DC Decision Letter.pdf

26 November 2025

Tēnā koe DC

Official Information Act request
Thank  you  for  your  email  of  15  July  2025,  requesting  information  about  the
Ministry of Social Development (the Ministry)’s budgeted and actual expenditure,
including FTE numbers.
Firstly, I would like to extend my apologies for the delay in responding to your
request.
I have considered your request under the Official Information Act 1982 (the Act).
Please find my decision on each part of your request set out separately below.
1.  Budget vs Actual Expenditure by Executive Portfolio – FY2021 to FY2024

For each financial year from FY2021 to FY2024, please provide the following
for each Deputy Chief Executive (DCE) or equivalent ELT member’s portfolio
(i.e., all cost centres and operational areas reporting to them):

-  The approved annual budget and actual expenditure.
-  If any dollar values are considered sensitive, percentage variance
(over/under budget) is acceptable as an alternative.
-  Please include the name of the relevant DCE or ELT member responsible
for each portfolio in each year.

Please refer to Table 1 in the attached Appendix which provides the information
you have requested.

A table containing the names of Chief Executive and Deputy Chief Executives is
provided in Table 2 of the said Appendix.
  2.  FTE by Executive Portfolio – FY2021 to Present

For each DCE or Executive Leadership Team portfolio, please provide:

-  The budgeted FTE vs actual FTE for each financial year from FY2021
through to the current financial year to date.
-  The year-on-year change in actual FTE (as a number or percentage).
-  If more granular reporting (e.g. quarterly or mid-year tracking) is
available internally, that level of detail is welcomed.

The Aurora Centre, 56 The Terrace, PO Box 1556, Wellington
– Telephone 04-916 3300 – Facsimile 04-918 0099

Please refer to Table 3 and Table 4 in the attached Appendix which provides the
information you have requested.
Please  also  note,  due  to  reporting  differences  the  actual  FTE  for  each  group
reported  in  table  3  includes  the  Deputy  Chief  Executives  leading  those  groups,
while the cost of these roles in table 2 is allocated to the Chief Executive’s budget.
This means that the actual FTE reported for the office of the Chief Executive is
lower than the budgeted amount.
It should also be noted that the Ministry’s numbers will fluctuate due to the size of
the organisation, seasonal demand and activities such as forward recruitment to
minimise impact on clients, internal movements of business units within Executive
Groups and organisation changes.
3.  All decisions that have resulted in staff increase, limited to instances with
greater than an additional 10 FTE increase.
After Cabinet approves the Budget package, The Treasury publishes a list of the
initiatives  that  will  receive  new  funding  (the  Summary  of  Initiatives).  For  each
Summary of Initiatives since 2021, the table below helps indicate which Budget-
funded initiatives required 10 or more additional FTE:
Summary of Initiatives
Budget-funded initiatives which required 10 or
more additional Ministry FTE
Wellbeing Budget 2021:
•  Continuation of Kāinga Whānau Ora to Support
Securing Our Recovery
Whānau to Maintain and Grow Resilience

•  Continued Investment to Address At-Risk Ministry of
Social Development Service Delivery Systems
•  Additional Ministry of Social Development Staff to
Respond to New Zealanders’ Income and
Employment Needs
•  Improving Childcare Assistance for Low and Middle-
Income Families Reinstating the Training Incentive
Allowance for Levels 4 to 7 on the New Zealand
Qualifications Framework
SUMMARY OF INITIATIVES
•  Driver Licence Support – Better access to licences for
- Budget 2022
disadvantaged groups to improve employment and

safety outcomes
•  Ministry for Disabled People – Establishing a new
Ministry
•  Māori Trades and Training Fund – Continuing to
support Māori entities delivering training and
employment for Māori
•  Preventing Family Violence and Sexual Violence:
Actioning Te Aorerekura’s prevention shift
•  Public Housing Register – Supporting clients on the
Public Housing Register
•  Te Pae Tawhiti – Designing the Ministry of Social
Development’s future operating model
•  Welfare Overhaul – Child Support Pass On

Summary of Initiatives
Budget-funded initiatives which required 10 or
more additional Ministry FTE
WELLBEING BUDGET 2023:  •  Employment Programmes – Early Response
SUPPORT FOR TODAY |
Redeployment Support and Rapid Return to Work
BUILDING FOR TOMORROW  •  Employment Programmes – Oranga Mahi

•  Inquiry into Christchurch Terrorist Attack Response –
Continued Implementation of Recommendations
•  Training Incentive Allowance – Supporting Eligible
People to Study
Summary of Initiatives
•  Housing Supports – Including Boarders’ Contributions
2024
in the Calculation of Subsidies for Private and Social

Housing
Summary of Initiatives
•  Income Charging – Additional Integrity Checks of
2025
Ministry of Social Development Payments – Phase 1

•  Income Charging – Using Inland Revenue Data to
Improve the Accuracy of Ministry of Social
Development Payments – Phase 2
•  Automated Decision-Making (ADM) – Updating ADM
Use in Ministry of Social Development Processes
•  Jobseeker Support – Tightening Eligibility for 18-to-
19-year-olds
•  Addressing the Wrongs of the Past – Redress System
Changes and Provision of Redress for Abuse in Care
•  MSD - Services for the Future Programme - Year 3
The list of initiatives above excludes:
•  Any proposals which sought less than 10 FTE, or which resulted in fewer
than 10 additional FTE after scaling.
•  Any initiatives which  extended funding for existing staff who had already
been previously engaged using time-limited funding.
•  Any distinction between a permanent or time-limited FTE increase, noting
that additional staff who were engaged using time-limited funding may no
longer be in the Ministry.
•  Any initiatives that affected the FTE levels of other agencies funded through
Vote Social Development - e.g. Whaikaha, Crown entities.
•  Any  initiatives  that  procured  FTE  from  service  providers  or  community-
based organisations.
•  Any  Cabinet  decisions  which  have  resulted  in  functions  and  FTE  being
transferred to MSD from other departments.
Please note that the above information is provided as the decisions made at the
time.  Over  time  as  initiatives  progress,  subsequent  decisions  or  changes  in
demand  may  mean  these  numbers  change  overtime  and  FTE  numbers  may  no
longer be the same as the initial decision.

The  list  above  also  excludes  decisions  with  FTE  impacts  that  have  been  made
outside of the formal Budget process.
For example, in November 2024 the Prime Minister announced additional funding
for Addressing the wrongs of the past – redress package. The funding enabled the
Ministry to hire an additional people to support existing staff who will deal with
requests  through  the  online  registration  process  and  dedicated  phone  line.  In
addition, there was a Ministerial decision to increase the number of Historic Claims
that the Ministry would complete during the 24/25 year that meant there was an
increase in FTE.
I will be publishing this decision letter, with your personal details deleted, on the
Ministry’s website in due course.
If  you  wish  to  discuss  this  response  with  us,  please  feel  free  to  contact
[MSD request email].
If you are not satisfied with my decision on your request, you have the right to
seek an investigation and review by the Ombudsman. Information about how to
make a complaint is available at www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or 0800 802 602.
Ngā mihi nui
pp.

Anna Graham
General Manager
Ministerial and Executive Services

Appendix
Table 1: Budgeted v Actual Expenditure (000’s) broken down by Executive Group in the financial year ending June
2021 – June 2025.
Group
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Budget
$5,688
$5,337
$5,432
$5,628
$5,812
Chief Executive Office  Actual
$5,352
$5,277
$5,116
$5,430
$4,997
Budget
$41,740
$53,398
$45,804
$54,130
$53,070
Strategy and Insights  Actual
$36,131
$44,798
$46,583
$46,978
$43,975
Māori, Communities
Budget
$74,788
$74,576
$87,342
$82,691
$82,808
and Partnerships
Actual
$67,973
$67,023
$82,407
$77,336
$73,992
Organisational
Budget
$58,398
$65,408
$74,822
$74,894
$78,716
Assurance and
Communication
Actual
$57,202
$65,269
$68,334
$71,265
$75,759
Budget
$964,407
$1,021,530
$957,959
$ 974,119
$944,238
Service Delivery
Actual
$852,949
$952,180
$902,071
$925,010
$897,107
Policy
Budget
$24,779
$30,178
$20,271
$21,105
$21,556

The Aurora Centre, 56 The Terrace, PO Box 1556, Wellington
– Telephone 04-916 3300 – Facsimile 04-918 0099

Actual
$21,523
$25,164
$17,561
$19,442
$19,236
Budget
$303,817
$309,485
$215,416
$252,740
$225,580
People and Capability
Actual
$281,623
$312,320
$196,386
$223,592
$180,711
Budget
$1,662
$15,938



Business Integration
Actual
$1,501
$14,019



Budget


$271,779
$273,206
$286,886
Transformation
Actual


$244,301
$277,420
$278,339
Disability Support
Budget




$40,053
Services
Actual




$31,606
Notes:
•  Disability Support Services was established as a business unit in the Ministry in August 2024.
•  Business Integration and Improvement, Systems and Technology (within People and Capability group) were shifted to the newly
created Transformation group in October 2022.

Table 2: Names of Chief Executive and Deputy Chief Executives (DCE) in the financial year ending June 2021 – June
2025.
Group
FY 2021/22
2022/23
2023/24
2024/25
Chief Executive
Debbie Power
Debbie Power
Debbie Power
Debbie Power
DCE Business Integration
Liz Jones
Liz Jones
Liz Jones

DCE Strategy and Insights
Nic Blakeley
Sacha O'Dea
Sacha O'Dea
Sacha O'Dea
DCE Māori, Communities and
Partnerships
Marama Edwards
Marama Edwards
Marama Edwards
Marama Edwards
DCE Organisational Assurance and
Communication
Melissa Gill
Melissa Gill
Melissa Gill
Melissa Gill
DCE People and Capability
Stephen Crombie
Nadine Kilmister
Nadine Kilmister
Nadine Kilmister
DCE Service Delivery
Viv Rickard
Viv Rickard
Viv Rickard
Viv Rickard
DCE Policy
Simon MacPherson
Simon MacPherson
Simon MacPherson
Simon MacPherson
Tamati Shepherd-
DCE Transformation

Nic Blakeley
Wipiiti
Tracy Voice
DCE Disability Support Services

Chris Bunny

Table 3: Budgeted FTE broken down by Executive Group in the financial year ending June 2021 – June 2025.
Group
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Business Integration
2
13



Chief Executive Office
16
14
16
17
15
Strategy and Insights
198.7
250.9
258.6
240.3
189.2
Māori, Communities and
249.8
181.8
265.7
318.3
275.6
Partnerships
Organisational Assurance and
279.6
213.4
224.2
262.6
263.7
Communication
People and Capability
1211.9
1335.8
875.8
869.2
556.0
Service Delivery
6913
7461.5
7542.8
7,016.30
6925.43
Policy
166.2
202.3
140.9
155
154.95
Transformation


511.7
564.6
595.0
Disability Support Services

231.0
Notes:
•  Disability Support Services was established as a business unit in the Ministry in August 2024.
•  Business Integration and Improvement, Systems and Technology (within People and Capability group) were shifted to the newly
created Transformation group in October 2022.

Table 4: Actual FTE and Percentage Difference broken down by Executive Group in the financial year ending June
2021 – June 2025.
%
%
%
%
%
Difference
Difference
Difference
Difference
Difference
Group
2021
June
2022
June
2023
June 2022  2024
June 2023
2025  June 2024
2020 v
2021 v
v 2023
v 2024
v 2025
2021
2022
Chief Executive
Office
15.0
114.3%
7.0
-53.3%
7.0
0.0%
7.0
0.0%
6.9
-0.8%
Strategy and
Insights
179.1
15.7%
194.2
8.4%
215.9
11.2%
204.2
-5.4%
174.3
-14.6%
Māori,
Communities and

Partnerships
203.0
37.3%
237.3
16.9%
293.3
23.6%
251.9
-14.1%
241.0
-4.3%
Organisational
Assurance and
Communication
206.2
6.5%
216.5
5.0%
232.7
7.5%
222.0
-4.6%
253.5
14.2%
People and
Capability
1064.8
7.3%
568.0
-46.7%
572.7
0.8%
523.5
-8.6%
518.0
-1.1%
Service Delivery
7347.4
15.6%  6942.5
-5.5%  7088.7
2.1%
6870.4
-3.1%
6801.6
-1.0%
Policy
156.6
30.3
164.6
5.1%
126.5
-23.1%
141.0
11.4%
130.4
-7.5%
Transformation

475.8

539.8
13.5%
588.0
8.9%
550.5
-6.4%

Disability Support
Services

189.7

Notes:
•  Disability Support Services was established as a business unit in the Ministry in August 2024.
•  In 2021 6 FTE from Chief Executives Office were from Business Integration.
•  Business Integration and Improvement, Systems and Technology (within People and Capability group) were shifted to the newly
created Transformation group in October 2022.