Ētahi atu herenga tuku pūrongo | Other reporting requirements

In addition to reporting under the Public Finance Act 1989, MSD has other reporting requirements for the Annual Report.

Treaty settlement commitments

Enhancing oversight of Treaty settlements: He Korowai Whakamana

From 2023/24, MSD must report on the status of its Treaty settlement commitments.

In December 2022, Cabinet approved He Korowai Whakamana as a framework for achieving oversight and enhancing accountability for the Crown’s Treaty settlement commitments. This requires core Crown agencies to track the status of their commitments using Te Haeata, an online searchable record of Te Tiriti o Waitangi settlement commitments. The purpose of Te Haeata is to raise the visibility of settlement commitments and help organisations keep oversight of them.

In June 2023, MSD completed a review of the status of its Treaty settlement commitments and entered this information in Te Haeata. This identified that MSD had 108 Treaty settlement commitments, comprising 63 property-related commitments and 45 relationship redress-related commitments.

Māori Crown Relations capability

MSD’s Whāinga Amorangi plan, was refreshed in the past year and articulates how we go about building the Māori Crown Relations capability of our people.

As part of this plan we support staff to incorporate te ao Māori in their everyday mahi. We do this by offering our staff training, resources and programmes including:

• training in New Zealand history and Te Tiriti o Waitangi, tikanga, kawa and te reo Māori
• Māori Leadership Development programmes – aimed at building the skills and knowledge of Māori staff to empower them into leadership roles
• development of Karangahia te Haeata (MSD’s Māori Language Policy and High-Level Strategic Framework) that supports te reo revitalisation, as referenced in the Māori language planning – Te reo Māori revitalisation section of this Annual Report.

Since 2018, over 4,000 MSD employees have completed te ao Māori training and development opportunities and this number is increasing year on year.

Māori language planning – Te reo Māori revitalisation

MSD has incorporated Māori language planning into several streams of our work programmes across MSD. We are currently working to establish regional te reo Māori capability plans.

Our Māori Cultural Capability Work Programme includes the development of Karangahia te Haeata – the Māori Language Policy and High-Level Strategic Framework for MSD which was launched in September 2022. This supports MSD whānau to learn, use and promote te reo Māori through our mahi, and was developed with input from staff across MSD. The name Karangahia te Haeata, or call forth the morning light, is a link back to Pūao Te Atatū, meaning daybreak. Pūao Te Atatū is an important kaupapa for MSD and Māori. Further, through Te Pātaka we have developed resources and learning programmes to encourage our people to develop Māori capability.

Equal employment opportunities

We are committed to Equal Employment Opportunities (EEO), so that our staff cohort reflects the values and composition of the communities we work with.

Our EEO policy is designed to ensure that we support and promote equal employment opportunities. The policy provides the principles that guide this, outlines the responsibilities for managers, human resources and staff, and outlines a commitment to:

• base appointments on merit, while recognising the employment aspirations of Māori, Pacific peoples, ethnic and minority groups, women, disabled people and Rainbow communities, ensuring fairness in employment for all
• purposefully recruit people who reflect and understand the diversity of New Zealand and the communities we serve
• develop Māori and Pacific employees’ career aspirations in line with Te Pae Tata and Pacific Prosperity
• employing disabled people and collaborating across government to increase the number of disabled people employed in the public sector
• focus on the capabilities that underpin an openness to diversity, which applies to how we work with our clients, communities and our own people within our workplace
• build confidence in our ability to work with the diverse range of people we serve and support
• work with other agencies to share best EEO practices, policies and procedures.

This policy is part of MSD's Equality and Diversity Commitment, and it adheres to the Te Kawa Mataaho Public Service Commission Model Standards. The Model Standards set out the Public Service Commissioner's minimum expectations for staff and organisations in the Public Service to ensure positive and safe workplaces.

The EEO policy is currently under review as part of the MSD Human Resources Policy cyclical review process. During this, a review of the Model Standards is conducted, and amendments are undertaken when areas of improvement have been identified.

Diversity, equity and inclusion

Diversity, equity and inclusion are key to enabling a positive experience for our people at work. For MSD this means recognising and respecting the differences between people while valuing the contribution everyone can make. It is critical for our success as an organisation that we reflect the people we serve, which means acknowledging and appreciating our own diversity so that we can support our clients’ aspirations.

MSD has a comprehensive Diversity and Inclusion work programme, supported by governance structures and leaders, which allows a focus on areas of opportunity to create a safe and supportive work environment for all our people.

Our diversity and inclusion programme

Our diversity and inclusion direction is in line with the Papa Pounamu work programme, led by Te Kawa Mataaho Public Service Commission.

We have an extensive range of training and development programmes and resources that support our staff and managers:

• we rolled out compulsory training to build awareness of unconscious bias in the workplace
• since 2018, MSD has seen over 4,000 participants complete the te ao Māori training and development opportunities offered
• in the past six months we have refreshed Te Pātaka, our storehouse of learning and resources, and released Waiwhetū Marae – A Connection with Culture, an online virtual marae visit
• our capability and development system, Te Ara Piki, focuses on leaders coaching and supporting their people with an emphasis on understanding others outside of the day-to-day operational focus
• we also run a successful mentoring programme in partnership with employee-led networks, regions and business units to promote connection throughout MSD. This programme was a finalist and highly commended in the 2022 Diversity Awards.

Employee-led networks

Our employee-led networks are groups of people who voluntarily come together to promote and support the goals and needs of a particular group of MSD employees. They play an integral part in helping MSD to build a more inclusive workforce.

Networks partner with MSD to raise visibility through supports, days of significance, celebrations and activities, such as language weeks, hui, guest speakers and mentoring. Our networks continue to grow, with over 30 different networks across the motu that focus on Māori, women, disabled, Rainbow, Pan-Asian, Muslim, health and wellbeing, and workplace culture.

Demographic profile and pay gaps

Kia Toipoto – Public Service Pay Gaps Action Plan 2021–24

MSD is working to address occupational division with the guidance provided by Te Kawa Mataaho Public Service Commission through a set of actions to help close gender, Māori, Pacific and ethnic pay gaps in the Public Service.

We have been formally addressing internal Gender Pay Gaps (GPG) since 2017 and tracking Gender-Ethnic Pay Gaps (GEPG) since 2018.

MSD’s Gender and Ethnic Pay Gap Action Plan 2022–2023 is available on the MSD website.

Ethnicity

Māori, Pacific and Asian representation in MSD is higher than in the New Zealand Public Service as a whole and is in line with what we have seen in previous years. There are generally no ethnic pay gaps within same or similar roles or across most pay bands.

To address occupational division, several key focus areas and projects are working on the remaining gender and ethnic pay gaps following Kia Toipoto guidance, covering:

• transparency
• equitable pay outcomes
• leadership representation
• effective career and leadership development
• addressing all forms of bias and discrimination
• flexible work by default.

Figure 6:Ethnicity demographic and pay gap data as at 30 June 2023

Ethnicity demographic across the organisation

Ethnicity demographic breakdown of senior management (Note 3)

Note 1: Middle Eastern, Latin American and African.

Note 2: We allow the option to select more than one ethnicity, so the numbers do not match the total headcount and percentages will not equal 100 percent.

Note 3: Senior management is exclusive of the chief executive as they are not employed by MSD.

Ethnicity pay gap (Note 1)

Note 1: The base calculation for the ethnic pay gap has been revised based on the latest guidance from Te Kawa Mataaho Public Service Commission about the exclusion of employees who have not disclosed/shared their ethnicity.

Note 2: Middle Eastern, Latin American and African.

Gender

The gender pay gap is the difference between the average salaries for women and men. Over the past year, MSD has continued the effort to reduce the gender pay gap. As at 30 June 2023, the pay gap has increased marginally compared to 30 June 2022 (9.6 percent), and analysis is underway which will feed into our 2023/24 Gender and Ethnic Pay Gap Action Plan.

Over 70 percent of MSD employees are female and a higher proportion work in our lower-paid roles, which impacts on the overall pay gap. This is in line with what we have seen in previous years. There are generally no gender pay gaps within the same or similar roles or across most pay bands.

However, there are some areas in senior levels where minor, but relevant, pay gaps between genders or ethnicities undertaking like-for-like work have been identified. These are being addressed by targeted efforts to increase the pay of lower-paid employees through role reviews and the introduction of a new MSS pay and progression framework.

At this time, MSD does not calculate the gender pay gap between female and another gender, given the low numbers of those who identify as another gender.

Figure 7: Gender demographic and pay gap data as at 30 June 2023

Gender demographic across the organisation

Gender demographic breakdown of senior management (Note 1)

Note 1: Senior management is exclusive of the chief executive as they are not employed by MSD.

Gender pay gap

Disability

MSD does not require people to declare their disability status. We are working on ways to improve our data and understanding of this workforce, which will enable MSD to improve support and decision-making for those with disabilities.

Health and safety

The Health, Safety and Security (HSS) requirements and duties that MSD operates under are set out in the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 (HSWA) and the Protective Security Requirements (PSRs).

We provide a suite of internal reports on HSS risks and events to a range of stakeholders, including regional managers and the PSA. Our Leadership Team receives regular detailed reports that give them the information required to discharge their due diligence duties as officers under the HSWA. Our HSS policies are reviewed and refreshed every two years in consultation with our National Health and Safety Committee.

Our biennial Worker Participation Agreement with the PSA was last signed in May 2023 and outlines both parties’ commitment to staff and PSA representation on our National and Business Groups’ Health and Safety Committees. Our Health and Safety Representatives (HSRs) throughout the business are an important asset. HSRs receive training to fulfil their roles under the HSWA and are encouraged to input into HSS risk assessments, policies and processes.

Staff wellbeing

Supporting and investing in the wellbeing of our people is a priority for MSD. Pā Harakeke – our Wellbeing Plan – sets out our approach to caring for the wellbeing of our people via a range of services, help and opportunities.

Our focus this year has been on building the capability of people leaders and strengthening our wellbeing networks. People leaders have been supported with a range of web-based seminars that equip them with the skills to manage and care for their own wellbeing, as well as for the people they are responsible for.

Mental Health First Response training was provided to our poutuarā (peer supporters), and wellbeing champions throughout the business share knowledge of good practice and information. Our approach to workplace mental health and wellbeing is shifting from a tactical response to a more proactive one of prevention, by considering how psychosocial harm can be minimised by managing work differently.

Staff security

The nature of our work carries risk. Our security system is designed around the principles of detect, deter, delay and respond. A strong risk-based approach is taken, and these principles underpin all operational decisions affecting staff safety.

Each year a sample of sites is audited for the ACC Accredited Employers Programme (ACCAEP). The ACCAEP is supplemented by our own Security Assurance Programme that establishes a baseline standard of security for all client-facing sites to ensure that we meet our obligations under the HSWA and the PSRs.

Our HSS training framework is designed to support the training requirements of staff generally (ActSAFE), managers and people leaders (LeadSAFE), and for groups of workers (SiteSAFE). The training programme includes a regular cycle of mandatory safety drills that draw on the experience of actual security events, and that reflect our assessment of security risks.

Service Centres for the Future

Service Centres for the Future is our national programme of work that enhances the security layout in all our service centres and includes incorporating new spaces and technologies. Ninety-two of the 123 sites in scope have now been fitted out with these new security features.

The North Island weather events have impacted this roll-out, with some sites damaged either as a direct result or afterwards by mould. Despite having to repeat work and redirect resources towards fixing these issues, we have made good progress towards completing this work.

By December 2023, we aim to have completed 109 sites and interim security controls are being put in place for the remaining sites. This includes properties that are no longer fit for purpose, for example, due to lack of tenure or physical building constraints. The service centres will be relocated to new permanent sites from early 2024 to mid-2025, at which time the enhanced security features will be put in place.

Carbon Neutral Government Programme reporting

The Government launched its Carbon Neutral Government Programme (CNGP) in December 2020 to accelerate the reduction of emissions within the public sector. We are committed to reducing our emissions and introducing more sustainable practices to support the CNGP.

We chose the 2018/19 financial year as our base year due to the impact of COVID-19 on recent activity patterns. During that year we emitted the equivalent of 6,235 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e). In line with a reduction pathway to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, we have set emissions reduction targets of:

• 21 percent reduction in MSD’s emissions by 2025 (to no more than 4,926 tCO2e)
• 42 percent reduction by 2030 (to no more than 3,617 tCO2e).

MSD’s emissions during 2022/23 were 4,907 tCO2e. This indicates a 13 percent reduction from 2021/22 (5,671 tCO2e), and a 21 percent reduction compared with the 2018/19 base year. Most of our emissions came from fleet vehicles, air travel and our buildings.

Emissions data from our baseline year 2018/19, 2021/22 and 2022/23 has been independently verified by Toitū Envirocare.

This emissions inventory aligns with CNGP guidance for mandatory reporting. It excludes emissions from staff commuting and includes activities related to Aroturuki Tamariki – Independent Children’s Monitor up to 1 May 2023 when it became a separate agency. The inventory does not include activities related to Whaikaha – Ministry of Disabled People, which is exempt from reporting on its emissions profile in the first year following establishment.

Emissions profile

Our key emissions sources are from energy use in buildings, air travel, our vehicle fleet, supply chain activities and staff working from home. See Figure 8 for a full breakdown by scope and source.

The reduction in our emissions of 13 percent compared to the previous year is mainly due to a significant increase in renewable electricity generation from the national grid, which reduced emissions from energy use in buildings.

Emissions from staff travel in 2022/23 increased to a level consistent with pre-COVID-19 travel patterns, while vehicle fleet distance travelled also increased emissions from our fleet. Working from home emissions reduced and the modelling approach has improved. Emissions attributed to our supply chain are in line with previous years.

Figure 8: MSD emissions profile 2022/23

These figures were independently audited by Toitū Envirocare.

Reduction initiatives

Our Emissions Reduction Plan, approved in November 2022, focuses on three key sources of emissions. Work underway to reduce emissions across these sources includes:

• energy use in buildings – we started using National Australian Built Environment Rating System (NABERSNZ) ratings and energy efficiency reports focusing on our largest sites. We have also been engaging with landlords to secure improved building systems to reduce energy consumption (for example, LED lights)
• air travel – this is the largest contributor to MSD’s travel emissions, and we are investigating options to reduce emissions from staff travel. For example, our Digital Workplace Strategy aims to facilitate efficient online working environments that will reduce the need for some travel
• fleet – we are optimising our fleet and switching to predominantly electric vehicles (EVs) by June 2025 as part of our Fleet Optimisation and Transition Programme. As at June 2023, we had deployed 14 EVs. We have installed enough EV charging infrastructure at our sites to deploy an additional 97 EVs by the end of September 2023, making a total of 111 EVs, about one-quarter of the fleet.

Asset performance

MSD manages about $306 million of departmental assets, made up of property, plant and equipment, and intangible assets.

The following performance measures in Figure 9 below allow us to assess how well we are meeting our expectations and objectives, both at an organisational and asset level. We review our measures and targets regularly to ensure they are fit for purpose.

Figure 9: Property and technology asset performance measures

Property assets

* These two standards have not been met due to higher-than-usual disruptions to our sites from extreme weather events and their consequences. The enduring risks from such events will be factored into our long-term planning.

Technology assets - Intangible – internally generated software

Technology assets - Computer equipment

Note 1: Area (m²) of building floor space per work point.

Note 2: Core applications are defined as systems, the criticality of which is such that any issue that occurs is resolved as a high priority.

Note 3: Tier 1 applications are those that are critical for the support of our services. In-support applications are supported by vendors through regular upgrades, defect and security fixes. This is vital to enabling them to function correctly and securely.

Property assets

MSD’s property assets provide 161,855m² of office space for our staff. These spaces are key to engaging face-to-face with clients and providing organisational support within 123 service centres across the country. Most space is leased rather than owned. Within the leased spaces, our assets are primarily fit-outs, furniture and security equipment.

Significant changes include reopening our Mt Albert Service Centre in new premises after the previous site had been closed for four years due to seismic concerns. We have also moved our central Hamilton Service Centre into new fit-for-purpose premises, renaming it as the Kirikiriroa Service Centre.

We are continuing to focus on long-term property investment planning, leveraging tenure at strategic sites and improving space utilisation, and working proactively with the Government Property Group and other agencies to optimise office accommodation. We also provide shared service support for smaller agencies.

Technology assets

Maintaining and improving services

MSD delivers services using complex technology, consisting of over 75 core applications, providing over 380 technology services. Some of the systems are more than 30 years old. This environment means our people spend significant time and effort maintaining and strengthening the resilience of these core assets. Despite this complex environment, and while preparing for the future, we have ensured MSD’s digital services, frontline systems and applications are available to our clients, staff and partners for over 99 percent of the time during business hours.

In the past year, we have enabled thousands of service and system improvements for clients, staff and partners, from small updates to major projects. An example is the work we have done to make it easier for frontline staff to deliver support to clients through ongoing improvements to our core payments system, SWIFTT.

Preparing for transformation

In 2022/23, we accelerated work to enable MSD to transform its services to New Zealanders. Transformation is more than new technologies and improving IT systems. To support our people and ensure our technology workforce can adapt to new skills and ways of working, we have rolled out the Skills Framework for the Information Age to develop the skills of more than 500 Improvement, Systems and Technology (IST) people. We reviewed our operating model and made decisions to establish practices and leaders with technical expertise to develop our technology workforce.

To empower the MSD workforce with modern tools, we have rolled out Microsoft Teams, collaborative workspaces and upgraded meeting room technology. All MSD email and calendars were upgraded to the secure, cloud-based Exchange Online.

To support MSD’s Future Services Model, we partnered with Datacom to accelerate work on our cloud operating model and upskill the IST Team, creating development opportunities for IST people. We now have two established cloud platforms – AWS and Azure.

We continue to modernise MSD’s identity management systems and processes, beginning with the all-staff roll-out of the more secure, modern identity technology Windows Hello for Business.

To protect data and services Microsoft Defender was rolled out to all MSD laptops and Windows servers, and we have implemented 24/7 malware and phishing disruption and strengthened passwords to 16-character pass phrases. IT resilience has improved with our Auckland-based IT platform and team able to run recovery and operations.

The floods in early 2023 took out power and networks that impacted MSD’s ability to help people in affected regions. As a result, we have procured and distributed additional satellite phones to provide resilience for communications with key contacts in the event of network outages. We have also procured Starlink broadband connectivity devices for key sites and implementation is underway. The Starlink devices will enable the sites to continue to operate during these types of outages.

Delegation of functions or powers under the Public Service Act 2020

Until 20 March 2023, MSD’s chief executive delegated various functions and powers to the chief executive and chief operating officer of Workbridge Incorporated to administer Support Funds through the Employment and Work-Readiness Assistance Programme. From this date, Support Funds have been administered by MSD.

Child protection policy

MSD has a Child Protection Policy (2023) as required by the Children’s Act 2014.

The purpose of this policy is to:

• protect the safety and promote the wellbeing of all children (tamariki/mokopuna), including disabled tamariki/mokopuna who are receiving services from any staff member of MSD or are associated with adults who are receiving services from any staff member of MSD
• assist staff to respond when child (tamariki/mokopuna) abuse or neglect is suspected or identified
• assist staff to respond to the needs of any child (tamariki/mokopuna) who come to the notice of MSD without the presence of indicators of abuse or neglect.

Under this policy, all staff are required to know that the policy exists and how to access it. The policy is published on the MSD website as required by the Act. MSD is currently reviewing and refreshing existing child protection guidance and information and updating existing training, and will roll-out the training organisation wide.

Where MSD funds a provider to deliver children’s services, those providers are required to hold Level 2 or 3 accreditation with Te Kāhui Kāhu. Accreditation requires providers to be compliant with the Act, which also includes having their own child protection policy.

MSD-contracted services for victims

Under section 50A of the Victims’ Rights Act 2002 (the Act), MSD is required to report a summary of the services it provides to victims. MSD is also required to report statistical information about the number and type of complaints from victims received under section 49 of the Act, and the disposition of those complaints.

The services MSD provides directly for victims are:

• Are you OK, a website that provides victims/survivors of family violence, and people supporting them, with information on family violence and how to access support around New Zealand
• the Family Violence Intervention Programme, which trains case managers to identify and respond appropriately to people who are living in or leaving violent family situations. It has Family Violence Co-ordinators in each region to provide support to case managers and liaise with local support services.

The table below lists services provided to victims by third party non-government organisations which receive funding from MSD. More information about services available is on MSD’s website.

Figure 10: Services provided to victims by third parties

Court Support Services

Court Support Services provide information, advocacy and psychosocial support for victims/survivors of sexual violence going through the criminal justice system. This includes supporting victims/survivors through non-crisis engagement with the Police and through the trial and court.

Elder Abuse Response Services

Elder Abuse Response Services ensure that older people experiencing, at risk of experiencing, or perceived to be experiencing abuse and neglect, have timely access to appropriate local services that respond to ensure their immediate safety, and support them to have greater control over their lives.

Family Violence Response Services

Family Violence Response Services deliver whānau-centred, outcomes-focused and integrated services to people experiencing violence. This includes counselling, social work, support work, family/whānau-centred services and Māori, Pacific and Ethnic services.

Helplines

MSD funds multiple helplines and online support for people experiencing family violence, sexual violence and/or elder abuse. These services include: 

• Family Violence Information Line
• Shine Helpline
• 211 Helpline
• Safe to Talk
• Elder Abuse Helpline
• Family Violence National Platform.

Integrated Community-led Responses

Family violence specialists provide Integrated Community-led Responses to ensure safe, effective and appropriate risk assessments, safety plans and referrals are being made at Safety Assessment Meetings.

Services for Male Survivors of Sexual Abuse

This service provides support for male survivors of sexual abuse to enable long-term recovery through peer support, case planning and information for male victims/survivors and their whānau and support networks.

Sexual Harm Crisis Support Services

This service provides psychosocial crisis support to victims/survivors through emergency face-to-face sessions (including crisis counselling), advocacy and support (including call-out) and crisis social work support.

Kaupapa Māori Sexual Violence Services

A small number of providers are funded to deliver Kaupapa Māori sexual violence support services, piloting service guidelines for a Kaupapa Māori/tangata whenua mahi tūkino service.

Sexual Violence Long-Term Recovery

This service includes provision of psychosocial help to victims/survivors post-crisis events, supporting whānau/family and social work.

Whānau Resilience

This service provides long-term healing and recovery for whānau affected by violence.

Women’s Refuge

This is a nationwide service which provides safe houses, advocacy and support for women and children experiencing violence.

Child Advocates

This service provides specialist, child-focused support to children who have experienced family violence and is available in eight Women’s Refuge sites across New Zealand.

Complaints

MSD has not, to its knowledge, received any complaints from victims in 2022/23 of the type specified under section 49 of the Act.

Oranga Tamariki Action Plan

The Oranga Tamariki Action Plan, published on 7 July 2022 alongside an associated Implementation Plan, sets out the steps that the chief executives of the children’s agencies (including MSD) will take to work together to achieve the outcomes that the strategy sets out for the core populations of interest to Oranga Tamariki.

Responsibilities for MSD under the Oranga Tamariki Action Plan and Implementation Plan, for which work is in progress, include:

• a pathway to employment, education or training for young people transitioning out of Oranga Tamariki care
• supporting Regional Public Service Commissioners to help drive support for and engagement in the Action Plan and actions through regional leadership to enable locally led solutions
• drawing on early insights from the COVID-19 Care in the Community evaluation to identify opportunities to build on successful locally led and regionally enabled approaches.

In accordance with section 11 of the Children’s Act 2014, MSD will ensure that a copy of the next implementation report will be included in its Annual Report 2023/24 and made available on the MSD website.

Approved Information Sharing Agreements (AISAs)

Approved information-sharing agreement between the Ministry of Social Development, the Ministry of Education and Oranga Tamariki to support services for disengaged youth

MSD is the lead agency for the approved information-sharing agreement (AISA) with the Ministry of Education (MoE) and Oranga Tamariki (OT) for providing services to help disengaged youth move into education, employment or training, and must report annually on the following information specified by the Privacy Commissioner.

The NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training) Service was established in 2012 within the Youth Service. Referrals to youth providers are generated by a statistical predictive modelling tool that identifies school leavers who may be at risk of long-term unemployment. The model considers the age of a young person, whether their parents are on a benefit, any history of involvement with OT and their school history. Only young people with a risk rating of high or very high are referred to the service, so they can receive intensive support.

Participation in the NEET Service is voluntary. The young person is contacted by a Youth Service provider, but they can choose not to enrol, and they can stop participating at any time without any effect on their other entitlements. NEET clients can remain in the Youth Service for up to three years from the age of 16.

More information about the service and how the model works can be found on the Youth Service website.

Young people can also refer themselves to NEET for support through a Youth Service provider. The AISA does not directly apply to these ‘walk-ins’, but their needs are calculated using a simplified version of the predictive model.

This is the sixth report on this AISA covering the period 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023. The information provided in Figure 11 has been expanded to include data from OT.

Figure 11: AISA 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023

Scale

Benefits

Note 1: As the NEET model is dynamic, the information reported for 2022/23 is as at 10 July 2023.

Note 2: The number of enrolments includes some enrolments:

• that were triggered by a benefit being declined or cancelled – we are currently unable to separate these enrolments
• for clients who transferred between regions and for whom the original trigger may not have been the information from the NEET model – we are currently unable to determine the original trigger for these enrolments.

Note 3: The number of individuals includes current clients and those who exited the service during the year.

We make sure our model is accurate and its data is protected

We measure model accuracy each time the model is refreshed.

The Youth Service Model was last updated in August 2020. This model was assessed using lift at the top 10 percent threshold, which indicates how much better the model does compared to random decision-making. The model had a lift of 3.22, meaning it correctly ranked the young people in the top 10 percent 3.22 times more often than a random selection.

The model is monitored fortnightly by a team of analysts, and other than some reflection of COVID-19 effects, no issues were detected with either the inputs or results. During the period, 10.2 percent of school leavers were referred to providers, very close to the expected 10 percent. With the number referred close to target, thresholds were not refreshed in 2022. The full model will be updated before 2024.

We securely store the model and data outputs within the MSD data warehouse. No security problems have been identified during the reporting year.

Effectiveness of information sharing under the agreement

Information sharing itself has not changed this year.

The accuracy of contact information provided under the AISA remains an issue, as providers may be unable to contact young people who have been referred to providers of the service. However, since providers generally source their own clients rather than relying on referrals, the overall effect on the service is not high. Information sharing provides a useful level of assurance that young people who have significant need for support (and who might not otherwise be identified by community providers) will be identified.

Number of complaints

No complaints were received in 2022/23 about any alleged interference with privacy under the agreement (2021/22: no complaints).

Amendments to the AISA since the last report

There have been no amendments to the AISA since the last report.

Approved information-sharing agreement between the Ministry of Social Development and the New Zealand Customs Service

MSD is the lead agency for the approved information-sharing agreement (AISA) with the New Zealand Customs Service (Customs) that permits and regulates the sharing of arrivals and departures information to MSD. The information shared under this agreement is used to verify the entitlement or eligibility of any client travelling overseas to receive a payment, to avoid overpayments and to enable recovery of debt. Before the AISA coming into force in May 2019, MSD had to provide 10 working days’ notice to clients before suspending supplementary payments. This meant that many clients incurred a debt they then had to repay.

The AISA allows MSD to suspend most payments without prior notice when information shared by Customs shows that a client has been overseas for longer than permitted by the eligibility rules that apply to that payment. The exceptions are payments for New Zealand Superannuation, Veteran's Pension, Student Allowance and non-beneficiary supplementary assistance where debt is created. For these payments, clients must still receive 10 working days’ notice.

The report distinguishes between the impact of the match on current clients (who may lose eligibility to some or all of their payments as a result of overseas travel), and that on former clients who owe a debt to MSD and who are identified in Customs data as having returned to New Zealand.

As lead agency, MSD is required to report on the operation of the AISA in its Annual Report. The Privacy Commissioner determines the matters that have to be reported.

This is the fourth report on this AISA, covering the period 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023.

Figure 12: Operation of the AISA 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023

Scale

Benefits

Note 1: This represents the number of travel movement records shared. Each time someone goes through Customs represents one record. If someone travels overseas twice, passing through Customs four times during the period, this is four records.

Note 2: Clients may be included in this count multiple times, depending on their movements and the type of payment they receive.

Note 3: A client can potentially receive up to three adverse action letters in relation to one suspension, that is, for suspension of New Zealand Superannuation, a client may be sent a warning letter, a suspension letter and a debt letter.

Note 4: There are a small number of suspensions classified as following prior notice which were suspended immediately. We currently cannot separate these suspensions.

Note 5: A challenge process is available to remedy cases that may be mismatched each year. This year most discrepancies in matches related to a different date of birth or name(s). The challenges represent less than 1 percent of the overall match programme.

Effectiveness of information sharing under the agreement

The previous impacts of COVID-19 have now fallen away, and the full effectiveness of this AISA should be returning to pre-COVID levels. Travel in the last year has increased. During 2022/23, there were 217.2 percent more travel movements based on the previous year, and there were 208.4 percent more matches than the previous year.

Number of complaints

Through the 2022/23 reporting period, there were six complaints about the match:

• one involved a New Zealand Superannuation client who disagreed with the decision to create an overpayment for the whole 26 weeks they were stuck outside New Zealand due to the border closure when leaving during the Quarantine Free Travel bubble period. With further information provided by the client, this overpayment was dis-established
• the other five were about incorrect matches. All were investigated and corrected, and no privacy breaches were identified (2021/22: one complaint).

Assurance

The planned assurance review to assess the operation of the AISA commenced in the 2022/23 reporting period and will be completed in the coming year. The results of the review will be incorporated into next year’s Annual Report.

During the year, Customs completed their two-yearly audit on the management and processes around MSD accessing their system to verify arrivals and departures information under certain circumstances. The final report outlines that there were no concerns identified and all areas of concern raised in the previous audit have been addressed.

Amendments to the AISA

There have been no amendments to the AISA since the last report.

Budget significant initiatives

From 2022/23, Treasury requires Departments to provide information that sets out their Budget significant initiatives from at least the previous three Budgets and where information on them can be found in the Annual Report.

Departments are asked to use their judgement in selecting the most important initiatives. The initiatives in Figure 13 have been selected by MSD as significant using the following criteria:

• we have excluded anything completed before 1 July 2022 as being out of scope for current reporting
• we have applied a threshold of $100 million given the size and number of MSD appropriations
• we have excluded those initiatives where MSD’s role is to administer funding, as performance is covered separately under measures for correct and timely administration, rather than being linked to specific Benefits or Related Expenses (BORE) categories
• we have also excluded Whaikaha – Ministry of Disabled People and technical transfers.

Figure 13: Budget significant initiatives

Budget 2020

Initiative title: Community Services: Ensuring Continued Access to Specialist Services for Victims of Family Violence

This initiative seeks to address personnel-driven cost pressures for refugees and services for victims/survivors of family violence (mainly women and children). This includes services by Māori with Māori. These essential services provide advocacy, safe houses, one-on-one and group therapy, and family-centred services in the crisis and short-to-medium term for victims/survivors of family violence. This initiative is part of a package that supports the delivery of more effective social services by non-government organisations and aligns with Oranga Tamariki’s cost pressure bid.

Total ($m): 142.000

Pages 114 to 119

Budget 2021

No initiatives met the criteria from this Budget cycle.

Budget 2022

Initiative title: Housing-related hardship assistance – Improving support for homeless, housing insecure and low-income New Zealanders

This initiative creates a new housing-related financial assistance programme (combining Housing Support Products and housing-related Advances/Recoverable Assistance Payments). It targets lower-income households so they can access and sustain housing in the private rental market by increasing housing-related financial assistance (maximum increases and a new payment) and expanding eligibility. Funding is required for the increased number and level of grants, new payments, IT and system changes. The programme will ensure one-off housing-related financial assistance is accessible, equitable, adequate, and easier to understand. This will serve longer-term goals of preventing homelessness and contributing to a reduction in the number of households requiring emergency, transitional and public housing.

Total ($m): 524.970

Pages 120 to 122

Initiative title: Extending the Apprenticeship Boost Initiative

This initiative extends the end-date of the Apprenticeship Boost Initiative (ABI) from 4 August 2022 to 31 December 2023. The extension is expected to enable the employers of around 24,000 new apprentices to receive ABI support, and the employers of around 14,000 existing apprentices to keep getting ABI support after 4 August 2022. From 5 August 2022, the ABI subsidy rate will be $500 per month (GST exclusive) for eligible first-and second-year apprentices (a reduction from the current $1,000 per month for first-year apprentices). The initiative is funded by a combination of unspent 2021/22 ABI funding and funding from the COVID-19 Response and Recovery Fund (CRRF).

Total ($m): 229.533

Pages 123 to 128