full time work for everyone is gone now and we should be looking at other models.

        Could just reclassify full time from 40 hours (Well, 30 actually) down to, say, 24, and ensure that pay rates adjust to cover the decrease. Minimum wage increases from $22 (IIRC, present liveable) to $29 @ and $36 @ 24.

        Of course, that's not going to help those who have been working 50+ hours.

    • Draco T Bastard 9.2

      As the voluntary work changes imply people who are in work do find it easier to get other (more rewarding) work.

      I checked out doing volunteer while unemployed work a decade or so back. Did the sums and realised that I couldn't actually afford to do it. The cost of the bus fares was too much especially if I wanted to ensure that I had enough to go to an interview as well.

      I doubt if anything has changed since.

      Its certainly obvious to all that not everyone is going to be able to find work regardless of how hard they are incentivised to try.

      When the government runs high unemployment policies, which they've been doing since the 1980s, then its inevitable that there will be long term unemployed which is fully not the result of the desires of the unemployed. High unemployment, and thus also long term unemployed, is a direct result of government policies.

      Thing is, even many on the Left seem to have accepted high unemployment as normal, seemingly forgetting that one of the reasons why we had Penal Rates was to encourage full employment. The other, of course, was to encourage development of machinery to do the work but that's been forgotten as well as the lack of Penal Rates has turned us into a low wage nation that imports even lower waged workers to do stuff that should be done by machine.

  10. KJT 10

    @Graeme.

    I agree.

    However it should be noted that the reason why so many self employed get minimal ACC payments, is because they are not paying the levies on the income, they hide from the tax man.

    Incidently the reason why National wants to subsidise businesses on a per business basis, rather than on the number of employees/sole traders, paying tax. Too many of their tax dodging mates are missing out.

    As a PAYE earner more recently I've been fine at the prompt and comprehensive help from ACC with injuries.

    However the avoidance of ACC paying cover, applied to people I know with mental health or gradual process injuries from work, has been disgusting.

    This of course is a result of the profit making imperative that has taken over ACC culture, to fatten it for future privatisation.

    Certainly ACC should be extended to illness. At present Ill people are subject to a two tier system which leaves them, mostly, much worse off than those with ACC cover. That would be a popular policy with almost everyone. Except for the aformentioned tax dodgers, of course

    But. It should be under the initial model, not the way it works now.

  11. Barfly 11

    Nah I 'm sure it's just a cunning ploy by Robertson to help the Greens get over 5%. devil

  12. KJT 12

    @Nic. 9.

    Employers who benefit by the implicit subsidy of a set level of unemployment, should be contributing to paying unemployment benefits.

    Of course low paying employers are also subsidised by welfare topups their employees have to have so they can live. And the infrastructure the rest of us have to provide for their cheap labour.

    Maybe an ACC type employer levy that goes up the lower the wages paid, compared to company profits?

    Where is the "tax payers union" when we need them?

    • Draco T Bastard 12.1

      Helping the people you suggest should be paying more taxes because of their poor practices not pay any taxes.

  13. KJT 13

    The reason why ACC has been to a large extent "Tory proof" is that everyone, including the corporates who buy our Governments, benefit from it.

    National’s attempts to privatise it have been quietly, buried. You can be sure it was at the request of their bribers/sorry, funders, not because of public outcry.

    They know a privatised version, or a return to the US version will cost them much more.

  14. Nic the NZer 14

    @Weka, If I read that charitably the Robertson means people in that situation will keep looking for work in line with the job they lost for longer, before lowering their expectations.

    But this policy isn't going to work. Its ridiculus to ask the economy to save so much that it can cover the shift in govt spending when a recession occurs. Basically the GFC and Covid recessions occur because of a shift towards the citizens saving (e.g when your locked down but still getting income you are going to be saving more because discretionary spending falls almost automatically). To the extent this saving isn't replaced by additional govt spending (I'm ignoring shifts in foreign sector trade for a moment) then you get a recession (fall in GDP). In NZ this was not too great because the wage subsidy kept paying people who lost out due to the fall in discretionary spending. But the idea that the private sector has enough saved to buy its way out of the savings shift is clearly pretty silly. At best it will be like disaster insurance, easy insurance profits during good times and insurance bankruptcy when the payouts are most needed.

    Finally, think about full employment on an individual level. This means for that individual they are able to have enough work to keep themselves and their family satisfied. This exists even if the work week was shorter (say 25 hours), for some it will be part time. But there are only two reasons this would not be available,

    1) because there is literally nothing for them to do.

    2) because nobody is willing to pay them to do that.

    Until around 1984 the govt ensured that 2 was loosely in effect by hireing anybody at least somewhere. But I believe your saying returning to a political regime which resolves 2 no longer works. So it must be true that there really not enough to do? I simply don't agree.

    • Draco T Bastard 14.1

      But the idea that the private sector has enough saved to buy its way out of the savings shift is clearly pretty silly. At best it will be like disaster insurance, easy insurance profits during good times and insurance bankruptcy when the payouts are most needed.

      We have a prime example of how private insurance fails in the Christchurch earthquakes. The private insurers simply didn't have enough money to cover all the damage that came under the policies that they had offered and so the government had to step in and let them off the hook.

      This proved, quite conclusively, that private insurance is a scam with the sole purpose of getting high profits from doing as little as possible.

      So it must be true that there really not enough to do?

      There's enough to do but it doesn't involve the bludgers getting a high profit and so the government avoids it.

      We've tried the so-called service economy over the last few decades but all that's brought about is higher poverty and a decreasing rate of development in the economy.

      What we need now is an R&D economy where everyone is encouraged to get a degree or three with the government ensuring that they will be hired in R&D that will get our manufacturing back but in a form suitable for the 21st century. That manufacturing will be set to provide NZ with what it needs and very little will be for export as it will be expected that other nations will have their own manufacturing.

      As I say, in a free-market with productivity as high as ours is, there is no international trade.

      • Paulus 14.1.1

        Only one Insurance Company went bust through incompetence management AMI Insurance.

        A local Mutual.

        [I fixed the typo in your e-mail address. Please stick to one user name here from now on, thanks – Incognito]

        • Draco T Bastard 14.1.1.1

          There were numerous points about the Christchurch payouts and not just that only one insurer went bust. Quite often, the insured weren't getting what they were insured for. People were having to go to extraordinary lengths to get what they were insured for which many simply couldn't afford which all means that the insurers didn't pay out what they were supposed to.

          Consider, almost a decade later according to this article, many still hadn't been paid out.

          I'm not seeing anywhere that the insurance industry worked well in Christchurch. Completely the opposite, in fact. I figure that there were two main reasons for the tardiness and low payouts:

          • The insurance companies, including the huge re-insurers simply didn't have the money
          • They, of course, simply didn't want to pay out

          And the government came in to help the insurers.

          There is, of course, one other major issue which, even if the insurance companies could and would have paid out immediately, they couldn't have done anything about and that which would have needed government support for:

          • The simple fact that there wasn't any workers available to re-build

          To get Christchurch back on its feet quickly required that the rest of the NZ economy had to be put on hold and that didn't happen.

          The pandemic has brought forth the need for that government support again and, again, we know that the private insurance business can't, and won't, pay. Thankfully, this time we have a government that's stepped up but they're still trying to do as little as possible rather than what's actually needed as this policy shows.

  15. SPC 15

    The NZF is campaigning with the message that they were a handbrake on Labour on welfare policy.

    They probably got agreement for the increase in baseline benefit by $25 by doubling of the power cost income supplement income (which those on super as well as beneficiaries get).

  16. SPC 16

    It's good politics, people will now be feeling less secure in their employment – so its an optimum time to bring in compulsory insurance to cover them in the between employment period..

    It's also good for budget management – as it means there is provision made for periods of higher unemployment.

    and how we keep them in the labour market

    Meh, it's about having the earnings to continue to pay the rent power bills etc.

  17. Foreign waka 17

    Looks to me that Labor wants to find a way to privatize some of the benefit payments (Unemployment/ACC) but tries to put leavers in to still look like that they support the unemployed. How, would be anyone's guess. Looks like a monetary exercise as we now have to pay back the billions spend. The day of reckoning has arrived.

    What is needed is a different approach to work per se and leaving the concept of that slave mentality behind. I am actually disappointed that when the chips are down, this government proves to be no better than any other.

    Can we see some costings when an UI is being implemented verses all these corporate welfare payments that seem to surface all the time?

    • Draco T Bastard 17.1

      What is needed is a different approach to work per se and leaving the concept of that slave mentality behind.

      This pandemic has proved that capitalism doesn't work (and so did the GFC and every other recession) and so we should be getting rid of it.

      I am actually disappointed that when the chips are down, this government proves to be no better than any other.

      That's because they're trying to avoid having to do what's necessary so as to keep capitalism in place.

  18. Jum 18

    Jum 3

    5 September 2020 at 4:02 pm

    Meanwhile, nats and act and nzfirst must be laughing their way through this one. Who needs enemies when you've got 'friends'?

    Divide and conquer has always been a very focussed strategy always employed by one side to reduce the other. When will Labour and the Greens ever learn?

    Reply

    Well, Weka, that's pretty much what I expected; a stupid joke at my expense.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8WxdaU9AsnU Why don't you watch 'The Newsroom' rant early in part one which contains a speech made by 'Will McAvoy' in which he explains about how NOT great america is. He mentions liberals which is our Labour Greens and why they lose. i.e. everyone I think is worth knowing on here is wasting their intelligence by just and I say a very worthy just, as it's LPrent's blog, they should ALSO be taking the battle to the printed word, reducing the influence herald has, or the perfectly good people (nats I'm sorry to say) that think hosking on newstalk zb is actually worth listening to. I know!

    My apologies and grateful thanks to those that are.

    But, if it makes others happy to pick apart what good has been done and in your naivety believing that Labour has the election in the bag, and isn't under threat, then you obviously don't know how insidious and evil greed really is in reaching self-interested voters' weaknesses.

  19. Jum 19

    PS I wish all left leaners the very best in the coming weeks. I won't be posting again, but everyone should know that this is simply the best blog.

    https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-d&q=utube+simply+the+best

Recent Comments

Recent Posts

  • EV road user charges bill passes
    Transport Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed the passing of legislation to move light electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) into the road user charges system from 1 April.  “It was always intended that EVs and PHEVs would be exempt from road user charges until they reached two ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    11 hours ago
  • Bill targets illegal, unregulated fishing in international waters
    New Zealand is strengthening its ability to combat illegal fishing outside its domestic waters and beef up regulation for its own commercial fishers in international waters through a Bill which had its first reading in Parliament today. The Fisheries (International Fishing and Other Matters) Amendment Bill 2023 sets out stronger ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    12 hours ago
  • Reserve Bank appointments
    Economists Carl Hansen and Professor Prasanna Gai have been appointed to the Reserve Bank Monetary Policy Committee, Finance Minister Nicola Willis announced today. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is the independent decision-making body that sets the Official Cash Rate which determines interest rates.  Carl Hansen, the executive director of Capital ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    13 hours ago
  • Stronger protections for apartment owners
    Apartment owners and buyers will soon have greater protections as further changes to the law on unit titles come into effect, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “The Unit Titles (Strengthening Body Corporate Governance and Other Matters) Amendment Act had already introduced some changes in December 2022 and May 2023, and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    15 hours ago
  • Travel focused on traditional partners and Middle East
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters will travel to Egypt and Europe from this weekend.    “This travel will focus on a range of New Zealand’s traditional diplomatic and security partnerships while enabling broad engagement on the urgent situation in Gaza,” Mr Peters says.   Mr Peters will attend the NATO Foreign ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    15 hours ago
  • Keep safe on our roads this Easter
    Transport Minister Simeon Brown is encouraging all road users to stay safe, plan their journeys ahead of time, and be patient with other drivers while travelling around this Easter long weekend. “Road safety is a responsibility we all share, and with increased traffic on our roads expected this Easter we ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    18 hours ago
  • Cost of living support for over 1.4 million Kiwis
    About 1.4 million New Zealanders will receive cost of living relief through increased government assistance from April 1 909,000 pensioners get a boost to Superannuation, including 5000 veterans 371,000 working-age beneficiaries will get higher payments 45,000 students will see an increase in their allowance Over a quarter of New Zealanders ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    18 hours ago
  • Tenancy reviews for social housing restart
    Ensuring social housing is being provided to those with the greatest needs is front of mind as the Government restarts social housing tenancy reviews, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. “Our relentless focus on building a strong economy is to ensure we can deliver better public services such as social ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    18 hours ago
  • Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary plan halted
    The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary will not go ahead, with Cabinet deciding to stop work on the proposed reserve and remove the Bill that would have established it from Parliament’s order paper. “The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary Bill would have created a 620,000 sq km economic no-go zone,” Oceans and Fisheries Minister ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    19 hours ago
  • Cutting all that dam red tape
    Dam safety regulations are being amended so that smaller dams won’t be subject to excessive compliance costs, Minister for Building and Construction Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on reducing costs and removing unnecessary red tape so we can get the economy back on track.  “Dam safety regulations ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    19 hours ago
  • Drought support extended to parts of North Island
    The coalition Government is expanding the medium-scale adverse event classification to parts of the North Island as dry weather conditions persist, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced today. “I have made the decision to expand the medium-scale adverse event classification already in place for parts of the South Island to also cover the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    21 hours ago
  • Passage of major tax bill welcomed
    The passing of legislation giving effect to coalition Government tax commitments has been welcomed by Finance Minister Nicola Willis.  “The Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill will help place New Zealand on a more secure economic footing, improve outcomes for New Zealanders, and make our tax system ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Lifting economy through science, tertiary sectors
    Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins and Tertiary Education and Skills Minister Penny Simmonds today announced plans to transform our science and university sectors to boost the economy. Two advisory groups, chaired by Professor Sir Peter Gluckman, will advise the Government on how these sectors can play a greater ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Government announces Budget priorities
    The Budget will deliver urgently-needed tax relief to hard-working New Zealanders while putting the government’s finances back on a sustainable track, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says.  The Finance Minister made the comments at the release of the Budget Policy Statement setting out the Government’s Budget objectives. “The coalition Government intends ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Government to consider accommodation solution
    The coalition Government will look at options to address a zoning issue that limits how much financial support Queenstown residents can get for accommodation. Cabinet has agreed on a response to the Petitions Committee, which had recommended the geographic information MSD uses to determine how much accommodation supplement can be ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Government approves extension to Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care
    Cabinet has agreed to a short extension to the final reporting timeframe for the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care from 28 March 2024 to 26 June 2024, Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden says.                                         “The Royal Commission wrote to me on 16 February 2024, requesting that I consider an ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • $18m boost for Kiwis travelling to health treatment
    The coalition Government is delivering an $18 million boost to New Zealanders needing to travel for specialist health treatment, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says.   “These changes are long overdue – the National Travel Assistance (NTA) scheme saw its last increase to mileage and accommodation rates way back in 2009.  ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • PM’s Prizes for Space to showcase sector’s talent
    The Government is recognising the innovative and rising talent in New Zealand’s growing space sector, with the Prime Minister and Space Minister Judith Collins announcing the new Prime Minister’s Prizes for Space today. “New Zealand has a growing reputation as a high-value partner for space missions and research. I am ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Concerns conveyed to China over cyber activity
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters has confirmed New Zealand’s concerns about cyber activity have been conveyed directly to the Chinese Government.     “The Prime Minister and Minister Collins have expressed concerns today about malicious cyber activity, attributed to groups sponsored by the Chinese Government, targeting democratic institutions in both New ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Independent Reviewers appointed for School Property Inquiry
    Independent Reviewers appointed for School Property Inquiry Education Minister Erica Stanford today announced the appointment of three independent reviewers to lead the Ministerial Inquiry into the Ministry of Education’s School Property Function.  The Inquiry will be led by former Minister of Foreign Affairs Murray McCully. “There is a clear need ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Brynderwyns open for Easter
    State Highway 1 across the Brynderwyns will be open for Easter weekend, with work currently underway to ensure the resilience of this critical route being paused for Easter Weekend to allow holiday makers to travel north, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Today I visited the Brynderwyn Hills construction site, where ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Speech to the Infrastructure Funding & Financing Conference
    Introduction Good morning to you all, and thanks for having me bright and early today. I am absolutely delighted to be the Minister for Infrastructure alongside the Minister of Housing and Resource Management Reform. I know the Prime Minister sees the three roles as closely connected and he wants me ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Parliamentary network breached by the PRC
    New Zealand stands with the United Kingdom in its condemnation of People’s Republic of China (PRC) state-backed malicious cyber activity impacting its Electoral Commission and targeting Members of the UK Parliament. “The use of cyber-enabled espionage operations to interfere with democratic institutions and processes anywhere is unacceptable,” Minister Responsible for ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • NZ to provide support for Solomon Islands election
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Defence Minister Judith Collins today announced New Zealand will provide logistics support for the upcoming Solomon Islands election. “We’re sending a team of New Zealand Defence Force personnel and two NH90 helicopters to provide logistics support for the election on 17 April, at the request ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • NZ-EU FTA gains Royal Assent for 1 May entry to force
    The European Union Free Trade Agreement Legislation Amendment Bill received Royal Assent today, completing the process for New Zealand’s ratification of its free trade agreement with the European Union.    “I am pleased to announce that today, in a small ceremony at the Beehive, New Zealand notified the European Union ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • COVID-19 inquiry attracts 11,000 submissions
    Public consultation on the terms of reference for the Royal Commission into COVID-19 Lessons has concluded, Internal Affairs Minister Hon Brooke van Velden says.  “I have been advised that there were over 11,000 submissions made through the Royal Commission’s online consultation portal.” Expanding the scope of the Royal Commission of ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Families to receive up to $75 a week help with ECE fees
    Hardworking families are set to benefit from a new credit to help them meet their early childcare education (ECE) costs, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. From 1 July, parents and caregivers of young children will be supported to manage the rising cost of living with a partial reimbursement of their ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Unlocking a sustainable, low-emissions future
    A specialised Independent Technical Advisory Group (ITAG) tasked with preparing and publishing independent non-binding advice on the design of a "green" (sustainable finance) taxonomy rulebook is being established, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says.  “Comprising experts and market participants, the ITAG's primary goal is to deliver comprehensive recommendations to the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Chief of Army thanked for his service
    Defence Minister Judith Collins has thanked the Chief of Army, Major General John Boswell, DSD, for his service as he leaves the Army after 40 years. “I would like to thank Major General Boswell for his contribution to the Army and the wider New Zealand Defence Force, undertaking many different ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Minister to meet Australian counterparts and Manufacturing Industry Leaders
    25 March 2024 Minister to meet Australian counterparts and Manufacturing Industry Leaders Small Business, Manufacturing, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly will travel to Australia for a series of bi-lateral meetings and manufacturing visits. During the visit, Minister Bayly will meet with his Australian counterparts, Senator Tim Ayres, Ed ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Government commits nearly $3 million for period products in schools
    Government commits almost $3 million for period products in schools The Coalition Government has committed $2.9 million to ensure intermediate and secondary schools continue providing period products to those who need them, Minister of Education Erica Stanford announced today. “This is an issue of dignity and ensuring young women don’t ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Speech – Making it easier to build.
    Good morning, it’s great to be here.   First, I would like to acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of Building Surveyors and thank you for the opportunity to be here this morning.  I would like to use this opportunity to outline the Government’s ambitious plan and what we hope to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Pacific youth to shine from boost to Polyfest
    Minister for Pacific Peoples Dr Shane Reti has announced the Government’s commitment to the Auckland Secondary Schools Māori and Pacific Islands Cultural Festival, more commonly known as Polyfest. “The Ministry for Pacific Peoples is a longtime supporter of Polyfest and, as it celebrates 49 years in 2024, I’m proud to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • 2024 Ngarimu VC and 28th (Māori) Battalion Memorial Scholarships announced
    ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago
  • Speech to Breast Cancer Foundation – Insights Conference
    Before moving onto the substance of today’s address, I want to recognise the very significant and ongoing contribution the Breast Cancer Foundation makes to support the lives of New Zealand women and their families living with breast cancer. I very much enjoy working with you. I also want to recognise ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago
  • Kiwi research soars to International Space Station
    New Zealand has notched up a first with the launch of University of Canterbury research to the International Space Station, Science, Innovation and Technology and Space Minister Judith Collins says. The hardware, developed by Dr Sarah Kessans, is designed to operate autonomously in orbit, allowing scientists on Earth to study ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago
  • Speech to the New Zealand Planning Institute
    Introduction Thank you for inviting me to speak with you today and I’m sorry I can’t be there in person. Yesterday I started in Wellington for Breakfast TV, spoke to a property conference in Auckland, and finished the day speaking to local government in Christchurch, so it would have been ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago
  • Support for Northland emergency response centre
    The Coalition Government is contributing more than $1 million to support the establishment of an emergency multi-agency coordination centre in Northland. Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell announced the contribution today during a visit of the Whangārei site where the facility will be constructed.  “Northland has faced a number ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago
  • Celebrating 20 years of Whakaata Māori
    New Zealanders have enjoyed a broader range of voices telling the story of Aotearoa thanks to the creation of Whakaata Māori 20 years ago, says Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka. The minister spoke at a celebration marking the national indigenous media organisation’s 20th anniversary at their studio in Auckland on ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago
  • Some commercial fishery catch limits increased
    Commercial catch limits for some fisheries have been increased following a review showing stocks are healthy and abundant, Ocean and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The changes, along with some other catch limit changes and management settings, begin coming into effect from 1 April 2024. "Regular biannual reviews of fish ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago

Page generated in The Standard by Wordpress at 2024-03-28T15:25:38+00:00