Welfare spending cuts condemned

Press, 7 September 1976, Page 16

Welfare spending cuts condemned

PA Wellington; The Working Women's Al-2 liance has condemned Government action in cutting; welfare spending on Domes-i tic Purposes Benefits. L “The Government. has! found another scapegoat for 1 the present economic problems facing New Zealand,” the alliance’s national pub- j licity officer, Miss Sandra McCallum said. “The Minister of Social Welfare (Mr Walker) declared last week that the Government would save $1,700,000 for a full year by cancelling nearly 600 Domestic Purposes and related emergency benefits. “Beneficiaries, particularly solo mothers, are being victimised and made to feel guilty about receiving assistance. “They are not thirdclass citizens,” she said.

By urging people to report disrecpancies in benefits, the Government was encouraging the public to overlook the real problems faced by

solo parents in the commun-' ity, Miss McCallum said. “Working Women’s Alliance believes a decent standard of living is a right.. People are a priority over' benefits — it is workers’, labour that makes the goods that are sold by employers for profit,” said Miss McCallum.