Government called out on poverty fail
Government called out on poverty fail
The
Salvation Army’s latest state of the nation report
highlights yet again the tragedy of a government that has
all but given up on any serious efforts to stem New
Zealand’s disgraceful child poverty rate, Labour’s
Social Development spokesperson and Spokesperson for
Children, Jacinda Ardern says.“This year’s report is
aptly titled ‘She’ll be right’. Those three words
pretty much sum up the attitude of the National government,
which seems content to sit back while things steadily get
worse for our kids.
“Giving it a below average ‘D’
for progress on child poverty, the report makes specific
reference to the Ministerial Committee on Poverty’s lack
of action, yet the government continues to claim the
committee is making a difference.
“That’s just
rubbish. Both the White Paper on Vulnerable Children and
Paula Bennett’s welfare reforms have been heavily
criticised for either ignoring poverty or for making it
worse.
“It’s particularly astounding that the government is also claiming the reforms have helped when all the evidence points to a massive increase in the use of sanctions on families with kids doing more harm than good in an environment where there is simply no work.
“What part of child poverty and its progression to chronic and on-going poverty doesn’t this government get? We all know child poverty isn’t just a problem for the present – it has long-term consequences, and right now it’s costing taxpayers $6 billion each year.
“The Children’s
Commissioner’s Expert Advisory Group has provided the
government with a suite of measures to help tackle child
poverty.
“Ignoring the problem won’t make it go
away.”
ends