Budget's gems slow to shine

The exercise of trickling out decisions before Budget day has started, and some of the announcements offer less than first appearances suggest.

Finance Minister Michael Cullen is promising only another "boring, but responsible" Budget.

He has $815 million of extra money to allocate to new spending this year, but has already announced that $400 million of it will go to health.

After big-ticket items such as education take their cut, there will be little money left to brag about.

As a result, the Government is spreading smaller announcements over the next two weeks to get as much publicity as possible.

Some look far more exciting on the surface than they are in reality. For instance, Disability Issues Minister Ruth Dyson said vocational services for people with disabilities would get an extra $27.3 million during the next four years.

This would include $24.5 million to implement the Government's vocational services strategy and $2.7 million to repeal the Disabled Persons Employment Promotion Act and revise the workers' permit system.

But those looking for the money will be waiting some years.

Of the $24.58 million, only $1 million will be spent next year, $2.35 million the year after, $9.28 million in three years and $11.89 million in four years and thereafter.

Yesterday's largest allocation announcement was for a boost of $36m to help the Courts Department collect fines.

The spending will be spread over four years and just under $9m is to be spent in the coming financial year.

Courts Minister Matt Robson said the money, to expand the fines collection call centre, would enable an extra $90 million to be collected over four years. Of that, $22 million would be for victim reparation.

Economic Development Minister Jim Anderton added that the Budget on May 23 would include small boosts for the Government's business development programme.

He said $2 million would be spent on a network of regional case managers to assist businesses that have a "high growth potential".

Another Budget initiative was an "economic progress package".

The money for both will come from unallocated money already announced as available to Mr Anderton's "job machine".

Also coming from that fund is a one-off $320,000 payment to two two non-profit organisations already assisting businesses.

A further $484,000 of that money will go to Student Job Service to help students find summer jobs.

- NZPA