Lean quota rise shames New Zealand

Archbishop Philip Richardson says this week's quota rise of 250 leaves New Zealand way short on the global refugee ledger.

• Refugee quota boost 'less than bare minimum'

TAONGA NEWS | 13 JUN 2016

Archbishop Philip says today's announcement that adds 250 refugee places to our annual quota fails to show New Zealand acting as a responsible global citizen.

He welcomes the news that 250 more people will be offered refuge in this country, and that 600 Syrian refugees have come via the emergency intake, but says those increases are shameful on the world stage.

“In the past five years, there has been a 76 percent increase in people displaced due to war and persecution: from 34 million to 60 million people.” he said.

“Although the stories of terror play out far from our shores, we need to respond as global neighbours and step up to offer as much as we can.”

“I believe we are a compassionate and caring country, but in the face of the current crisis, this increase almost says the opposite."

New Zealand lags well behind comparably-sized countries like Ireland, says Archbishop Philip.

With less than a third of New Zealand’s land area, and a slightly higher GDP per capita, Ireland has taken in four times our national refugee quota since 1976.

In a submission on the refugee quota presented to government earlier this year, the Anglican Church in Aotearoa New Zealand offered to raise its national commitment to supporting refugees and contribute more resources to enable larger intakes.

ENDS

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