Widespread disappointment from social agencies experiencing skyrocketing need

Thursday, 19 May 2022

Finance minister Grant Robertson talks to Stuff about Budget 2022.

This year's Budget has failed to do anything about the “widening gap between the haves and the have-nots”, disappointed social agencies say.

While a $350 payment to every wage-earning adult who earned less than $70,001 in the last financial year was welcomed by those on the frontline, the omission of further support for beneficiaries was not.

The Fairer Future Collaboration said the Government had chosen to leave families living in the harshest poverty further behind.

The coalition includes 75 organisations, including the Christchurch Beneficiary Advisory Service.

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Christchurch Beneficiary Advisory Services advocate Tavia Moore is disappointed the Budget isn’t doing more to help those on low incomes.

Service advocate Tavia Moore said she was surprised the Government did not do more to tackle the cost of living, particularly as it had acknowledged there was a crisis.

Many clients were carrying “huge debts”, not through a lack of budgeting, but because there was no money for any unexpected expenses.

Some were using payday loans or Afterpay and more working families were needing help, she said.

At the Christchurch City Mission, more and more “working poor” needed assistance, Anglican Care executive officer Patrick Murray said.

“Our issue is the widening gap between the haves and the have-nots.”

He felt the Budget failed to address the rising inequality in New Zealand in any substantial way.

Increasing benefits was the only way to directly help beneficiaries, he said.

NZ Disability Advisory Trust spokesperson Nick Stoneman said the Government had “missed the bus” when it came to welfare reform.

The Christchurch City Mission is seeing more working families needing assistance. (File photo)

He believed the Government had rewarded people who were not getting the benefit.

Stoneman receives a disability allowance himself, and sometimes had to miss meals because he had so little left in the kitty each week after paying bills.

Charnae Pyke is one of many beneficiaries struggling to meet her weekly bills.

“The Government partially understands, but they need to come and spend a month living in our shoes and see how we struggle to pay rent.”

He was considering changing his political allegiance from Labour because of the party’s lack of action.

Social Service Providers Aotearoa chief executive Dr Claire Achmad said while there were some positive announcements on Thursday, it was not enough.

Living cost increases were putting pressure on families, forcing some to make hard decisions between paying for food, power, communications or transport.

“We know the measures are not going to go far enough to address those pressures hitting families hard.”

Sockburn mother Charnae Pyke was also disappointed in the budget.

Like many beneficiaries, she watches every penny but still struggles to get to the end of a week with anything left.

She had hoped the Government would take GST off nutritious food, or increase the benefit to match inflation, but after reading the announcements, she felt there was nothing in it for people like her.

“It’s pretty disappointing.”