David Hay says begging bylaw supporters "stupid heartless wretches"

Sir Bob Jones (in the NBR) and Larry Williams (in the NZ Herald on and NewstalkZB) have called for Wellington and Auckland to ban beggars from their streets. Mayoral candidate Mark Thomas has jumped aboard that bandwagon.

“That bylaw already exists.” said Mr Hay “The supporters of this proposal should have first checked Auckland Council’s existing Public Safety and Nuisance Bylaw (2013), which says, in part 6(1)(f): A person must not use a public place to… beg, in a manner that may intimidate or cause a nuisance to any person.”

“Begging is not an offence in Auckland unless it is a nuisance, as defined by the Health Act 1956, or it is accompanied by intimidation. That is an appropriate and responsible response.”

“The proponents of a ban are simply ignorant about the actual situation. We can’t expect much better from attention-seekers like Sir Bob Jones and Larry Williams. But if Mark Thomas want to be Mayor of Auckland he should at least know what the current bylaws are.” said Mr Hay.

“The promoters of this ban apparently have no understanding of, or empathy for, the plight of urban street-dwellers.” Said Mr Hay.

“The Auckland City Mission produced a report in 2013, titled An insight into the experience of rough sleeping in Auckland (2013). It shows that people in who live on our streets are often escaping situations of awful or persistent violence, abuse, and neglect. Some are trying to exit gangs, have been recently released from prison, or have merely lost their jobs.”

“Living on the street is, sadly, the best they can do. These people need our compassion and support. Banning them from our streets would simply make their already desperate situations worse. It would be an act of incredible cruelty and heartlessness.”

“If Auckland Council can afford to spend more than $175 million on an elaborate computer system, without producing any tangible benefit (the "NewCore" project), then can certainly afford to provide direct material and financial assistance for these hapless members of our community.”

“As Mayor I would do exactly that: provide funding for agencies like the Auckland City Mission, Salvation Army and Presbyterian Support Services to directly assist our street-dwellers. And I would invoice the government to recover the cost. We have beggars on our streets because of central government policy failures and under-provision of social welfare services. These matters are the government’s responsibility, not the council’s.”

“Finally, for the record: I described Sir Bob Jones as a "stupid heartless wretch" to the National Business Review, in my response to an enquiry from about his opinion piece. That was before I knew who had written it, which the NBR had not disclosed when it sought my views. I stand by that comment and gladly extend it to others who share his uninformed and ill-considered opinions on this matter.” said Mr Hay.

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