More Claim Social Development Benefits During May
Latest numbers show 27,243 more people received a benefit in May, compared to the year before.
The Ministry of Social Development's monthly update shows the number of people on a benefit in New Zealand rose by just over seven percent to 403,311 in that time.
The unemployment rate is 5.1 percent.
Most of the increase is due to people accessing JobSeeker support - there was an 11 percent rise of just over 21,000, to a total 213,831.
In May, 9.5 percent more people found work, compared to the same time last year, but eight percent more benefits were cancelled than a year ago - a total of just over 6000 - for other reasons, including sanctions.
The Government aims to reduce the number of people on the Jobseeker Support benefit by 50,000 by 2030, introducing a traffic-light system and new non-financial sanctions, and changing the re-application for job seekers to every six months, instead of each year.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
1News
8 hours ago
- 1News
Ruth Richardson calls for super age hike, warns of fiscal 'crisis'
Former finance minister Ruth Richardson has called for an increase in the retirement age, warning New Zealand faces a balance sheet crisis without urgent action. The newly appointed chairperson of the Taxpayers' Union, a right-wing political lobby group, told Q+A that government debt needed addressing. "We need to control our spending appetite, we need to bring debt under control, and we need to restore New Zealand's books to a state of fiscal responsibility," Richardson said. "From a central government perspective, it's clear that we have a crisis, and the crisis is looming — as it is in many other countries in the West, we're not alone." The architect of the 1991 "Mother Of All Budgets" said the Government should follow her previous reforms that raised the superannuation eligibility age from 60 to 65. ADVERTISEMENT "On my watch, we increased the age of eligibility from 60 to 65, with near a mutter. It was done as part of a broader package of reforms to put New Zealand on a sounder footing, and we need to do the same again," she said. "We should have a superannuation age of eligibility, just like the electoral boundaries. You just adjust it for — in this case — the data that tells you about the age of longevity." Richardson, who became aligned with ACT after retiring from politics, criticised the coalition government for ultimately committing billions more in spending at Budget 2025. She said: "We're starting to swamp education spending, we're starting to swamp defence spending — that is not defensible. We need a credible deficit track. "At the moment, we've got fiction. What we want is fact, and fact is going to require some pretty hard decisions taken about the issues... starting with superannuation." Ruth Richardson (Source: Supplied) She also rejected the characterisation that the country had a lack of funding for infrastructure, saying instead that too much money was being spent on "vanity projects" at the local government level. ADVERTISEMENT Finance Minister Nicola Willis has previously rejected suggestions she had broken an election promise to return to surplus by 2027. It was despite Treasury forecasts now showing a return to surplus wouldn't occur until 2029 under the Government's preferred accounting measure known as OBEGALx. By the traditional measure, known as OBEGAL, New Zealand wasn't expected to return to surplus until the 2030s at the earliest. OBEGALx excluded the costs of ACC. Richardson also advocated for asset sales, suggesting the Government should sell state-owned enterprises, including power companies, Landcorp and commercial broadcaster TVNZ — which she said was "probably worth a dollar". Richardson steadfast on views nearly 35 years on Speaking on Q+A, Richardson, who was recently made a companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the King's Birthday Honours, defended her 1990s reforms after being presented with poverty statistics showing persistent increases following her Budget cuts. When presented with data showing child poverty rates grown significantly after her reforms and never ultimately corrected, Richardson defended herself, saying doing nothing in her time would have been "the most immoral option". ADVERTISEMENT "We took our courage in our hands and did the right thing, and the economy prospered. You're not putting up the stats that showed the rise in growth, the rise in employment, the halving of the debt and putting the books back into balance," she said. "If you were balanced, you'd be showing those statistics." She added: "The real poverty was New Zealand's if we had done nothing. If we had done nothing, then New Zealand would have most certainly faced the crisis that the Labour government did in the mid-'80s. And in a crisis, the people who are hurt most are the poorest people, the people on the bottom of the rung." For the full interview, watch the video above Q+A with Jack Tame is made with the support of New Zealand On Air
Scoop
11 hours ago
- Scoop
More Claim Social Development Benefits During May
Latest numbers show 27,243 more people received a benefit in May, compared to the year before. The Ministry of Social Development's monthly update shows the number of people on a benefit in New Zealand rose by just over seven percent to 403,311 in that time. The unemployment rate is 5.1 percent. Most of the increase is due to people accessing JobSeeker support - there was an 11 percent rise of just over 21,000, to a total 213,831. In May, 9.5 percent more people found work, compared to the same time last year, but eight percent more benefits were cancelled than a year ago - a total of just over 6000 - for other reasons, including sanctions. The Government aims to reduce the number of people on the Jobseeker Support benefit by 50,000 by 2030, introducing a traffic-light system and new non-financial sanctions, and changing the re-application for job seekers to every six months, instead of each year.
Scoop
11 hours ago
- Scoop
Australian Foreign Buyer Ban Creates Vacuum For NZ To Attract Billions In Investment
Press Release – Paterson Luxury An Australian ban on foreign buyers purchasing residential property will create a unique opportunity for New Zealand to secure billions in investment, according to a property expert. Under legislation introduced by the Australian Government, foreign buyers will be prohibited from purchasing established residential dwellings from 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2027. Caleb Paterson, founder of Paterson Luxury Real Estate, says new regulations will create a vacuum for foreign buyers which New Zealand is perfectly placed to fill. He says New Zealand is at risk of missing out on billions in foreign investment as uncertainty lingers around changes to residential property rules for overseas buyers. Paterson warns that international investors are already shifting their focus to countries with clearer pathways like the UAE due to a lack of commitment from the New Zealand Government. 'We've had deals collapse because investors couldn't buy a home to settle here first. That's an avoidable failure of policy. Meanwhile, in places like Dubai, capital is being welcomed and economies are booming because of it.' 'New Zealand has a unique combination of political stability, natural beauty and a lifestyle that's incredibly appealing to global investors. They're not just looking to park capital, they want a safe, long-term base for their families and their businesses. What's missing is a clear pathway for them to invest and if we don't act they'll go elsewhere. We are talking about an investment in the billions right when the economy needs it most. 'I'm dealing with ultra-high-net-worth clients from China, Canada, the US and the UK who are currently sitting on the fence. They want to invest here not just in homes, but in businesses, developments, the tech sector and other industries but they're not going to do that while the rules remain unclear.' According to Paterson, New Zealand's current foreign buyer restrictions are holding back an estimated hundreds of millions in immediate capital. He says potential buyers are ready to move fast if the Government opens the door to offshore investment in the high-end residential sector. 'We're talking about people with serious capital including a $4 billion syndicate from Taiwan, developers with $70 million commercial projects sitting ready and expats and migrants waiting to buy homes, set up companies and inject money into our economy,' he says. 'I recently had someone trying to bring in a major international coffee roasting brand, but they couldn't get a foothold here because they couldn't buy a family home first to get settled,' he says. Paterson says Canada's proposed wealth tax and political uncertainty in the US are further accelerating interest in New Zealand as a safe haven but with countries like the UAE offering clearer visa and investment pathways, many would-be Kiwi investors are going elsewhere. 'I've got clients telling me they'll take their money to Dubai where they know what the rules are. There's no shortage of appealing alternatives,' he says. Paterson says last year, 40% of luxury listings were withdrawn from the market often because vendors were waiting for regulatory changes that never came. He says the result is a stagnant high-end market that's hurting not only vendors, but the broader economy. The consequences stretch beyond real estate. Paterson says baby boomers trying to downsize are unable to sell, holding up cash that could be reinvested into retirement, small business or intergenerational wealth transfer. 'Everyone's being impacted, even high-net-worth individuals who are less agile right now. This winter will be our coldest yet, metaphorically. People can't keep borrowing to stay afloat and we're going to see more financial strain. 'This isn't about pitying someone in a $15 million home. It's about what happens when they can't sell, builders aren't contracted and tradespeople sit idle. The wealth isn't circulating and the economy suffers. 'I'm probably one of the few people in the country who speaks to around 20 high-net-worth individuals a day. These people are worth $4 to $5 million or more on paper but right now every single one of them is feeling pressure. It's not just one or two outliers; across the board, I'm hearing stories of business strain, stalled investments and uncertainty. 'Unless you're a billionaire, people are navigating real challenges. We need a solution that gets capital flowing again, not just for their sake, but for the broader economy that depends on that investment.' 'Outside of Auckland and Queenstown, opening the door to high-value international buyers would also unlock stalled developments in regions like Northland, the Bay of Plenty, and Central Otago. These are areas where investment could mean hundreds of new homes, jobs for local tradies, and real economic momentum outside the main centres.' Paterson says if the Budget introduces a clear minimum threshold for foreign residential investment, there would be a flood of listings and a spike in transactions within days. 'Even if international buyers were allowed back into the market tomorrow, we wouldn't see a spike in prices straight away. There's a significant backlog of unsold high-end stock, it could take 12 to 18 months just to clear that. What we'd see first is volume returning, not price pressure. And that's exactly what the market needs right now – movement. 'I could quadruple my sales volume in a month. We have listings ready to go, marketing prepared, and global agents waiting. 'The economic impact would be almost immediate with millions of dollars in real estate value unlocked we just need the green light,' he says. Without that certainty, Paterson warns the country risks not just missing out on capital but undermining its appeal as a long-term investment destination. 'We've got the lifestyle and the stability investors want. Now we just need to show them that we're open for business before they go elsewhere.'
