Wed, 07 July 2004

Media Release

Ministry Data Shows Sharp Increase In Dpb Numbers July 7, 2004

Answers to United Future's Parliamentary Question 2899 show that 119,293 people were receiving the DPB at July 1, 2004.

"This is significantly higher than we have previously been led to believe," said Lindsay Mitchell, petitioner for a Parliamentary review of the DPB.

"The Ministry of Social Development's Fact Sheet for March 2004 gave a figure of 108,569. Although that figure did not include 583 sixteen and seventeen year-olds, who fall outside of the working age definition, that difference alone does not explain this huge discrepancy."

"How on earth is the Ministry to assess the effectiveness of its new 'social development' approach when its own data is so erratic?" Mrs Mitchell asked.

"Can the Associate Minister for Social Development and Employment, Rick Barker, please explain what is going on?"

ENDS

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