12. JACINDA ARDERN (Labour) Link to this
to the Minister for Social Development and Employment
How many people were recorded as looking for work in the latest household labour force survey and what was the figure in December 2008?
Hon PAULA BENNETT (Minister for Social Development and Employment) Link to this
According to the household labour force survey, the number of people unemployed in the December quarter of 2008 was 106,000; in December 2010 that number was 158,000.
Does she stand by her comment that “Slow recovery fits Government focus on economy”, which she made in her statement announcing the latest increase in benefit numbers?
Hon PAULA BENNETT Link to this
The member has taken a selected part of a comment that was made. I am saying that it has been—[ Interruption]
Mr SPEAKERI apologise to the Minister. The Minister was asked a question, and the Minister is answering that question. I want to hear the answer, and there is an unreasonable level of interjection from the Opposition.
Hon PAULA BENNETT Link to this
We are saying that it is a bumpy road out. Actually, the unemployment rate had started to climb a year before this Government took the Treasury benches. In December 2007 it was at 3.4 percent, but in December 2008 it was at 4.6 percent, and that had not been recognised in initiatives either.
Does she also stand by her statement that “there’s just not as many jobs out there for the people that want them”; if so, can she advise the House how many jobs her Government has actively created?
Hon PAULA BENNETT Link to this
I can say that obviously more people are looking for work than there are jobs available for them, otherwise we would not see the unemployment rate as it is. But we have also seen a number of new vacancies coming into Work and Income, and more than ever have been coming in because of the work it is doing. The labour market is still moving. When it comes to job creation, it is actually businesses that do that creation, not Governments, and it is businesses that we are supporting.
Tim MacindoeHon PAULA BENNETT Link to this
Thanks to the awesome efforts of Work and Income, I can report that in the past 2 years more than 136,000 people cancelled their benefits because they had found work, and 113,000 new vacancies came into Work and Income. It also has increased the triage rate so people are not going on to benefits. Waiting times have been reduced. Its work has been pretty awesome.
What percentage of 15 to 19-year-olds was recorded as looking for work in the latest household labour force survey?
Hon PAULA BENNETT Link to this
I am sorry; I cannot remember that number completely off the top of my head. Youth unemployment fell, though, from 18.4 percent to 16.8 percent for the year 2010.
Does she believe that youth unemployment in New Zealand is unacceptably high, at 25 percent for 15 to 19-year-olds; if so, can she share with the House any new initiatives she is developing to address youth unemployment, when, in spite of Job Ops, one in four school-leavers is leaving unemployed?
Hon PAULA BENNETT Link to this
We also saw in the most recent household labour force survey that the number of youth not in employment, education, or training had fallen to 9.8 percent. Many young people are staying in school longer or are going into tertiary education—6,900 more people in tertiary, according to those figures. We saw unemployment fall from 18.4 percent to 16.8 percent. We also saw for the year of 2010 that youth employment rose by 5,400. So 5,400 more young people were in work over the year 2010.
I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. I acknowledge that there were two parts to my question, and the Minister could have chosen to answer either: whether she believed youth unemployment was unacceptably high, or what new initiatives her Government was working on. She chose to address neither of those questions.
Hon Simon PowerGiven your previous ruling earlier today, Mr Speaker, the problem is actually not in the answer; it is in the question. It asked the Minister what she believes.
Of course, when Ministers are asked for opinions it does not mean they can ignore the question totally; they are still expected to answer. But there is no precise answer to a question about an opinion. I did not pull the Minister up, because I believed that with respect to the second part of the question, the Minister was emphasising initiatives around tertiary education, which were in her view taking up some young unemployed people. Whether that is correct or not, the member may wish to question the Minister further on in the next sitting day. But to argue that the Minister did not answer the question at all is, I think, a bit of a long bow, right now.
I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. Just to clarify, when asking about initiatives I asked about any new initiatives the Government was working on to address the new statistics around youth unemployment.
So that the House can make progress, I invite the Minister to identify any new initiatives that may be focused on reducing youth unemployment. The question, I accept, was whether the Minister considers the youth unemployment level unacceptably high, and what new initiatives there are. So I invite the Minister to comment on that, please.
Hon PAULA BENNETT Link to this
There have been close initiatives going on between the tertiary education sector and the Ministry of Social Development. We have also seen Community Max, which has been increased into those areas that are most in need. In the Budget last year we also saw an extension of the Job Ops initiatives that were going on there as well. There has been a keen focus, and $1 million extra went into South Auckland, particularly looking at young Pacific Islanders. We are seeing results from that as well. But the results speak for themselves. As I said, youth employment rose by 5,400 people last year.