---
title: "PF038 · Captured AI answers"
publisher: "Onsomble Limited"
publication: "NZBrands.ai"
edition: 3
collected_on: "2026-10-16"
html_url: "https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/3/questions/3d0741a0-6f4a-4368-a3d2-bfd7ae45682e/"
---

# PF038 · Captured AI answers

Edition 3 · answers collected 16 October 2026.

[Read on NZBrands.ai](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/3/questions/3d0741a0-6f4a-4368-a3d2-bfd7ae45682e/)

## Question

I have a school-age child who needs additional learning support. Getting suitable help at school is my main concern, and I sometimes reduce paid work to care for them. I am considering my vote in the 2026 New Zealand general election. What support do parties propose for parents who cut back paid work to care for a child?

Question ID: 3d0741a0-6f4a-4368-a3d2-bfd7ae45682e. Report reference: PF038.

Issue: Poverty and welfare. Voter: Parent seeking learning support at school.

[Source record (JSON)](https://nzbrands.ai/data/nz-election-2026/editions/3/answers/3d0741a0-6f4a-4368-a3d2-bfd7ae45682e.json)

## How to read this evidence

The answers below are shown as the assistants gave them, not a verified account or NZBrands.ai voting advice. They may contain errors or outdated claims. A recorded source association is not necessarily a link shown to the reader.

Captured 16 October 2026. 4 answers were saved for this question. Missing answers have not been filled in.

[Study methodology and limitations](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/3/method.md)

## ChatGPT · asked nationally

Answer ID: d85816de-4c2c-4ab0-9020-db6b9f6f7441. Captured 16 October 2026.

**Begin captured answer — shown as given, not verified**

# NZ election 2026: Support for parents who reduce work to care for a child

For your situation, there are two connected issues to look at when comparing party policies:

- Financial support for carers: whether parents who reduce paid hours to meet their child's needs would receive more income support, face fewer benefit restrictions, or have better access to respite care.
- Support at school: whether your child would receive reliable learning assistance, such as teacher-aide time, specialist assessments, assistive technology and help from learning support professionals, so that the responsibility does not fall so heavily on your family.

New Zealand's 2026 general election is scheduled for 7 November 2026. Parties differ in how they approach disability support, carers' financial security and learning assistance. Some have made specific commitments, while others have not yet published detailed policies for this election. [The main parties vying to form New Zealand's next government](https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/main-parties-vying-form-new-zealands-next-government-2026-10-12/)[How do the different parties fare on disability issues this election?](https://team.thespinoff.nz/politics/30-09-2026/how-do-the-different-parties-fare-on-disability-issues-this-election)

The important distinction is whether a policy would put more money directly into your household, reduce the amount of care you have to provide yourself, or improve your child's support at school. Those are different outcomes, and a party may propose one without committing to the others.

## 1. What parties are proposing for carers

The clearest direct commitment I found on unpaid carers' financial security is from the Opportunity Party. Other parties' positions are more focused on disability-service rules, the wider income-support system, or funding for education and care services.

![Registration of party logo for The Opportunities Party (TOP)  | Elections](https://images.openai.com/static-rsc-4/OowUZ9CkCFRTp_4SBzLCXXqm5i2FX4PVFw6DQVvT_6bRIrpDabdGaHd3BdeeTqERKzcc4JYeMJG7sZabEeLSoMUOwBHdNRXaIX4bwCQWx9afYhaFURMtBvd9j2s9XL7FRkug76EoP8ktKkQQ_kYI37rOWPdygVnRpOM2Hh2UNt0?purpose=inline)

### The Opportunities Party (TOP)

Direct carer commitments

TOP's October 2026 disability statement proposes using a Citizens' Income and Disability Allowance to improve financial security for unpaid carers, reducing benefit rules that penalise paid work, providing more flexibility to combine employment with caring, and improving respite care. It also proposes better access to learning support professionals, including learning support coordinators, Resource Teachers: Learning and Behaviour (RTLBs), speech-language therapists and psychologists. [Opportunity Disability Position Statement - October 2026](https://www.opportunity.org.nz/disability_statement)[Opportunity Disability Position Statement - October 2026](https://www.opportunity.org.nz/disability_statement)

What to check: the detailed eligibility, payment amounts, implementation dates and funding arrangements for these proposals.

![South Island Election Conference 2026](https://images.openai.com/static-rsc-4/_spFKDBqOMVPoo8r35YLoGFwljs_-WWe4ur9fdZCfekzAxaUPGA75u8rI9uxOUTssI2hUZN1r4Zu1AeDrcNaxz3uHoFIyWjDpanT5s-KJ87QzxSu1uNjNL4MOHSuazRZuTy_TzC6aN4wxHHoyU_DhzMFuMCMjNBTtg2xRxOZL6c?purpose=inline)

### New Zealand Labour Party

Labour has pledged to repeal the Government's Disability Support Services legislation and replace it with legislation developed alongside disabled people and carers, with stronger protection for rights, independence and choice. It has also announced restoration of pay equity legislation and a $4-per-hour pay rise for care and support workers from 1 January 2027. That wage commitment is for workers in care and support roles, not a general payment to parents who provide unpaid care. [Release: Labour will scrap harmful disability Bill](https://www.labour.org.nz/news/release-labour-rules-out-social-housing-rent-increase/)[Labour's 2026 Election Policies](https://www.labour.org.nz/policy)

What to check: whether Labour proposes a separate payment or income-support entitlement for parents who reduce their working hours to care for a child.

![Green Party NZ (@NZGreens) on X](https://images.openai.com/static-rsc-4/xwoeA3rTn5Pu0UL1uRc6X_g8ADsfUTe55rxQEjXC_rnFR_6TPTr_9eG0LsowNOdFRtax24qB8h-LRfUtZEf42T0CC5OclOZ5katbFJAYxs0cZRyqDBlGNgF_8AV_5WTCbYonGIqLGuK095lLGrkBVw3L8vdsA06tLHVNuCJquuc?purpose=inline)

### Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand

The Greens' 2026 manifesto advocates a rights-based disability system, with disabled people and whānau involved in decisions. They oppose the Government's Disability Support Services legislation and argue that carers' needs, choice and protections must be respected. [Manifesto 2026](https://www.greens.org.nz/manifesto_2026)[Greens oppose rushed disability support law changes](https://www.greens.org.nz/greens_oppose_rushed_disability_support_law_changes)

What to check: a specific commitment to compensate unpaid parental care through a payment, benefit change or expanded respite services, rather than relying on broader disability-rights commitments.

![Will National Party Finish 2nd in New Zealand's 2026 Election?](https://images.openai.com/static-rsc-4/LCDs4P76HEgfCayafHeSga8GCw12Vxs2fPc3toeyLUZ-wmb6UiGRZY6bhdT1xRejtICfUd6GX2BWmI76EkpoWuffTU4g32bP_qUJp29rsfn5_Zvj5THHSYTLHSoo_5_YQyZ3zKE1WIpB4bu7raRltFl5TZFCgCcE0quf_GohkFI?purpose=inline)

### New Zealand National Party

National's government has introduced a more nationally consistent process for assessing disability-support needs and allocating funding. From 2026, changes to flexible funding also give eligible people more choice within their allocated budgets, with family and carer needs considered in assessments. [Disability support improvements begin](https://www.national.org.nz/news/20260210-disability-support-improvements-begin)[IN-CONFIDENCE](https://www.disabilitysupport.govt.nz/assets/disabled-people/Fact-sheet-Changes-to-assessments-allocations-and-flexible-funding-v4.pdf)

What to check: whether National will offer a new direct income payment to parents who cut paid work. The sources reviewed do not establish such an election commitment.

![New Zealand Legislative Election Winner 2026 Odds | Polymarket](https://images.openai.com/static-rsc-4/jofoEEdOXv6HOQzupGnQLgXlZKKPYTzvN6g4IUMlN6xdqX4l_qH5-Y0A3to5ytO5w95eGsg-WLInlnku5FmW0VEyKqhTiAqcZSbr_Z1e_uNyqacdq4zniDKhRNRugVUCsz1-CYpZeG4nO7sLuQKEQlQMBgJCAoyH3nC76yYHd6E?purpose=inline)

### ACT New Zealand

ACT's published welfare proposals emphasise tighter, more independent assessments for health-related benefits and stronger work-related conditions for some jobseekers. It says people with genuine, enduring health conditions or disabilities should be able to retain appropriate long-term support. [ACT New Zealand](https://www.act.org.nz/news/act-announces-policy-to-make-benefits-a-hand-up-not-a-way-of-life)[How do the different parties fare on disability issues this election?](https://team.thespinoff.nz/politics/30-09-2026/how-do-the-different-parties-fare-on-disability-issues-this-election)

What to check: how its proposed assessment and eligibility rules would apply to a parent whose own capacity to work is limited by caring responsibilities, rather than by their own health condition.

![New Zealand legislative election winner? Predictions & Od... 2026 | Polymarket](https://images.openai.com/static-rsc-4/UmXClDd76aKEk_XyXfEEacFBHXO18HFMG1Im-weRm7tb64uGzBsRK3vWPXuiFN2zaWaNznb7eSDIJucKOhlXtwb6Lq-BYR6oxisKzHsWTxF5AsiLmtcNGDNtwCsXzgIuSp2vW4pa6pAda-tTriG23zKX1ZuknQ81HGh411pqRkM?purpose=inline)

### New Zealand First

New Zealand First has proposed accessibility standards intended to reduce barriers to participation in education, employment, public services and community life. I could not verify a specific 2026 commitment to provide a new income payment to parents doing unpaid care. [Establishing an Accessible New Zealand for everyone](https://www.nzfirst.nz/establishing_an_accessible_new_zealand_for_everyone)[How do the different parties fare on disability issues this election?](https://team.thespinoff.nz/politics/30-09-2026/how-do-the-different-parties-fare-on-disability-issues-this-election)

![Te Pāti Māori - Party for Party vote - NZ Election 2023 - Policy.nz](https://images.openai.com/static-rsc-4/wTV9hxAOYzs4MX6hnGtj_ELeSR1VPbP9l046HOwhp2UZZtCfc8KwwZVB0-2n6Iinr3uWiRyM4dEa2cD5LOOtdlAjSgoNQ0gG9QXoJwemLTDmXMMEl5IUWheogu0GzYSG6_D0Qtx7eW7Xz-IH5QOBxQf00r7YeBj1geAzgX4aFok?purpose=inline)

### Te Pāti Māori

Te Pāti Māori's disability approach centres the self-determination of tāngata whaikaha Māori and whānau hauā, and the importance of Māori-led support. I could not verify a specific current election commitment setting out a new payment for parents who reduce their paid hours. [Disability Policies of NZ Political Parties](https://deafblindassociation.nz/disability-policies-of-nz-political-parties/)[How do the different parties fare on disability issues this election?](https://team.thespinoff.nz/politics/30-09-2026/how-do-the-different-parties-fare-on-disability-issues-this-election)

These are differences in the published commitments I could verify, not a ranking of parties. A missing specific commitment does not necessarily mean a party would oppose it.

## 2. School learning support: what matters for your child

Since getting appropriate help at school is your main concern, these are the commitments worth examining alongside carer payments.

| Party | Relevant published position |
| --- | --- |
| National | Its education policy promises Learning Support Coordinators for all schools with Years 1–8 students from 2028, plus two million additional teacher-aide hours annually from 2028 to support children with behavioural, emotional and neurodiverse needs. [Teaching the basics brilliantly](https://www.national.org.nz/policies/education-teaching-the-basics-brilliantly)[Budget 2025](https://www.national.org.nz/news/20250526-hon-louise-upston-budget-2025) |
| TOP | Its disability statement identifies learning support coordinators, RTLBs, speech-language therapists, psychologists and other specialist support as part of its education approach. [Opportunity Disability Position Statement - October 2026](https://www.opportunity.org.nz/disability_statement) |
| Greens | Its 2026 manifesto commits to inclusive education and a rights-based approach to disability. The detailed commitments should be checked for specific staffing levels and guaranteed support hours. [Manifesto 2026](https://www.greens.org.nz/manifesto_2026)[Greens oppose rushed disability support law changes](https://www.greens.org.nz/greens_oppose_rushed_disability_support_law_changes) |
| Labour | Its published election commitments include school property improvements, but the sources reviewed here do not establish a directly comparable, detailed new package for learning-support staffing. [Labour's 2026 Election Policies](https://www.labour.org.nz/policy) |
| ACT, NZ First and Te Pāti Māori | Their broader positions on welfare, accessibility and disability rights are relevant, but I could not verify directly comparable commitments covering guaranteed learning-support hours for your child. [ACT New Zealand](https://www.act.org.nz/news/act-announces-policy-to-make-benefits-a-hand-up-not-a-way-of-life)[Establishing an Accessible New Zealand for everyone](https://www.nzfirst.nz/establishing_an_accessible_new_zealand_for_everyone)[How do the different parties fare on disability issues this election?](https://team.thespinoff.nz/politics/30-09-2026/how-do-the-different-parties-fare-on-disability-issues-this-election) |

One important distinction: announcing more teacher-aide hours nationally is not the same as guaranteeing that your child will receive the hours or specialist assistance they need. Ask whether each party would provide needs-based, predictable support, how eligibility would be decided, and what happens when a school cannot meet a child's assessed needs.

The Disabled Persons Assembly and CCS Disability Action have also asked seven parties whether they would commit to predictable, needs-based funding for disabled learners in mainstream schools, including teacher aides, assistive technology and reasonable accommodations. Their [2026 disability election scorecard](https://www.dpa.org.nz/news-and-information/latest-news/disability-scorecard-for-2026-general-election/) is worth checking for parties' responses as they become available. [Disability Scorecard for 2026 General Election » Disabled Persons Assembly NZ](https://www.dpa.org.nz/news-and-information/latest-news/disability-scorecard-for-2026-general-election/)

## 3. Support you may be able to access now

You do not need to wait for the election to investigate existing assistance. Eligibility depends on your child's needs and circumstances, but these government services may be relevant.

- [Child Disability Allowance](https://www.workandincome.govt.nz/products/a-z-benefits/child-disability-allowance): a fortnightly payment to the main carer of a child under 18 who needs constant care and attention for 12 months or more because of a serious disability. Having additional learning needs alone does not automatically qualify a child. [Child Disability Allowance](https://www.workandincome.govt.nz/products/a-z-benefits/child-disability-allowance)
- [Disability Allowance](https://www.workandincome.govt.nz/products/a-z-benefits/disability-allowance.html): may help with ongoing costs arising from a disability, subject to eligibility requirements. [Caring for a child with a health condition or disability](https://www.workandincome.govt.nz/eligibility/carers/care-child-with-a-disability)
- [Carer Support](https://www.disabilitysupport.govt.nz/carers/how-to-access-carer-support): a subsidy that can contribute to the cost of someone else caring for an eligible disabled person, giving a full-time unpaid carer a break. Access and funding depend on assessment and eligibility. [How to access Carer Support](https://www.disabilitysupport.govt.nz/carers/how-to-access-carer-support)

These forms of assistance are not interchangeable: respite funding can give you time away from caring, but it does not necessarily replace wages lost when you reduce your paid work.

## 4. How to compare the parties for your circumstances

Before deciding how much weight to give each party's proposals, I would look for clear answers to four questions:

1. Income: Would a parent who cuts paid hours to attend meetings, supervise learning or provide care receive additional financial assistance?
2. Eligibility: Would the rules recognise children with substantial learning or neurodevelopmental needs, including those who do not meet a high disability-support threshold?
3. School provision: Would the child receive predictable, needs-based specialist and teacher-aide support, rather than relying on what their school can currently provide?
4. Respite and flexibility: Would the parent have access to funded respite or support that makes it possible to maintain paid employment?

The parties' detailed policies and answers may change as the campaign progresses. The [Policy.nz 2026 election guide](https://policy.nz/2026) lets you compare published policies across education, disability and income support.

One particularly useful question to put to every party is: “What specific financial support would you provide to a parent who has to reduce paid working hours because their school-age child is not receiving sufficient learning support at school?” That asks for a concrete commitment rather than a general statement of support for families.

**End captured answer**

## Gemini · asked nationally

Answer ID: 91e33e50-96bd-4221-9ce4-55ff5706a5f4. Captured 16 October 2026.

**Begin captured answer — shown as given, not verified**

Navigating the challenges of reducing paid work to care for a child who needs extra learning support is a significant balancing act. For the 2026 New Zealand general election, political parties approach the intersection of caregiving, welfare, and family financial support through different lenses—focusing variously on income assistance, tax structures, disability support system reforms, and employment flexibility. 

The primary policy directions and proposals from New Zealand’s political parties concerning support for parents and family caregivers who reduce their hours of paid work include:

### 1. Income Support, Benefits, and Welfare Reform
* **The Green Party:** Generally advocates for stronger income security and welfare reforms aimed at reducing poverty for families with disabled or high-needs children. They support lifting benefit baselines and exploring systemic income support that accounts for the hidden costs of full-time caregiving and reduced workforce participation.
* **Labour Party:** Focuses on strengthening the welfare safety net and protecting entitlements. Their approach traditionally emphasizes equitable financial support for families and whānau who take on primary caregiving roles, alongside rebuilding public service access to ease household pressure.
* **National, ACT, and New Zealand First:** These parties typically lean toward welfare systems that incentivize a return to paid work where possible, balancing income support with targeted tax relief or economic management. While they acknowledge the pressures on families, their primary mechanisms for helping working households often center on broader economic measures, tax adjustments, or inflation-relief policies rather than expanding long-term standalone caregiver benefits.

### 2. Carer Recognition and Disability Support System (DSS) Funding
* **National Party:** Centers its approach on keeping the Disability Support Services system financially stable, establishing national consistency, and restoring flexibility and choice within individualised funding models. For parents acting as carers, flexible funding mechanisms aim to give families more say over how support packages are utilized.
* **Labour & The Greens:** Both parties emphasize alignment with the *Enabling Good Lives* principles, which champion self-determination and choice for disabled people and their families. Labour has committed to repealing and replacing certain centralized disability support changes to ensure carer and family voices are prioritized. The Greens strongly support expanding individualised funding models to reduce administrative hurdles for families.
* **Te Pāti Māori:** Advocates for whānau-centered and culturally grounded models of care (such as *tāngata whaikaha Māori* frameworks), emphasizing that support systems must resource the extended family unit and recognize the economic sacrifices made by indigenous caregivers.

### 3. Workplace Flexibility and Employment Rights
* **The Greens and Labour:** Support strengthening employment relations frameworks—such as expanding flexible working arrangements by right—making it easier for parents to balance reduced or modified paid work without facing workplace discrimination or structural career penalties. They also focus on removing workplace barriers for disabled individuals and carers re-entering the workforce.
* **ACT and National:** Focus more heavily on economic frameworks that support business flexibility, emphasizing that economic growth and lower living costs/tax adjustments are the most sustainable ways to assist working families, while generally opposing rigid mandates on employers.

### Summary of Differences
* If you are looking for **expanded welfare baselines, rights-based funding, and direct financial recognition for caregiving**, center-left parties (Labour, Greens, Te Pāti Māori) typically feature these more prominently in their platforms.
* If you are looking for **systemic flexibility, individualised funding controls, and broader economic/tax management** to ease household costs, center-right parties (National, ACT) emphasize these pathways. 

Are you interested in exploring how specific parties propose to fund and deliver the actual learning support inside ordinary schools to help reduce the pressure on your child?

**End captured answer**

## Google AI Mode · asked nationally

Answer ID: 5be255d9-1867-490c-8b91-e73b030259ad. Captured 16 October 2026.

**Begin captured answer — shown as given, not verified**

Navigating learning support at school while balancing or cutting back on paid work is a significant challenge. In the context of the _New Zealand general election_ , different political parties approach the intersecting issues of **school learning support** , **disability support** , and **financial assistance/income support for carers** through distinct lenses.

The primary approaches and proposals from major political parties focus on two main areas relevant to your situation: school-level learning support and broader financial/carer support.

* * *

1\. School Learning Support Policies

Your main concern—getting suitable help for your child at school—is addressed via different educational manifestos and funding strategies:

 * * **The National Party:** Focuses heavily on foundational basics and scaling up systemic investments. They emphasize rolling out structured literacy, mandated teaching hours for reading, writing, and math, and increasing overall funding allocations for school-level learning support. Their approach relies on bolstering mainstream school resourcing and professional development rather than structural overhauls.

 * **The Labour Party:** Historically emphasizes expanding centralized staffing and specialist resources within the public education system, alongside broader public service investments. They generally advocate for boosting direct funding to schools to hire teacher aides and specialist support staff (such as educational psychologists and speech language therapists).

 * **The Green Party & Te Pāti Māori:** Tend to advocate for a rights-based, highly individualized framework for disabled and neurodivergent tamariki (children). They often propose tying learning support directly to enforceable standards and increasing funding for culturally responsive, specialized resources directly within communities and schools.

 *

* * *

2\. Support for Parents Reducing Paid Work / Carers

When parents reduce paid work to care for a child requiring extra support, the financial impact is tied to benefit systems, disability allowances, and carer support policies:

 * * **The Green Party:** Proposes structural changes to income support, advocating for higher, more timely baseline income support and benefit adjustments that better reflect the realities of carers and disabled whānau. They advocate for strengthening welfare safety nets so that unpaid or low-paid care work is economically recognized.

 * **The Opportunities Party (TOP):** Proposes a radical overhaul via a **Universal Basic Income (UBI)** (up to a designated weekly amount replacing traditional conditional benefits) alongside a universal annual disability/carer allowance, which would automatically support individuals regardless of whether they reduce paid work.

 * **National and ACT:** Generally focus economic relief through broad-based tax relief, inflation management, and individual choice/flexibility in funding models (such as individualized funding for disability supports) rather than universal benefit expansions. They encourage participation in the workforce where possible while aiming to streamline agency interactions (like ACC, health, and education) so families don't slip through administrative gaps.

 * **Labour:** Focuses on boosting baseline support for the wider care and support workforce and reviewing disability support legislation, though specific direct UBI-style universal carer stipends for parents reducing work are not central to their core platform.

 *

* * *

Where to Compare Detailed Policies

To review and compare specific candidate and party stances side-by-side as election day approaches, you can explore the neutral voting guide on

[Policy.nz](https://policy.nz/)

, specifically checking the categories for

Community and Inclusion

and

Schools

. You can also read advocacy breakdowns from organizations like

[Disability Rights New Zealand](https://drnz.co.nz/)

regarding how different party manifestos treat disability and carer rights.

**End captured answer**

## Google AI Overviews · asked nationally

Answer ID: 1f79d2df-7682-4c7b-b510-212d419a826e. Captured 16 October 2026.

**Begin captured answer — shown as given, not verified**

New Zealand political parties have vastly different approaches to addressing the intersection of **in-school learning support** and financial pressure on parents who reduce work hours to care for a child.

The primary policy proposals from major parties for the **2026 general election** fall into two main categories: in-class resourcing and direct financial/disability support systems.

* * *

1\. Classroom Learning Support & In-Class Relief

Improving help at school directly eases the burden on parents by ensuring children can safely and productively remain in class full-time.

 * **National:** Their centerpiece education policy focuses on a **$746 million learning support package** introduced in Budget 2025. For the 2028 school year, National promises to fully roll out **Learning Support Coordinators (LSCs)** to all schools with Year 1–8 students and build up to

**two million extra teacher-aide hours** every year to assist neurodiverse and high-needs children.

Teaching the basics brilliantlyTargeting learning support for better student achievement

 * **Labour:** Labour opposes what they consider cuts to wider disability infrastructure and has instead welcomed targeted funding boosts like the **$87.5 million lift for teacher aides** to increase direct classroom hours. They emphasize protecting a child's legal right to attend school full-time rather than being sent home due to a lack of staff.
 * **Green Party:** The Greens are advocating for a highly structured, rights-based approach. Their policy mandates that **all schools provide learning access centres** and use Universal Design for Learning (UDL) frameworks so that families do not have to fight for individual accommodations.
 * **The Opportunities Party (TOP):** TOP proposes structural education reforms ensuring that learning support coordinators, speech-language therapists, and psychologists are directly **available to every single school** without extensive waiting lists.

* * *

2\. Financial Support for Caregivers Cutting Work Hours

When parents must reduce paid work to provide care, the financial relief framework is governed heavily by the controversial **Disability Support Services (DSS) Bill** , which heavily polarizes the 2026 election platforms.

Political Party| Position on the DSS Bill / Structural Care Support| Proposed Financial Impact for Caregivers
---|---|---
**National**| **Supports.** Focuses on stabilizing the DSS budget while establishing a new, national "carer support package" outside of a standard employment model.| Aims to provide more consistent, flexible funding guidelines nationally (e.g., liberalized purchasing rules for respite or sensory equipment).
**Labour**| **Pledges to repeal it.** Labour vows to scrap the DSS Bill if elected, claiming it hands too much power to ministers and threatens future means-testing.| Promises to rebuild a rights-based framework alongside the disability sector to protect individual funding choice and family carer support.
**Green Party**| **Opposes current framework.** Demands a complete overhaul of caregiver compensation.| Advocates for **higher income support** , extending ACC to cover illness/disability income support regardless of origin, and providing timely, livable carer payments.
**ACT**| **Supports smaller government.** ACT's wider fiscal plan seeks to save $653 million by reassessing health and disability benefits.| Advocacy groups have flagged concerns over whether these cuts could impact allowances like the Child Disability Allowance or Carer Support.
**The Opportunities Party (TOP)**| **Proposes system overhaul.** Focuses on sweeping structural tax and income changes rather than minor benefit top-ups.| Proposes a universal citizen’s income alongside a **$6,000 annual universal disability allowance** to directly alleviate financial pressure on households.
**Te Pāti Māori**| **Supports self-determination.** Focuses heavily on funding and expanding **Māori-led disability services**.| Aims to shift resources directly to whānau-led models so that families have direct control over funding allocation to replace lost work income.

* * *

If you would like to explore specific policies further, please let me know:

 * Whether your child currently receives **ORS (Ongoing Resourcing Scheme)** funding.
 * If you are looking for information on specific existing caregiver relief, like **Flexible Funding** or the **Child Disability Allowance**.

**End captured answer**

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