Paul Barber: Salvation Army's State of the Nation report on the deteriorating living standards in New Zealand

The Salvation Army's raising the alarm as living standards deteriorate across New Zealand. 

Its state of the nation report's out, revealing one in four children also report they often or sometimes go without food. 

It finds we have around 400 thousand needing welfare support, the highest number in decades. 

Author Paul Barber told Mike Hosking the measurements are being taken to see both what’s improving and to be realistic about what’s getting worse. 

He says they’ve seen a fantastic increase in the number of social housing available for those who need it, but they’ve also seen a disturbing rise in people living in the streets as emergency housing supports ended. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
We've got our eighteenth annual State of the Nation report
from the Sally's. One fun fact is that more than
four hundred thousand people needed welfare support last year. That's
the highest in more than thirty years. Report author Paul
Barber's with us. Paul, very good morning to you.

Speaker 2 (00:13):
Yeah, Maria, Nika, good to talk to you.

Speaker 1 (00:15):
And you too. I wanted to find some good news,
and I've got some good news in your report. Fewer
mari kids are in state care as community based alternatives increase.
This is excellent, isn't it.

Speaker 2 (00:26):
Well, yes, it is one of those examples of the
good news that is in our report about health. How
there are changes happening that can improve things for people.
But overall, it's afraid the earth. We're looking at a
fairly challenging time for our community.

Speaker 1 (00:42):
Do you go in with a lens of negativity? And
I don't mean to be rude in saying that, but
for eighteen years I've been doing these stories, and for
eighteen years you've told us how miserable New Zealand is.
Is that productive?

Speaker 2 (00:53):
We were? Actually people have hoped in the salvation army,
and our report is about trying to focus on what's
actually making it difference of the people that we're working
with every day and in the communities is one hundred
and thirty five thousand people that come to the Salvation
of Harmony seeking help and support. And we're looking at
these measurements to see both improvements and as well as

(01:13):
to be realistic up what's getting worse. Over the years
we've sitten there many many times we're able to identify
lots of positive changes and you know, I think this year, unfortunately,
it's already been a tough year. We've seen rising food
and security, it's risen to a record level. We've seen

(01:35):
a really mixed story around homelessness and housing. We've seen
a fantastic increase in a number of public houses, so
social housing available to help people who are waiting for
her need at home. But on the other hand, we've
also seen a disturbing rise in the street homelessness as
people as the emergency housing support has been ended.

Speaker 1 (01:56):
Do you ever draw down into the need and where
it comes from. And we'll be talking about this new
move from Housing New Zealand after seven o'clock this morning
about chasing up some of the back rent. Is the
back rent for example, or in your circumstances to help
hand it out. Is it because there's nothing you can
do as an individual, or because as an individual there
probably was something you could do, you just couldn't be bothered.

Speaker 2 (02:18):
I think it's a very very small issue, this issue
of over your rentals on social housing. What's most important
is that you're providing a place for people to live
that they're supported. And it's a tiny, tiny proportion. If
we were talking about the Coying Order House, there's a
tiny proportion here in that situation, and that's among seventy

(02:40):
thousand people who are a whole house.

Speaker 1 (02:43):
Rent. In an economy we don't have the money.

Speaker 2 (02:47):
That twenty one million compares to the what is it
three or so billion in rent that is collected over
seventy thousand rentals. We have to have a bit of
perspective on that.

Speaker 1 (02:56):
So that's what I'm trying to get to. So your
your ideological and political view of the world is people struggle,
that's just life, and we pick up the tab and
we pay the bill for that.

Speaker 2 (03:07):
Our view is it's important to be besides people to
help them against get stability in their lives and to
help people have their lives transformed, and what we see
when social housing is doing well, that's exactly what happens,
and in fact, that's why we strongly support increasing community
and caring order our government owned public housing so that

(03:31):
we can actually help people, help end homelessness. That's the dream,
and we've seen a lot of we've seen a lot
of progress in that space, and we'd really like to
see that continued.

Speaker 1 (03:40):
Good stuff, Paul, appreciate your time. Paul Barbera, who is
the report author the Salvation Army Reports number eighteen. For
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