“We don’t begrudge New Zealanders for needing a benefit, but it isn’t a good look when National have raved about getting tough on beneficiaries, only to have numbers soar on their watch,” Labour’s social development spokesperson Carmel Sepuloni said.
“We have almost 30,000 more people on a main benefit, more than 22,000 receiving Jobseeker Support. What doesn’t make sense is that hardship assistance has decreased even though beneficiaries have skyrocketed under National compared to when there were fewer beneficiaries and more hardship assistance during the same period last year.
“Times are hard and yet the Government has chosen not to support services like food banks, with some now closing their doors to hungry families because of National’s choices.
“Louise Upston has continued to ignore advice from her officials to the detriment of struggling Kiwis. Most recently, she went against advice and is preventing beneficiaries with non-financial sanctions from accessing hardship assistance, like food grants.
“When you’re cutting thousands of jobs, restricting access to MSD food grants, and then denying food banks the funding they need to support families – how do you expect vulnerable families to feed themselves?
“It’s been a year since the election and New Zealand is going backwards. Unemployment is on the rise and naturally, so are benefit numbers.
“The Government must take responsibility for its failings and actually support New Zealanders during this tough time, rather than kicking them while they’re down,” Carmel Sepuloni said.