|
BUDGET SPECIAL
|
|
|
Initiatives Relevant to our Policy Focus Areas |
|
|
Older People
Universal Superannuation continues to be the key investment in the budget for older New Zealanders. Updates to Superannuation occured with the annual CPI adjustment announced in April.
Other announcements of interest to those engaging with older people:
No more prescription fees
The cost of healthcare will be reduced with the removal of the $5 co-payment for prescription medicines from July this year.
A logical extension of this for the 2024 budget would be the removal of costs associated with accessing recurring prescriptions.
Total Mobility discounts made permanent
This scheme provides bespoke transport for people who cannot use public transport because they have a disability. As announced in December, the 50% discount has now been made permanent.
Though welcome, there is still a need to address the management of the system nationwide to ensure equitable access
Expansion of Warmer Kiwi Homes
For those that do own and live in their own homes there is both expansion and additions to the Warmer Kiwi Homes Programme. As well as applying for subsidies for underfloor/ceiling insulation or additional heating, LED light bulbs and energy efficient hot water heaters can now also be applied for.
Increase to minimum wage for support workers
As expected, funding to meet an agreed 3 percent minimum wage increase for the health and disability sector support workers has been included outside of the multi-year health spending announced in last year’s budget.
Community Connectors
Continuation of short-term funding for approximately 100 Community Connectors (until the end of 2025). Some of you will also have noticed under the tranche of funding for North Island weather events that funding for primary, community and residential care services to the population affected continues through to 2024 (more here).
You can read more directly from the Ministry for Social Development here
5-12 year olds
As per previous years, funding targeted at 5-12 year olds is delivered mainly through the education portfolio.
This year also sees investment in expected new government structures, being the establishment of the Independent Children’s Monitor and the Children & Young People’s Commission.
For service providers, of interest will be cost pressure increase noted to Partner provided services provided via Oranga Tamariki. Further detail is yet to be announced.
Other announcements of interest to those engaging with 5-12 year olds:
Equitable Digital Access Extension
This initiative provides funding to continue free home internet access for up to 18,000 student households until June 2024.
Free Public Transport for under 13s
Free fares on buses, trains and ferries for children aged 5-12 starts on July 1st this year. Passengers aged 13-24 will have half price discounts. There has also been government investment in a dependable public transport network to increase reliability.
Free school Lunches continuing
The Ka Ora, Ka Ako| Healthy School lunch programme that provides daily school lunches to approximately 220,000 students at 987 schools will continue until the end of 2024.
Learning Support Modifications to School Buildings
Funding for the purchase and installation of special needs modifications in schools, including automatic doors, lifts, fencing, hoists, and bathroom modifications over a period of two years. This is in response to a 190% increase in demand from 2016 for such modifications.
Kāhui Ako|Communities of Learning
We note that the budget only confirms funding for the Communities of Learning established in 2014 as part of the Investing in Educational Success “system change” and supporting collaboration between Early Childhood, Primary and Secondary schools until the end of this year. We look forward to sharing further details about this as we learn more.
North Island Weather Events: Mental Health and Wellbeing Response
Funding for locally led, community-based mental wellbeing initiatives to meet the psychosocial care need for populations in areas affected by the North Island weather events, including Māori, Pacific peoples and youth.
This includes funding of $3.747 million for the mental wellbeing support for primary and intermediate school-aged students through the expansion of the Mana Ake – Stronger for Tomorrow programme into Hawke’s Bay and Tairāwhiti.
North Island Weather Events: Special Reasons Staffing and Funding
Funding for immediate assistance to support staff in schools and kura impacted by the North Island weather events. This funding can be used to employ relief staff, provide teaching/principal release time, support ākonga with engagement and wellbeing, or employ additional teachers for those schools that have experienced increased enrolment due to enrolling ākonga from cyclone-affected areas.
Tax, the Economy & the Cost of Living
We note multiple initiatives funded, grown or enhanced in relation to career support. These include increasing workforce, tools and reach of these services both in our community and in our schools.
Other announcements of interest to those supporting New Zealanders around the challenges of the cost of living, tax and the economy:
Ending the Minimum Wage Exemption
Following through on their 2019 promise, this budget announced the removal of the discriminatory Minimum Wage Exemption. This allowed disabled employees to be paid less than the minimum wage through the provision of wage supplements to employers. (Link to MSD fact sheet here)
We welcome the recognition that disabled workers deserve to be paid at least the minimum wage. However, ethically we believe this could have been achieved without a wage supplement. Our preference would have been the removal of the exemption, with employers meeting the responsibility of valuing and upholding the mana of disabled employees in the workplace.
Also it is worth noting that this does not come into effect until mid 2025.
Training Incentive Allowance – Supporting Eligible People to Study
A welcome return of the Training Incentive Allowance (TIA) to support higher-level study (more here). The TIA provides non-taxable financial assistance to sole parents, disabled people (including those with significant health conditions), and their carers to help them participate in study.
Grocery Industry Competition – Regulatory Regime
We were excited to see funding for the Commerce Commission to monitor the grocery industry and to undertake reporting and enforcement roles in relation to anticipated legislation regulating the grocery industry. This follows submissions and feedback we provided on behalf of our members expressing a number of concerns.
A Grocery Commissioner will be appointed in the Commerce Commission to lead this role. The anticipated Grocery Industry Competition Act is intended to support competition, fair trading, and transparency in the grocery industry for the long-term benefit of consumers.
|
Post Budget Perspectives
Targeted support welcome but projects need securing for ‘long-term’
We echo the reflections shared by Save the Children advocacy director Jacqui Southey, The Salvation Army’s Ian Hutson and SSPA chief executive Dr Claire Achmad that though many of the announcements were positive, there is a real need for sustainable, long-term investment.
In the RNZ article Dr Achmad continues: The time-limited nature of the funding did not create at stable long-term investment for those vulnerable groups and for social services, and that “there are some notable gaps in investment,” particularly when it came to helping low-income families and whānau.
“The community-based social services sector has been inequitably and under-funded for decades. In line with the times we are in, where more people are having to turn to social services for help this really needed to be the Budget that finally made a significant commitment to sustainable, long-term funding for community-based social services. This would have helped both now and intergenerationally.”
Click HERE to read the full RNZ Article
Your Budget ‘Receipt’
The last week has seen commentary that New Zealanders deserve a ‘receipt’ to see where their tax dollars go. Political Commentator Henry Cook has broken down what this could look like.
We found particularly interesting his breakdown of both the wider tax take across all portfolios, and his deep dive into the social security and welfare portfolio. Like many, we often find ourselves in discussions relating to assistance to people on lower incomes. We find having that context around the breakdown of our commitment to social security helps.
The article shares “...superannuation is far away and the biggest benefit, costing the median taxpayer roughly $1600 [each]. This single benefit costs more than every other area of Government spending other than health and education“. In ensuring that our older citizens are afforded universality of income, we affirm our values of a compassionate society. However, we have some way to go before our social security spend on children and families returns to that lost in the 1990’s.
Click HERE to read the full blog.
Initiatives Related to the Wider Social Services Sector
Service Provision
Building Financial Capability – Cost Pressure
Funding for Building Financial Capability providers to deliver a suite of financial advice services. It will allow providers to continue to deliver core services and debt services, including microfinance, at current levels in 2023/24 and at a lower level from 1 July 2024.
You can read more about this here.
Community Connectors – Addressing Unmet Need in the Community
Funding for approximately 100 Community Connectors for two years to provide short-term support to individuals and whānau to prevent and reduce the impacts of hardship. Connectors will support and advocate for those they work with until they are connected with appropriate services.
You can read more about this here.
Food Secure Communities – Cost Pressure
Funding for a further two years of Food Secure Communities for the community food sector, ensuring access to affordable, healthy, and culturally appropriate food. Specifically, it will help maintain community food distribution infrastructure, as well as supporting food security initiatives, such as social enterprises and māra kai.
You can read more about this here.
Growing a Diverse and Resilient Social Sector
Funding to establish contestable funds to help strengthen the capability, resilience, and diversity of the social sector by funding community, provider, and sector groups, especially those that work with Māori, Pacific and other ethnic communities.
We are actively seeking more information on this funding tranche. Here is a link to what we know today.
Te Aorerekura
Budget 2023 funds and reinforces Te Aorerekura’s priorities. It builds on last year’s Budget, which focused on prevention and community-led solutions, and spans access to family violence
programmes for victims/survivors, and users of violence. It covers community responses, and supports victims/survivors, improving their ability to get the help they need when they need it.
Te Aorerekura – Family Dispute Resolution – Child Participation Cost
Funding to support the Family Dispute Resolution service to provide children who are the subject of a dispute an opportunity to participate in decisions affecting them. This funding supports eight new Child Specialist FTEs and the development of best practice guidance, policies, and tools for supporting and protecting the children of parents involved in disputes.
Te Aorerekura – Court Support Service for Tamariki and Rangatahi Sexual Violence Witnesses
Funding to establish a new dedicated psycho-social court support service for tamariki and rangatahi witnesses (including primary complainants and any other witnesses to a crime) in sexual violence proceedings across Aotearoa. Psychosocial support aims to address emotional, mental, spiritual and social needs. The service will address a gap in specialist court support to reduce retraumatisation, better enable the healing of young survivors and reduce the intergenerational effects of family and sexual violence.
|
Pacific PeoplesFunding for Pacific People’s seems targetted in two specific areas – being enterprise initiatives and data insights. Pacific Businesses – Supporting Growth, Resilience and Sustainability Pacific Community Resilience and Wellbeing Fund Pacific Data and Digital Inclusion HousingPublic Housing Supply – Additional 3,000 places Transitional Housing – Extension Ministry of Housing and Urban Development – Organisation Support Services Property Provider Management System We are actively seeking more information on this funding tranche.
|
|