Purpose of the Social Report
The Social Report has four key aims:
- to provide and monitor over time measures of wellbeing and
quality of life that complement existing economic and environmental
indicators
- to compare New Zealand with other countries on measures of
wellbeing
- to provide greater transparency in government and to
contribute to better-informed public debate
- to help identify key issues and areas where we need to take
action, which can in turn help with planning and decision making.
The Report enables us to examine the current level of
wellbeing in New Zealand, how this has changed over time, and how
different groups in the population are faring. It helps us to identify
adverse trends in social outcomes at an early stage. While the Report
cannot always illuminate what is driving these trends, it can point to
the need for further research to understand what is happening and what
actions need to be taken to address them.
Government policy, as well as individuals, families,
communities, businesses and international factors, influence the
outcomes we report on. The cross-cutting nature of many social issues
means the Social Report is not a tool for evaluating the effectiveness
of specific government policies.
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