The BUDGET announced increased funding for roading, education, science, crime prevention, the Children and Young People's service and cultural affairs, on top of the previously announced increases in funding on health, conservation and housing.

There were no major new policies nor funding in the Budget announcements concerning employment initiatives, other than what has already been announced in the Tax Cuts and Social policy programme.

An extra $32m in the Budget for `job seeker services' to programmes to assist the unemployed into jobs. Most of this follows on from programmes already announced in the government's response to the Employment Taskforce recommendations. This includes more money spent on `individual employment assistance schemes, including Job Action and Youth Action and a range of programmes targeting Maori and Pacific islanders.

Youth Affairs get $9.3m to meet their continuing youth employment programmes through the Conservation Corps and the Youth Service Corps.

Private Training Establishments get a 40% increase in funding, indicating that growth in the education field will be directed towards the private sector.

Industry Training Organisations funding is to increase 26%, with the funding coming mainly from the polytech sector.

Treasury predictions: Employment growth has been slowing since March next year, and the Budget projects it to continue to slow dropping from 3.8% now to 1.3% in the 96/97yr before stabilising around 2% over the next two years.

Unemployment, now at 6.2%, is projected to rise to 6.5% next year before dropping back to 6% again.

BUDGET VOICES
"The moment any government messes with success by losing control of government spending or by changing the economic framework, then NZers are on their way back to high-debt, low-growth and low employment..."
-- Bill Birch, Finance Minister, Budget speech June 1996

"Unemployment is not expected to fall below 5% of the labour force by 2000, according to the Budget. This should be regarded as an unacceptable outcome. Full employment by that year would be feasible with further microeconomic and labour market reform. NZ's reform programme needs to be revitalised to achieve higher goals..."
-- Roger Kerr, executive director of the Business Roundtable, commenting on Budget 96

"NZers have put up with five years of neglect and penny pinching in social services and throughout the public sector, with eroding living standards and increasing income disparities. They were entitled to expect more from this Budget than the haphazard flinging of money at waiting lists, at new classrooms, at the orchestra and at possums. Bandaid solutions are no substitute for prudent programmes of investment and development ..."
-- Michael Cullen, Labour's Finance spokesman, commenting on Budget 96

"The Budget appears to be part of a very determined Government strategy to pretend the unemployment problem has been solved. Usually Governments make a token attempt in their Budgets to do something about unemployment. This is the first I can remember since 1983 that offers literally nothing at all to the hundreds of thousands of people who remain out of work in NZ..."
-- Sue Bradford, employment activist, commenting on Budget 96

"The Budget is a missed chance to address the reality of poverty in NZ. It is unacceptable that a nation with a $3 billion budget surplus looks the other way when faced with the existence of poverty. The situation did not exist 10 years ago, and does not need to exist now ... "
-- Chris Wood, Lower Hutt food bank spokeswoman, commenting on Budget 96