In New Zealand there is sufficient evidence to show that poor peoples’ lives are cut short because of poverty related poor nutrition. While food banks are alleviating the worst impacts of hunger, their kindness may well be contributing to the problem. Food poverty is a systemic issue and requires a systemic response, a response that successive governments are able to avoid while charities continue to provide a buffer for the system.
Reason #4637 why we need to change the government – Midwife reprimanded after speaking out about abuse and neglect in South Auckland
Two excellent but very disturbing pieces in The Herald yesterday. This crisis in poverty, housing and health is a national disgrace. It is why we desperately need to elect a Labour led government in September.
I/S at No Right Turn writes: “Five years ago, National set itself a target as part of its “Better Public Services” targets to reduce the incidence of rheumatic fever by two-thirds. They failed.”
UNICEF has another major report ranking the wellbeing of NZ kids 34th out of 41 developed countries. This is not new news, and apparently a lot of voters just don’t give a damn.
The 2016 Child Poverty Monitor Technical Report is out today. As usual it paints a bleak picture. What will Bill English’s government do about poverty – evasions, words, or actions? Update: Bill fails.
As topics like Trump and the quakes take the limelight, the slow tragedies unfolding in NZ carry on in the background.
Millions of dollars are being poured into reducing rheumatic fever in NZ. However rates of the disease in Auckland are at least double the target level – and rising.
Once again this country under National is rightly shamed in the international media.
Fuck the whole “Brighter Future” New Zealand.
Inequality in NZ is the worst it’s been in a decade. Key’s response is pathetic. We need to vote to end suck-up economics. We need to be a better country than this.
Another report on child poverty for the Nats to ignore.
A Kiwi Kids allowance for all under fives, with totally fee free public primary and secondary schools.
An excellent piece on poverty by Lizzie Marvelly in The Herald this morning poses a question to which we already know the answer. (Plus some bonus rambling on the media.)
John Key has tried to deflect from his government’s appalling record on child poverty with some throw-away nonsense about drugs. There are just three teeny tiny problems with that line…
Max Rashbrooke has a major article in The Guardian today looking at poverty in NZ and the UK, and what each country can learn from the other.
According to the Ministry of Social Development child poverty is worse in NZ than in any European country. According to the Child Poverty Action Group new figures are going to show an increase in poverty. According to the coroner a damp unhealthy state house contributed to the death of a child. Welcome to the “brighter future”.
The continued rise of rheumatic fever is an indictment of our society.
New figures show that there is no quick fix for diseases of poverty.
Your move, National.
A recently published UNICEF report on levels of child poverty amongst developed economies suggests that despite our rockstar economy and our brighter future child poverty levels in New Zealand have stagnated since 2008 while in Australia meaningful changes have been made.
The National government has always been selective about what it likes to measure, and so far refused to measure poverty. Under questioning on Morning Report this morning Key finally made a commitment to do so. We must hold him to it.
While the left lost the election, it looks like we’ve won another battle in the war of ideas, with John Key being forced to at least pretend he wants to do something about child poverty. Ideas long recommended from the Children’s Commissioner may finally be implemented.
It’s great to see John Key taking a sudden interest in addressing child poverty in New Zealand. But why the change of heart?
One of the most dishonest arguments the right ever put forward on the subject of poverty is around one of the simplest things in life: a bowl of Weet-Bix.
National is not interested in doing anything about poverty in NZ. They won’t even officially measure poverty, because they don’t want to know.
Advocacy groups are calling for action. People are marching for action. The parties of the left are ready to take action. Only National stands in the way.
They care about Child Poverty (and presumably he doesn’t)
Making sure every rental property is a warm, dry home should be a no-brainer in the 21st century. Parliament will shortly get the chance to vote on my Healthy Homes Guarantee Bill. The vote will sort the parties for whom this is a genuine belief from those who just pay it lip service.
This National led Government has seriously mismanaged things and is desperate to hide the true effects of its governance over the last five years. I half suspect many of the retiring National MPs are jumping ship because they don’t want to be around when the proverbial hits the fan. National have carefully constructed showy facades that hide flimsy realities
The government doesn’t measure child poverty, so has no way to tell if it is getting better or worse. Hilarious right? Paula Bennett certainly thinks so. “Gosh!”
The Maori Party has publicly called on National to act on the child poverty report. Was this a token protest for form’s sake, or will the Maori Party actually make a stand for kids?
The Greens have started a new programme – Champions for Children. We should all sign up. We need to make alleviating child poverty the election issue of 2014.
A guest post from Carol on the Children’s Commissioner’s Expert Advisory Group (EAG) report, to be released today. We need a sustainable destination, not a life raft. Update: The report is out.
No one can fix the tail of educational underachievement without fixing poverty.
Here’s a prediction for you – the Nats will ignore this report too. They’re not particularly interested in the issue of kids in poverty.
