Opposition parties are urging the Government to make sure children don't suffer because of welfare reforms which put pressure on beneficiaries to return to work.The reforms, announced yesterday by Prime Minister John Key and Social Development Minister Pa
Opposition parties are urging the Government to make sure children don't suffer because of welfare reforms which put pressure on beneficiaries to return to work.
The reforms, announced yesterday by Prime Minister John Key and Social Development Minister Paula Bennett, involve more active management of long-term beneficiaries and require them to reapply every 12 months.
They bring in sanctions such as benefit cuts to those who don't genuinely attempt to find work or train for it, as well as more rigorous assessments of sickness beneficiaries by shortening the period between medical checks.
Procedures for those who repeatedly receive hardship grants have been tightened, and there are new obligations for domestic purposes beneficiaries with children over six to find part-time work.
Labour leader Phil Goff said he was concerned that innocent children might suffer.
"We can't have children growing up in this country hungry, ill-housed and ill-looked after because of the sins of their parents," he said.
Maori Party welfare spokesman Te Ururoa Flavell was also concerned about the effects of the reforms on children.
"We don't think the children of unemployed people should be penalised, and under these new changes there is a suspicion that might happen," he said.
Labour, and the Green Party, said the Government was trying to force people into jobs when there weren't enough jobs to go around.
Mr Goff said the focus was in the wrong place and the Government should be trying to create jobs.
He said people were desperate for work and earlier this year 3500 had lined up for 150 low-paid jobs.
"Unemployment has trebled in this country, not because people don't want to work but because the jobs aren't there," he said.
Green Party co-leader Metiria Turei described the reforms as "incredibly harmful and unhelpful".
"There are already strict rules about looking for work while on the benefit," she said.
"There simply aren't enough jobs for people to go to. Making people reapply for the benefit after one year, and trying to move sick and disabled people into non-existent jobs will achieve nothing and cause further harm."
