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1News
5 hours ago
- 1News
'Many' link Govt's emergency housing policy to homelessness rise
Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka has acknowledged reports of rising homelessness but says it's "not just down to one thing" as he defends the Government's tougher rules for emergency housing. Potaka was grilled on the issue on Q+A, where he conceded the changes to increase scrutiny for emergency housing support applicants have been "reported by many" as contributing to making more people homeless. When asked directly whether the policy changes had contributed to leaving more people homeless, the minister said: "That's a very strong view that many people have." But Potaka refused to make that connection himself, instead attributing claims of a link to "anecdotal" reports and what others had reported. Person helps person up (file image). (Source: ADVERTISEMENT "There's a range of factors that influence [homelessness], and the changes to the emergency housing policy have been reported by many people as being a contributor." The Government introduced tougher eligibility for emergency housing last year, including scrutiny of whether people had "unreasonably contributed" to their own housing need. When interviewer Jack Tame suggested the policy could've "put more people on the street", Potaka said: "Those are the things that we have acknowledged that there are some challenges, and we are responding to those with agility." His office later clarified to Q+A this did not mean the Government was actively considering changing emergency housing settings. Reacting to the minister's interview, the Greens said he was "refusing to take any accountability" for the outcomes of the harsher policies. Govt's policies 'very, very harsh', providers tell minister Speaking to Q+A, the minister confirmed an updated briefing on homelessness from the Housing and Urban Development Ministry had found rough sleeping had increased "in some areas". He insisted the rises may be down to a range of factors. ADVERTISEMENT Tougher emergency housing rules and two-strike warning policy for tenants has meant more young people on the streets, says charities. (Source: 1News) Potaka said the latest insights briefing he had received showed "there's a whole range of potential causes, including that, but a whole range of other things", such as mental health, addiction, cost of living, and other physical health issues. "It does recognise, throughout the country, there are community housing providers [and] councils who are saying, hey, there's a big, big challenge with homelessness." Some providers had described the emergency housing policy as "harsh", Potaka said. "They report that the emergency housing policy is very, very harsh. That's what some of the anecdotal reports are saying." The associate minister said he would release the homelessness insights report "soon", but did not provide a specific timeframe. Potaka maintained there were multiple factors behind rising homelessness: "What they're saying is we've got a whole range of causes." Labour has been pressuring the Government over the report earlier this week. ADVERTISEMENT The senior minister spoke to Q+A's Jack Tame. (Source: Q and A) Housing Minister Chris Bishop denied that homelessness and rough sleeping were rising as a result of the Government's changes in a Q+A interview in March. 'Refusing to take responsibility' - Greens on interview Reacting to Potaka's interview, the Greens' housing spokesperson Tamatha Paul said the Government needed to "admit" that its policy was increasing homelessness. "This Government has cut back on public housing, slashed emergency housing access, and is refusing to take any accountability or responsibility for the impact this is having on the rising rates of people being forced to live on the streets, in tents and in cars." The coalition rolled out changes for emergency housing eligibility in early to mid-last year, including a tougher approach to allowing people into homes in the first place. People seeking support would face greater scrutiny, more requirements for information, and to prove they hadn't themselves "contributed" to their needs for emergency housing. ADVERTISEMENT At the time, officials warned the Government that the changes risked putting more people into situations of rough sleeping. Q+A's Whena Owen takes a look at changes to emergency housing and public housing policy. (Source: 1News) "Making these changes ahead of significant increases to the supply of affordable housing and more preventative wraparound supports does create a risk of increased levels of rough sleeping, people living in cars and overcrowding," they told ministers at the time. Target met but concerns remain Potaka defended the policy changes, saying the Government had also met its target to reduce emergency housing numbers by 75%. The policy intended to move people from emergency housing facilities, such as motels, to more stable housing. "We set up a target. That target was to reduce the number of whānau and households living in emergency housing. We've reached the target, but we've also recognised there are still some challenges and some issues," he said. The associate minister said tracking of people leaving emergency housing had improved, with the Government now knowing where "85-86%" of people went. ADVERTISEMENT "When we came into administration, the teams knew where around 50% of people were going. Now we know that there is about 85-86% of where people are going. In my view, that's actually good progress," he said. Govt not actively considering changes to tougher rules In a subsequent statement, the associate minister clarified to Q+A that this did not mean changes were coming to the Government's policy on emergency housing. "Emergency housing remains available for those in genuine need, and the causes of homelessness are not just about housing," a spokesperson for Potaka said. "A long-term response to the complexities requires consideration across multiple portfolios, for example helping people to face physical or mental health and addictions challenges, they might need help learning financial skills like budgeting, or help connecting and working with support services. "In the housing portfolio, $500 million in funding goes into programmes to help people, for example through the Housing First programme. "To help increase the amount of affordable housing, Budget 2024 allocated $140 million for 1500 new social housing places to be operated by community housing providers. ADVERTISEMENT "The Government has also accelerated $200 million into Māori housing projects across the country that will enable the delivery of 400 affordable rentals in high-need areas." In his Q+A interview, Potaka was also questioned about his conservation portfolio and how changes to smoking laws would affect Māori. For the full interview, watch the video above Q+A with Jack Tame is made with the support of New Zealand On Air
RNZ News
5 hours ago
- RNZ News
The Politics Panel for 23 Jully 2025
Wallace Chapman and the Politics Panel discuss and analyse the main political stories of the day. He is joined this week by RNZ's Corin Dann, the NZ Herald's Fran O'Sullivan and former government minister Phil Goff. On the slate today: Nicola Willis says Kiwis are not getting a raw deal from high butter prices (after meeting the CEO of Fonterra); Defence Minister Judith Collins told a crowd of graduating Army recruits last week that they should prepare for "combat"; just 38 percent of respondents to a Talbot Mills poll say the government deserved a second term; is the government using locla councils as a whipping boy and National seems to have found a bright spot in one area of it's party policy: Education. To embed this content on your own webpage, cut and paste the following: See terms of use.
NZ Herald
7 hours ago
- NZ Herald
Government report shows homelessness ‘appears' to be outstripping population growth
The report comes around halfway through this Government's term, which has included tightening emergency housing rules, and social and transitional housing initiatives. Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka said although accurate numbers on homelessness were difficult to find, it was 'clear we have a real problem'. 'The Government takes this seriously. All New Zealanders deserve a warm, dry place to stay, and the Government is determined to make progress on this long-running challenge for New Zealand.' Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says it is clear New Zealand has a real problem with homelessness. Photo / Mark Mitchell Potaka said the Government was seeking advice from officials on further interventions to help rough sleepers, saying 'we are also open to new ideas that will make an enduring difference'. Officials defined homelessness as living situations where people have no way of accessing safe and secure housing. This could include having no shelter at all, living in temporary or uninhabitable accommodation, or staying in a house with others, such as couch surfing. The report estimates people living without shelter are more likely to be older, with more than a quarter aged over 65. Twelve per cent were under 15 years old. Concerns from groups, collated in the report, included people and families sleeping rough, in cars, garages or uninhabitable conditions, or couch surfing during winter. They told researchers there were increasing levels of hopelessness and complex needs because of methamphetamine use, anti-social behaviour and severe mental health concerns. Emergency housing The portion of applications for emergency housing that were declined increased from 4% in March 2024 to 32% in March 2025, the report found. This statistic comes after Potaka's emergency housing policy changes in August 2024, which included limiting discretion and tightening rules to ensure it was only accessed 'where absolutely necessary'. Reasons people were declined included that they could meet their needs another way (34.3%), their circumstances could have been 'reasonably foreseen' (22.5%), they were not eligible for a grant (16.7%) or their situation was not considered an emergency (14.7%). Labour leader Chris Hipkins says the Government has no plan for where people go when they are removed from emergency accommodation. Photo / Mark Mitchell Potaka said more than $550 million was being spent annually across a range of programmes run by multiple agencies, including Transitional Housing, Housing First, Rapid Rehousing and many other support services. The minister argued there was a 37% increase in people living in shelters between 2018 and 2023 when the previous Labour Government was in power and that the Government was also dealing with the large-scale emergency housing 'social disaster' it had inherited from Labour. In January, the Government celebrated reaching its target for reducing the number of people in emergency motels by 75% five years early. But it raised questions over where people went when they left emergency housing. Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka (left) and Prime Minister Christopher Luxon say the Government has spent half a billion dollars helping people in homeless situations. Photo / Mark Mitchell Labour leader Chris Hipkins accused the Government of kicking 'everybody out of emergency accommodation' without having a plan for where they were to go. 'I think every New Zealander living in a main city can walk down the street and see there are more people living on the street, in cars, and that the Government's actions have contributed to that,' he said. 'When you boot everybody out of emergency accommodation ... this is what happens.' The report said for around 14% of people who left emergency housing, officials were not sure where they went. Others went into a mix of social and transitional housing, or received housing support supplements. 'We do know where 85% [of people] have gone and we're really happy that a lot of kids have come out of emergency housing. Those 14% we don't know where they've gone, but they don't have to tell us where they are going,' Potaka said. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon told reporters his Government had spent half a billion dollars helping people in these situations. 'Homelessness is a really complex issue. People often come with a complex set of needs, whether its mental health or addiction. No Kiwi wants to see homelessness.' Luxon said he was proud of 'the fact that we have taken 6000 people off the social state housing list'. 'I'm also really proud that we've got 2100 kids out of motels and into really good homes by prioritising those families.' Julia Gabel is a Wellington-based political reporter. She joined the Herald in 2020 and has most recently focused on data journalism.
