Grey Power and Home Heating

National President, Roy Reid has expressed his concern that New Zealanders can’t afford adequate home heating.

A recent Canstar survey of two thousand people on whether they could afford to heat their homes, has revealed that over a third of New Zealand householders can’t afford to keep warm. Even more important is the fact that three quarters of them have changed their behaviour to limit their electricity expenditure.

“This comes at a huge cost,” said Mr Reid. “Turning heating off impacts on people’s health and well-being, resulting in hospital stays and doctor visits. It is a travesty that in NZ, some families have to heat and cram into a single room, which can spread infections, and we know that some Grey Power members are forced to go to bed to keep warm.”

Grey Power considers adequate home heating to be a basic human right that should be protected under the United Nations Treaty on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, but Government says electricity is not an essential service. Since 1987, power prices have been determined by “the market”, leaving the ever-increasing social costs to be dealt with by the welfare system.

Mr Reid concluded, “New Zealand's international obligation to promote human rights requires that the state constantly strive to improve the level of health and standard of living. Privatising electricity companies does not mean the state can contract out to the private sector its responsibility to protect human rights.”

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