8412 (2026). Ricardo Menéndez March to the Minister for Social Development and Employment

8412 (2026). Ricardo Menéndez March to the Minister for Social Development and Employment: How many people, if any, have seen a reduction in the amount they receive from the accommodation supplement since the 2nd of March changes to how board payments are calculated, broken down by the median amount of the reduction and the top 10% percentile of the reduction?

Hon Louise Upston: I am advised that the Ministry of Social Development (the Ministry) is unable to provide the information sought by the member within a written parliamentary question timeframe. I am further advised that this information has not previously been published. Providing the information to the Member would require a substantial amount of investigation to determine whether the information can be generated, and if so, a substantial amount of time will be required to create and test the code necessary to provide this data, diverting staff from their core duties. In accordance with Speaker’s Ruling 210/6, I consider that the time and hence the expense, of answering the Member’s question is not in the public interest. This is also my response to WPQ 8411 (2026)