People

A budget for the people 

For all New Zealand there has been a focus on health and education, and the expected and needed benefit increases:

Health - Funding boosts for

• Pharmac - $200m (many may argue this is well short of the apparent need) 
• DHBs - $2.7b (a sizeable and needed increase) 
• Primary Health care - $47m (supporting GPs and the like) 

One of the cornerstones of a first world economy, health funding has always been a hard one to get right, with frustrations of long waiting lists, overworked and underpaid health professionals. BDO Partner, Rachel Shoebridge explains - “The implementation of health and disability reform will be a key focus in the next 12 months. This will include a single health organisation that will replace the current 20 DHBs and over 30 PHOs. The desired outcome being consistent and equitable care across the country and reduced complexity of the health system. A massive job ahead!” 

Education

• Building and upgrading more schools - $634m 
• Reforming early learning - $100m 
• Improving pay parity -$170m 
• Improving access to Out of School Care 

Education is the key to a growing and developing a country, we need this to survive. 

Benefits

• Weekly benefits increased between $32 and $55 per adult 
• Increase in student living support ($25 per week) on 1 April 2022 
• All benefits up by $20 per week from 1 July 2021 

This increases income among those struggling the most. As always will it be far enough, given accommodation and living costs, but a step forward for child poverty?