ATSA welcomes MP allowance increases?

ATSA welcomes MP allowance increases?

Increases for MP’s accommodation allowances are great, if everyone gets the same, Aotearoa Tertiary Students Association President Julie Pettett says today.

Currently the maximum a student can receive for an accommodation supplement in Wellington is $27.50 per week.

“This will get you a nice cardboard box in the green belt, a 20% raise, which the politicians are sure to get, will allow you to move your box closer to the bus route. Though you still probably can’t afford the bus,” She says.

The increase in the allowance for MP’s accommodation highlights a real problem for people who choose to study at any of the numerous Tertiary Institutions in central city areas.

“Students struggle every year to find good, affordable accommodation, many end up in cold dank pits that are not conducive to creating a ‘knowledge society’ in New Zealand,” Pettett says.

“Perhaps this Government will propose some real solutions to the problem of accommodation for all students in the upcoming review of student support,” she says.

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