• $30 Million Interest Written Off Student Loans
• Budget 2001: Towards A Stronger Economy And Society
• Improving Care And Protection Services
• Children's Commissioner
• Building Stronger Communities
• New Zealand Health Strategy
• Sustainable Health Funding
• Education Priorities Targeted
• Tertiary Education Commission To Be Set Up
• Building Skills For The Knowledge Society
• Budget 2001 At A Glance
• Harvesting Tairawhiti's Wall-of-wood
• Polytechnic Working Parties Established
• Partnerships For Jobs
• Non-resident Spouses Bill

$30 MILLION INTEREST WRITTEN OFF STUDENT LOANS
Around 60,000 student loan borrowers will receive statements this week detailing their share of a $30 million student loan interest write-off. The letters from Inland Revenue confirm the first interest write-offs to occur under the 'no-interest-while-studying' policy introduced by the Labour-Alliance Government.

Over the course of this week Inland Revenue expects to advise 60,000 students who studied full-time last year that they have saved up to $30 million in interest charges. For a borrower with the average student loan of $12,883 this will mean a write-off of approximately $900 in interest charges which would otherwise have been added to their loan. Actual figures for full-time students will be available in June.

These are the first interest write-offs to occur this year and will apply to students who studied full-time last year. Part-time low-income students (those earning under $24,596 for the year to 31 March 2001) are also eligible and will receive their write-offs in June.

Associate Education (Tertiary Education) Minister Steve Maharey said the interest write-offs fulfil a key election pledge. Student debt grew out of control over the 1990s and was a major election issue durig the 1999 campaign. The 'no-interest-while-studying' policy stops interest accumulating on loans while students study and reduces significantly the total interest bill they will face over the life of the loan.

All student loan borrowers will start receiving statements from Inland Revenue on Monday 28 May and the mailing will be completed by Thursday 31 May.

There is no time limit to apply for an interest write-off if you are eligible. If you haven't provided Inland Revenue with your correct details or you forgot to apply you can do so at any stage in the future simply by contacting the Department.

Eligible part-time students will have their interest written off in late June following confirmation by Inland Revenue of their income last year. Approximately 20,000 part-time students have applied for an interest write-off to date.

* if you haven't received your statement and you were expecting one, or if you have any other questions, contact Inland Revenue by phoning 0800 257 999 or visit the IRD website at www.ird.govt.nz

BUDGET 2001: TOWARDS A STRONGER ECONOMY AND SOCIETY
"Budget 2001 is another important step in the building of a stronger economy and society for all New Zealanders. Alongside the policies providing the momentum behind the Labour-Alliance Government's programme to transform our economy we have also recognised that there are still pressing social problems to be addressed.

We are putting more money into key areas like health, education, and Child, Youth and Family Services, and capacity building programmes within Maori and Pacific Island communities.

This special issue of Maharey Notes outlines the initiatives taken across the social sector - in social services and employment, health, education and housing.

The initiatives announced in the Budget will help build a nation which is confident, progressive, more prosperous, and which cares for its people." - - Steve Maharey

* Budget 2001 is available on-line. The full Budget speech and Minister's Budget statements can be found on the Government website at www.executive.govt.nz/budget2001/

IMPROVING CARE AND PROTECTION SERVICES
The budget delivers a substantial funding boost to the Department of Child, Youth and Family Services reflecting the high priority the Government assigns to the care and protection of at-risk children and young people.

CYFS will receive an additional $184.4 million over the next four years to implement the recommendations of Mick Brown's report, Care and Protection is about Adult Behaviour. The Department's change plan, New Directions, to be released next month, will set milestones for lifting the Department's performance.

Specifics of the package include:

• the establishment of dedicated mobile response teams to deal to the backlog of unallocated cases;
• funding to meet anticipated significant growth in the demand for care services for at-risk children and young people;
• improvements in care management, and the hiring of more social workers;
• funding to provide and develop services for children with high and complex needs; and,
• funds to build and operate new purpose-built residences for the care of young people with particular conditions such as conduct disorder.

The Government is to legislate to introduce a system of professional registration for social workers this year. A Registration Board will be set up this year to develop the registration process. It is expected that the Board will become self-funding from registration fees.

CHILDREN'S COMMISSIONER
The annual budget of the Commissioner for Children's office is to almost double within two years to enable him to better promote the rights of children and to monitor our compliance with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. An additional $2.8m over four years has been provided so that the Commissioner can take on a significantly wider role to advance the rights and interests of children, including improved public awareness campaigns, the establishment of a Youth Advisory Council and increased resources for research on children's rights issues in New Zealand.

BUILDING STRONGER COMMUNITIES
Community-based social service providers get their first increase in funding for several years through a $31.1million Budget package.

The package supports 'for-community, by-community' programmes and includes:

• a $15.2million increase for community, iwi and Maori providers funded by Child, Youth and Family to deliver such essential community-based services as sexual abuse and family violence counselling and home parenting skills;
• $2.19million to support volunteering;
• $3.6million to help social entrepreneurs and local leaders make a difference in their communities;
• $6.9million for the successful HIPPY and support programmes run from Family Service Centres;
• $930,000 this coming year to gain a better picture of the voluntary sector and to begin to implement the recommendations of the Community and Voluntary Sector Working Party. The report was released in April. The Government will issue its response in June.

NEW ZEALAND HEALTH STRATEGY
Budget funding for health is directed at priorities in the New Zealand Health Strategy. New spending of $330 million in Vote Health was provided, taking the total health spend to $7.47 billion. Many of the new initiatives relate directly or indirectly to goals, objectives and key short to medium-term priorities in the New Zealand Health Strategy.

Other features of the package:

• an extra $3.7 million will be allocated to maternity services this year
• $3.9 million is provided to implement recommendations in the Gisborne cervical screening inquiry report
• funding for oral health ($3.9m) and palliative care ($3.7m)
• $2.8m for Pacific provider development
• Disability Support Services receive $44.6m, for deinstitutionalisation costs and for funding the care of children with severe needs
• vaccine costs ($0.8m), laboratory and pharmaceutical testing ($8.88m)

SUSTAINABLE HEALTH FUNDING
The level of funding for elective services and mental health in the budget shows the Government's commitment to sustainable funding paths in both areas, says Health Minister Annette King. Time-limited funding to reduce waiting times for elective services, which was due to run out this year, will now be dedicated to elective services on an ongoing basis. The transition from one-off funding to sustainable baseline funding will better meet the long-term strategic planning needs of District Health Boards.

An additional $7.4m has been invested in mental health services. It will be spent primarily in the areas of child and youth mental health, workforce development, forensic services and alcohol and drug services.

EDUCATION PRIORITIES TARGETED
Early childhood education and adult literacy were big winners in the Budget, says Education Minister Trevor Mallard. The budget allows nearly $30 million over the next four years to implement the Government's policy of equity funding for the early childhood education sector. An equity funding model is to be developed over the next few months to distribute the extra money targeted to licensed and chartered community-based early childhood education services in low socio-economic or isolated areas. Other factors such as special education needs will also be taken into account.

Significant new investment is targeted at school principals. Details of the package include the provision of 600 leased laptop computers a year, a Leadership and Management Development programme and other initiatives to help reduce workloads and improve the quality of teaching and learning in schools.

Funding for adult literacy has been doubled with the setting aside of $18 million over four years to fund the Adult Literacy Strategy, released earlier this month. Associate Education Minister Marian Hobbs will oversee the implementation of the strategy, which seeks to provide a comprehensive, long-term approach to improving adult literacy.

TERTIARY EDUCATION COMMISSION TO BE SET UP
The Government will set up a new Tertiary Education Commission to improve the quality, relevance and cost effectiveness of the entire post-school education sector, Associate Education (Tertiary Education) Minister Steve Maharey announced in the Budget package. The decision is in response to Shaping the System - the Tertiary Education Advisory Commission's report received by the Government in February. New Zealand's present tertiary education system is fragmented, suffers from a lack of differentiation and does not produce sufficient graduates with the skills the economy needs.

The proposed Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) would provide better integration across the sector and foster stronger involvement by stakeholders, including industry and the community. It will assume the functions currently performed by Skill New Zealand and the tertiary resourcing section of the Ministry of Education.

BUILDING SKILLS FOR THE KNOWLEDGE SOCIETY
Significant additional expenditure has been allocated to freeze fees again next year, buy an estimated 17,400 additional industry training places and fund a package of measures to ensure teaching and research quality. The funding boost will ease the skills shortages in the economy and contribute significantly to the Government's goal of developing an inclusive knowledge society.

Particulars of the package include:

• funding all growth in student numbers and a 5.1% increase on 2000 rates to those institutions which commit to keeping their fees at current levels;
• a new contestable Centres of Research Excellence Fund worth $40.6m in operating expenditure over four years available to institutions who freeze their fees;
• $56m over the next four years to buy an estimated 17,400 additional industry training places;
• four new $50,000 annual tertiary teaching awards; and, new funding for the Ombudsmen to investigate tertiary education complaints.

BUDGET 2001 AT A GLANCE
in social services and employment, health, education and housing

Social services and employment:

• a major injection of funds for Child, Youth and Family to implement the Mick Brown report
• a Making Work Pay package to assist beneficiaries to make the transition to paid employment

Community sector:

• $31.1m to support 'for-community, by-community' programmes and to build stronger third sector-Government relationships
• support for volunteering initiatives and for social entrepreneurs and local leaders to make a difference in their communities

Health:

• $330m increase for Vote: Health
• increased funding for mental health services and to maintain reductions in waiting times for elective surgery
• funding to improve the cervical screening programme

Education:

• early childhood education equity funding
• school principals' leadership and skills package and increases in school operation funding
• Tertiary Education Commission to be established
• an additional 17,000 industry training places
• 5.1% funding increase per student in academic year 2002 to those institutions which freeze their fees at 2000 levels

Housing:

• funding to build 125 new community houses and to extend rent relief to cash-strapped community housing tenants
• 300 new state houses to be built this year, 9000 to be upgraded
• increased funding for the rural home loans scheme

HARVESTING TAIRAWHITI'S WALL-OF-WOOD
A three-way partnership between the government, Tairawhiti communities and industry to bridge labour and skill shortages holding back the development of the forestry industry on the East Coast was announced by social services and employment ministers Steve Maharey and Parekura Horomia in Gisborne last week.

A strong, vital forestry industry was identified as critical to the achievement of sustainable employment and economic growth in the region by the Tairawhiti Development Taskforce established last year by Deputy Prime Minister Jim Anderton. Labour and skills shortages were seen as a major issue constraining the growth of the forestry industry. The strategy involves the industry, the local community and the government taking ownership of both the issues and solutions. Working in isolation none alone would solve the problem.

Key issues needing to be addressed were identified in a report written by the Department of Labour for the Wood Processing Strategy Group:

• communication and co-ordination between the key players in the local industry;
• the potential for benefit payments or seasonal jobs to provide an attractive alternative to the demands of forestry work;
• low pay, poor conditions and a perception that forestry does not provide an attractive career path affects recruitment into the industry; and,
• a lack of skills and poor work discipline amongst the available and potential workforce, linked in some cases to drug and alcohol use.

The strategy adopts a multi-pronged approach to counter these problems:

• Industry New Zealand is to employ a full-time coordinator for 12 months.
• new training programmes in literacy, numeracy and silviculture to prepare job seekers for careers in the forestry industry;
• new Budget initiatives aimed at Making Work Pay make it financially more attractive to move off welfare and into real paying jobs in forestry;
• work with contractors on how to be a good employer; and,
• working with local social service providers on a range of local problems, including substance abuse.

POLYTECHNIC WORKING PARTIES ESTABLISHED
Working parties to consider the future of Wanganui Regional Community Polytechnic and to recommend alternative uses for the site currently used by the Central Institute of Technology (CIT) were established during the week.

The working party looking at the future of Wanganui Regional Community Polytechnic will consult with education and local business groups and individuals to draw up a business plan on its preferred option by the end of July. Any longer term solution will need to ensure that the community has access to quality tertiary education in the region that is focused on student and industry needs.

CIT is to be disestablished and incorporated into the Wellington Institute of Technology (formerly Hutt Valley Polytechnic) from 1 July 2001. The working party has been asked to report back by the end of September 2001 on alternative feasible uses for the valuable Heretaunga site.

PARTNERSHIPS FOR JOBS
Regionalisation of the Department of Work and Income (DWI) is delivering more jobs in the East Coast region, Social Services and Employment Minister Steve Maharey told employer and community representatives in Gisborne on Friday. In the city for a presentation on DWI's regional jobs plan, launched last December, Mr Maharey said initiatives underway across the region show the value of adopting a partnership-based approach to employment development with local communities.

The Department is in the capacity building and opportunity matching business - the business of building human capability and the business of social development, he said. Nearly 1600 young people remain registered as unemployed in the Gisborne/Kaiti East Coast region. The Government is committed to doing its part with the community to move them into real paying jobs.

NON-RESIDENT SPOUSES BILL
Parliament gave the Social Security (Residence of Spouses) Amendment Bill a first reading last week. The bill provides that where a person applies for a benefit and his or her spouse or partner does not have permanent residency the benefit will be paid at the unmarried rate and removes a loophole in New Zealand's current social security rules. The bill has been referred to the Social Services Select Committee who have been asked to report back to the House on it by 13 June 2001.