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Summarised by Centrist
The government has passed legislation under urgency allowing automated systems to make welfare decisions on behalf of the Ministry of Social Development (MSD), arguing the move will modernise the welfare system and reduce delays.
The Social Security (Modernisation) Amendment Bill allows MSD to use automated systems to “make any decision, exercise any power, comply with any obligation, or take any other related action” under welfare law.
Social Development Minister Louise Upston said the changes would reduce delays, errors and unnecessary debt while freeing staff to spend more time supporting clients. National MP Scott Simpson said automated decision-making would be used for “simple, rules-based decisions” and that “human judgement will remain where it is needed”.
MSD told reporters that the changes would not involve generative AI such as ChatGPT.
Labour’s Helen White said it was “very, very difficult to know what is going on here” after sections of the regulatory impact statement explaining the problem being addressed were redacted.
Green MP Ricardo Menéndez March described the legislation as “a carte blanche expansion” of automated powers and warned it could allow “a robot, a machine, to have power of people’s lives”. He said it was “extremely concerning” that the bill had been passed under urgency without public consultation or wider scrutiny.
ACT and New Zealand First backed the legislation, saying it would make the welfare system more efficient and allow frontline staff to focus on helping people into work. The government says safeguards, including human oversight and protections against bias, will remain in place.
