Ministry of Social Development Child Poverty Report 2022 highlights need to support struggling Pacific families
Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) welcomes the findings in the latest MSD Child Poverty Report showing that material hardship rates for many children had improved between 2013-21, thanks to government measures, rising employment rates, improving wages and the growing number of private charities.
However, the report painted a different picture for sole parent, Māori and Pacific children. These children risk being locked into poverty for most of their childhood says CPAG.
Material hardship rates, that is going without six or more ‘essential’ items, for Māori and Pacific children are much higher than the rest of the population. Around one in three Pacific children live in material hardship while the rate for Maori is one in four compared to the national average of one in ten.
As well two-thirds of children in severe hardship are in a family affected by disability.
Beneficiaries too are among the most impoverished people in our society. The MSD report showed the rate of material hardship for the children of beneficiaries is around four to five times higher than the rate for children in working households. However, even working households struggle. Although they have lower hardship rates than beneficiaries there are more such households, so the numbers are similar.
While government measures such as increased support for housing, child-care, incomes for families with children and free school lunches, have assisted many households, too many children are still being left behind says CPAG spokesperson Alan Johnson.
“There are at least 50,000 children in severe poverty or deprivation, most of whom are in households being supported by the state in some way. Government agencies know of these children yet nothing extra is done for them and their families to relieve their hardship. This is simply neglect.”
In addition, much of the data was collected prior to the Covid pandemic, and so does not capture the severe impact of lockdowns on low-income families or recent cost of living measures.
Sole parent and volunteer for Auckland Action Against Poverty Agnes Magele says post lockdown, many Pacific and Māori primary and secondary students have not returned to school, particularly those from low socioeconomic communities. One of the main drivers for this phenomenon is financial, even though Pacific families value education highly.
“Being born into a Samoan family I was raised knowing that education is vital and important. That is what all parents want for their children, and they work hard to make sure their kids get an excellent education.”
Covid changed all that. Suddenly basic needs like food and shelter took precedence and families were forced to make the ultimate sacrifice – allowing their children to leave school.
“Imagine being a young teenager 15-18 years having no choice but to quit school? Having to leave your comfort zone/sanctuary/safe space and going straight to work can cause major mental health issues such as depression, anxiety and suicide for those that don't have strong support networks. These are realistic issues our kids are facing and having to live and deal with on a daily basis.“
As well, the surveys, on which the MSD report is based, do not cover the worst-off children who live in emergency accommodation such as motels and garages. For these reasons, the true extent of child poverty in Aotearoa is likely to be much worse than portrayed. The report showed that rent takes up more than 40 per cent of income in low-income households. More recent data is unlikely to show an improvement.
CPAG says the government’s swift response to the Covid pandemic by financially supporting the business community, has shown it can act decisively and effectively in an emergency.
“Our poorest children surely deserve the same urgency and priority show for business owners during the pandemic, “says Johnson.
CPAG urges the government to reform the tax system to address inequality and ensure more money is collected to lift families out of poverty. The current system penalizes the children of families not in work by denying them a tax credit of $72.50 a week. If the purpose of the child payment is to relieve poverty but acts as a punishment, then people will remain in poverty, says Johnson. This punitive approach is not taken in other countries such as Australia.
CPAG calculates had this tax credit been paid to beneficiaries since 2006 when it was first introduced, these people would be $8b better off. “That’s $8 billion denied the poorest families,” says Johnson.
The government has embarked on a programme of building social housing, but the number of rental dwellings owned by Kāinga Ora, the government’s housing agency, has grown by just 3000 since Labour came to power. CPAG says this programme must be accelerated and the government sale of public land must stop.
“We are five years into the Labour government’s commitment to cut child poverty but there are children born five years ago whose only experience is living in poverty,” says Alan Johnson
CPAG would also like to see the recommendations of the Welfare Expert Advisory Group, established four years ago, calling for a major overhaul of how welfare is delivered in New Zealand. One of the most crucial tasks yet to be addressed is the review of Working for Families. A review last year showed the government had made limited progress.