MSD’s targets for the next five years

The Prime Minister has announced nine targets for Government agencies. The targets for MSD are:

• to reduce the number of people receiving Jobseeker Support by 50,000 to 140,000 by June 2029, and
• (alongside HUD) to reduce the number of households in emergency housing by 75 percent, by June 2029 – this is fewer than 800 households in emergency housing.

More people in work benefits not only themselves and their families, but their communities and the economy. Work helps with cost of living, but it’s about more than money. It’s about having a sense of purpose, independence, connectedness – leading to a better future and helping families break out of the cycle of inter-generational welfare dependence.

MSD will achieve the Jobseeker target by:

• a stronger focus on helping 18–24-year-olds on Jobseeker Support into jobs
• early and active engagement with priority groups of job seekers (these include young people and people with children)
• making it easier for people with work obligations to understand and meet expectations.

Progress has already been made with the establishment of Kōrero Mahi – Let’s Talk Work seminars, for people new to Jobseeker Support.

From June 2024, MSD will start checking-in with people who have been receiving Jobseeker Support for six months.

For housing, MSD will, alongside HUD, achieve this target by:

• help people stay in their current home or find alternative housing
• strengthen our needs assessment to make sure emergency housing is for those who have no other option
• prioritise households with dependent children for social housing
• increase the supply of social housing with 6,000 additional social homes.