17 July 2015 MEDIA STATEMENT

Come on Tolley, show us the jobs

The Social Development Minister has once again failed to provide evidence supporting the Government’s claims a fall in benefit numbers is due to beneficiaries finding work, Labour’s Social Development spokesperson Carmel Sepuloni says.

“Anne Tolley’s today touting the fact there’s been a 2.8 per cent drop in the number of people on benefits in the past year.

“What she conveniently fails to mention is the reasons for why these people have come off the benefit.

“Recent data showed only about 20 per cent of those who are no longer on their benefit went into work. On top of this, the Government considers just a few hours employment as moving into work.

“These people are not in work. These people – and their families – are being penalised by a punitive system more interested in making the Government look good than actually finding people jobs.

“Even worse, the Government is now holding back information requested by Labour and due yesterday which would have detailed benefit cancellations and the reasons for them.

“The Government had also committed to releasing benefit cancellation numbers with the quarterly benefit figures but failed to do so today. They are clearly holding this information back because it does not suit their agenda.

“If Anne Tolley wants the public to buy National’s line that beneficiaries are finding work, she needs to show us the jobs,” Carmel Sepuloni says.

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