Mental health-related benefit numbers rise 140 percent over 20 years

Summarised by Centrist

The number of working-age New Zealanders receiving a benefit for psychological or psychiatric reasons has increased from 37,300 in June 2006 to 89,385 in June 2026, according to figures cited by welfare commentator Lindsay Mitchell.

That represents an increase of about 140 percent, compared with 26 percent growth in the working-age population over the same period. Mitchell says the total excludes people receiving support for intellectual disabilities.

She also points to Ministry of Social Development modelling estimating the future time young recipients may spend in the welfare system.

For people aged under 25 entering Jobseeker Support with a health condition or disability, the estimated future time on a benefit rose from 20.6 years in 2023 to 23.3 years in 2024. The figure is an actuarial projection, not a record of how long each person will necessarily remain dependent.

Mitchell argues that benefit reliance can compound mental distress by leaving people inactive and isolated. “A lack of purpose, listlessness and loneliness lead to anxiety and depression,” she writes, drawing partly on her experience as a parent.

National plans to restrict access to Jobseeker Support for some 18 and 19-year-olds from November, while ACT is campaigning for tighter medical certification requirements.

The Greens oppose National’s policy. Social development spokesperson Ricardo Menéndez March has described it as “cruel” and accused the party of “dehumanising people who struggle to get by”.

Mitchell also opposes the Greens’ proposed Income Guarantee and TOP’s Citizen’s Income, arguing that unconditional payments from age 18 would weaken young people’s motivation to work or train.

“If someone under twenty cannot find a job, they should be training for one,” she writes.

Read more at Brash and Mitchell

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