Michael O'Brien: Let's not forget another September anniversary

COMMENT: September is a month of two very important New Zealand anniversaries.

Women gaining the vote 125 years ago is a critical occasion for this country and its place in the world. So also is the Social Security Act 1938, passed into law 80 years ago this month. It too was seen at the time as world leading and some of its significance was lost amidst the celebration of the suffrage achievements.

In different ways, both were important for women at the time of their passage. We know the importance of suffrage and the vote but have lost sight of the significance and importance of social security, particularly for women. Women are (and always have been) significantly over-represented among social security recipients.

Social security was established to ensure that all New Zealanders had protection from the effects of poverty and deprivation. One of the central messages of the time was that it reflected our commitment to one another as a community.

Michael Savage, Prime Minister at the time described it as 'Applied Christianity'. The values of care, compassion and fairness which informed and influenced its introduction are values shared today by all religions and by those who would not describe themselves as religious.

We were (and are) all part of a society, sharing in its advantages and opportunities and ensuring that we are cared and provided for in misfortune.

Reflecting the approach of the 1938 Act, the 1972 Royal Commission on Social Security said that benefit levels should be set at a level which would allow beneficiaries to have a sense of participating in and being part of the society.

What we have seen in the quarter of a century is a steady decline in benefit rates (in real terms), with levels of poverty that both the 1938 Act and the 1972 Royal Commission would have found totally unacceptable. Both would also have found the regular media and political attacks on beneficiaries and the stigma so often associated with applying for assistance equally unacceptable.

The 1938 Act discriminated against Māori in a number of areas, treating Māori as lesser citizens who were unable to manage their own affairs. While subsequent legislation removed this discrimination, Māori continue to be significantly over-represented in the poverty statistics.

The levels of poverty among Māori creates significant barriers to their efforts to achieve anything approaching any form of self determination. While initiatives such as whanau ora hold promise for Māori development, poverty remains a significant barrier for too many Māori whanau.

While almost half of the children living below the poverty line are in working families, the worst poverty is among those on benefits. Far too many families and children are dependent on complicated additional assistance and on private charity for daily basic essentials such as food and clothing and school necessities.

The work of the Welfare Expert Advisory Group is critical in reshaping the structure and approach of the social security system.

The current statement of principles needs to change. Paid work should not be the sole, or even primary, basis on which our social security system is built. Caring work such as that undertaken by parents (predominantly women) needs to be given equal status and priority as does the work of caring for those with a disability.

A society which fully and proudly took up the values, principles and aspirations of the 1938 Social Security Act would not relegate caring work to second place. It would support, respect and value the critical work which it entails.

The government has prioritised reduction of poverty levels, particularly in relation to children. We need to support them in their aspirations and expect that they will deliver the results that are so desperately needed.

As a country, we can and must do better. We were world leaders on social security in 1938. Surely we can aspire to that again 80 years later and emulate our far sighted predecessors.

If we do so, we might again be able to be proud of our record on child poverty and proudly assert that New Zealand is a great place to grow up for all children.

• Associate Professor Michael O'Brien is a member of the Child Poverty Action Group