Govt set to review $3b

The Government is set to review the hulking multibillion-dollar Working For Families scheme, a newly released paper reveals.

The review follows on from advice to the Government to expand the scheme to cover families without children.

Labour technically committed to reviewing the scheme in its 2017 confidence and supply agreement with the Green Party, but this was soon rolled into a wider review of the welfare system, which reported back in 2019.

Labour has not announced any significant review of the scheme since. But advice proactively released on a change to the abatement threshold shows officials repeatedly discussed a new upcoming review of the scheme late last year.

(Abatement thresholds are the amount of money that those on the benefit can earn before having their benefit payments docked.)

The officials, from Inland Revenue and the Ministry of Social Development, were worried that the increase in the abatement threshold may ‘‘increase the cost of options’’ in the ‘‘upcoming review of Working For Families’’.

The exact options that the officials were worried about were redacted under a clause in the Official Information Act meant to protect advice that is currently being considered by ministers.

The Working For Families scheme, established by the Fifth Labour Government, pays out more than $3 billion in tax credits to about 350,000 families across a huge variety of income levels.

It includes the Best Start payment for all new babies, which is universal until age 1 and then means-tested, and the in-work tax credit, minimum family tax credit and family tax credit.

A spokesman for Revenue Minister David Parker said the Government had ‘‘long signalled’’