5. RUSSELL FAIRBROTHER (Labour) Link to this
to the Minister for Social Development and Employment
What reports has she received about the level of unemployment in New Zealand?
Hon RUTH DYSON (Minister for Social Development and Employment) Link to this
I have seen reports that the Labour-led Government is supporting more and more people into real jobs. We now have record employment, record labour-force participation, and record low unemployment. The unemployment rate has fallen to a new low of 3.4 percent—the lowest since records began 22 years ago, when my colleague Darren Hughes was just 8 years old.
We now have the highest level of employment recorded since records began—2.2 million New Zealanders are now in paid work. That means there are 377,000 more jobs in our economy than there were in 1999. That is 126 new jobs each day since Labour has led the Government. This is all further evidence of our Government’s prudent economic management.