Key Points:
Prime Minister Christopher Lacson said he had not personally discussed the government’s benefit changes with jobseekers.
The government announced yesterday that it would impose new sanctions on beneficiaries who do not meet their obligations.
“We have a welfare safety net and we want to make sure people have support in difficult times. That’s really important to all New Zealanders and of course it’s important to the Government,” Mr Luxon told the Breakfast News this morning.
He stressed that yesterday’s measures were focused on Jobseeker’s Support recipients.
“Put single parents and welfare payments aside because they are completely different things.”
“Their job is actually to look for work and do whatever they can and their duties are fairly light,” he said of New Zealanders on unemployment benefit.
“They say: Prepare your resume, go in for an interview, speak to your case manager, attend an interview.
“(The majority of) people are really obedient and fulfill their duties perfectly.
“However, there is a small number of people who do not actually comply with these obligations.”
Asked if he had spoken to beneficiaries about the changes, Lacson said, “I haven’t spoken to them personally.”
“But this has been our policy since before the election and we’ve just said it’s about fairness, rights and responsibilities.”
“That’s the deal we have with each other in New Zealand.”
“A series of escalations”
Lacson said the “vast majority” of job seekers will be in the green zone of the new traffic light system.
“If you don’t follow the rules, don’t fulfill your obligations, don’t turn up for an interview, don’t have your CV ready, whatever it may be, after you’ve been prompted you move on to a stage called Amber.
“Then, once you get in the red and you’re in the red, certainly there’s a series of increased sanctions, you could be put into receivership, you could lose half your benefits or you could lose all of them.”
These measures are meant to provide jobs to job seekers, he added.
“It’s fundamentally good for them, their families and their futures.”
“We’re talking here about Jobseeker’s Benefit recipients who are deemed able, able and should be working.”
Asked if he should have told benefit recipients about the changes, the Premier said Social Development Minister Louise Upston and her department had met with jobseekers.
“But if you take a step back and think about it, we’re focusing on a very small minority of people who are not actually meeting their obligations,” he said. “We want to put people to work. That’s what this policy is about.”
“This isn’t about punishing or sanctioning people who can’t get the job, it’s about doing everything you can to prepare yourself to get the job and taking your responsibilities seriously.”
“Pain and misery” – opposition parties respond
Labour said the approach was “punitive” and the Greens said it would inflict “pain and misery” on poor people.
Labour leader Chris Hipkins said the government’s announcement showed a “willingness to kick vulnerable people down the throats”.
“They’d rather attack welfare recipients than actually focus on job creation, economic growth and getting people into good, high-paying jobs. They don’t have a plan for that.”
“People have the right to live in dignity and to receive support in times of need,” said Ricardo Menendez Marci, the Green party’s spokesman for social development and employment.
He said the government had “shown little ambition or interest” in tackling poverty.
Auckland Anti-Poverty spokesperson Brooke Pao-Stanley told RNZ’s Morning Report the sanctions were ineffective and caused more harm than good.
“This will make things even worse for people who are already stressed and communities who are on the edge, and it’s just unjust.”
“I think the barrier is the work-and-income culture. I think the barrier is the priority that society places on people getting work, and often working in work that doesn’t mean anything to them.”
