Unemployment at a 20 year high! Why give jobs away?

Kay Brereton from the Beneficiary Advocacy Federation of NZ says that “The Government needs to step up and help New Zealanders in these tough times. Unemployment is at it's highest this century and the governments response is to reform welfare.”

“The Welfare reforms are framed on the premise that the unemployed are not trying hard enough to find jobs. The reality is regular redundancies and businesses closing, employers posting signs outside saying 'sorry no jobs'. The reality is families struggling to pay the rent, to pay the power and to put food on the table.”

“We are told that things are being made easier for employers and that will create jobs, we are told that the rebuild of Christchurch will create jobs, in fact even our seasonal work is not available for the unemployed.”

“With over 400,000 unemployed how can the government justify giving work to overseas workers under the Recognised Seasonal Employer Scheme? Up to 8,000 workers may come into New Zealand this year to work in horticulture and viticulture. Whilst this scheme surely has great benefits for the workers, and their home countries, is it a luxury we can afford while our workers are under and unemployed? “

“These workers are already arriving, this is not about a labour shortage for horticultural and viticultural work, this is about being able to offer poor wages and working conditions to unskilled temporary migrant labour.”

© Scoop Media

Gordon Campbell: On The 2013 Budget

Among Thursday’s main talking points:

We are apparently on track for a margin-of-error $75 million surplus, now in sight for 2014/15. But this sickly creature is hobbling out of the lab on the basis of all kinds of facilitative conjuring: such as trimming by $200 million the amount of new spending next time around.

With this strictly nominal surplus in sight, the 1984-ish justification for eternal austerity will have a news talisman: namely, getting Crown debt down to 20% of GDP by 2020. More>>

Budget Report, Lockup Audio & Images: Budget Day 2013 As always and especially after the managerial mishaps of the past few weeks and months, (e.g. Aaron Gilmore, the Mighty River Power share float, the GCSB mishaps) Budget Day 2013 was always going to be a pageant of reassurance... More>>

Budget 2013 Comment: Plain Sailing, But It's No America's Cup Pattrick Smellie: Compared to the last four budgets, this year's reflects an economy moving out of recession and into calmer waters... Yet if the fastest annual growth rate we can expect over the next two years is 3 percent - with the Christchurch rebuild in full swing - then you'd have to say New Zealand's underlying low-growth problem is far from fixed. More>>

Auckland Discord: Govt’s Power Hungry Housing Approach A Threat - Labour

Last week the Government said this, ‘The Government commits not to use any proposed or existing powers ... to override the council's planning and consenting processes’. But its housing Bill says this; ‘If an accord cannot be reached in an area of severe housing unaffordability, the Government can intervene by establishing special housing areas and issuing consents for developers’. More>>

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Extending Protest Ban, Relaxing Permit Rules: Govt Abuses Urgency To Extend Anadarko Amendment

The Government is trying to pass legislation under urgency which would make the Anadarko Amendment – which limits protest at sea – apply to an additional 1.7 million square kilometres, the Green Party said today. More>>

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• Parliament Today - Parliament Resumes To Pass Budget Bills
• Labour - Government to extend protest ban
• Greenpeace NZ - Oil Companies Lacking ‘Expertise’ and ‘Financial Ability’ Set to Be Handed Drilling Permits
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