Latest fromMinistry of Social Development
Govt to spend $55m on youth jobs
A new Govt package will give subsidies to employers who agree to train a young person and give them a permanent job.
Reports of child abuse escalate in Central North Island
Child abuse complaints have more than tripled in Rotorua, Whakatane and Taupo in the past five years.
Govt stole my money, claims $3.4m fraudster
New Zealand's biggest benefit fraudster, is accusing authorities of 'legalised theft'.
Paula Bennett: Let them eat soup
MP Paula Bennett is the first of the Beehive's power brokers to step out of their comfort zone - in her case, feeding the needy at a city mission - for the new series Make Your Politician Work. By Bevan Hurley.
Starving boy eats roach
Welfare agencies alarmed at extreme lengths some people go to just to eat. One desperate case of a Bay of Plenty child and his three siblings has been offered as a stark example of the degree of poverty in our communities.
Clampdown on tax credits as changes kick in
Thousands of households could lose their eligibility for Working for Families tax credits from tomorrow, but companies and beneficiaries stand to gain as a raft of regulatory changes across government departments kicks in.
Quake-support packages needed for more than 20,000
Applications for financial support following last week's deadly Christchurch quake are flooding in.
Christchurch earthquake: Offers of help overwhelming NGOs
Overwhelming offers of help for Christchurch are impeding the systems of non-government organisations trying to help there, says Social Development Minister Paula Bennett.
Abuse scandal policeman promoted
The police officer who misled officials over the number of unresolved child abuse cases in the Wairarapa has since been promoted.
GPs develop plan to get invalids off benefit
A consortium of North Shore doctors has a radical proposal to use health professionals to help sickness and invalid beneficiaries back to work.
Police working to improve systems - Broad
The IPCA has released the second part of its report into the handling of child abuse cases by police.