1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:03,000 Speaker 1: There has been no change to child poverty in the 2 00:00:03,080 --> 00:00:06,920 Speaker 1: last year. Data released yesterday by Stat's New Zealand shows 3 00:00:06,920 --> 00:00:09,760 Speaker 1: that seventeen point seven percent of all children are in 4 00:00:09,800 --> 00:00:13,320 Speaker 1: poverty and that is based on household income after housing 5 00:00:13,800 --> 00:00:17,600 Speaker 1: costs have been paid. So Save the Children New Zealand's 6 00:00:17,600 --> 00:00:20,680 Speaker 1: advocacy and Research director as Jackie Southy, who joins me now, Heather, 7 00:00:20,800 --> 00:00:25,239 Speaker 1: Jackie Kilder Andrew, did you have any confidence that maybe 8 00:00:25,239 --> 00:00:27,400 Speaker 1: the figures will be better or were you expecting this? 9 00:00:29,160 --> 00:00:32,120 Speaker 2: We were expecting this. We've we come off the back 10 00:00:32,120 --> 00:00:34,960 Speaker 2: of a period of very high living costs, high inflation. 11 00:00:35,640 --> 00:00:38,600 Speaker 2: We're also seeing that there's a lot of financial strife 12 00:00:38,640 --> 00:00:41,279 Speaker 2: out there and people have lost their jobs. People are 13 00:00:41,280 --> 00:00:43,960 Speaker 2: really feeling the cost of living, and we know that 14 00:00:43,960 --> 00:00:47,800 Speaker 2: we're in a recession. So we didn't expect a rosy picture. 15 00:00:48,840 --> 00:00:51,040 Speaker 1: Are you expecting it to get rosier or do you 16 00:00:51,040 --> 00:00:52,880 Speaker 1: think this will continue on in the medium term. 17 00:00:54,280 --> 00:00:57,200 Speaker 2: Well, Unlessie makes significant changes to the way that people 18 00:00:57,200 --> 00:01:00,520 Speaker 2: can access housing and that make it more affordable, whether 19 00:01:00,560 --> 00:01:03,400 Speaker 2: renting or owning a home, and also lift the lowest 20 00:01:03,440 --> 00:01:07,200 Speaker 2: incomes of the lowest income families, particularly for soule parent families. 21 00:01:07,440 --> 00:01:09,680 Speaker 2: This is not going to significantly change. 22 00:01:10,360 --> 00:01:12,520 Speaker 1: So seventeen point seven percent of all children are in 23 00:01:12,560 --> 00:01:16,480 Speaker 1: poverty based on household income after housing costs have been 24 00:01:16,480 --> 00:01:18,800 Speaker 1: taken out of the equation. So does that show that 25 00:01:18,840 --> 00:01:21,080 Speaker 1: the housing costs are the real issue in this country? 26 00:01:22,200 --> 00:01:25,600 Speaker 2: Absolutely. We can see that the families on the lowest 27 00:01:25,640 --> 00:01:28,320 Speaker 2: thing comes to spending more than forty percent of their 28 00:01:28,319 --> 00:01:32,440 Speaker 2: income on housing, and that compares to twenty percent as 29 00:01:32,440 --> 00:01:36,479 Speaker 2: a national average. And so quite simply, it's not affordable. 30 00:01:36,520 --> 00:01:38,560 Speaker 2: It doesn't leave enough money to pay for the other 31 00:01:38,640 --> 00:01:41,199 Speaker 2: necessities in life, such as the energy costs, food costs, 32 00:01:41,760 --> 00:01:43,920 Speaker 2: to be able to service your car and make sure 33 00:01:43,920 --> 00:01:45,720 Speaker 2: you've got a decent car, money to get you where 34 00:01:45,760 --> 00:01:46,399 Speaker 2: you need to go. 35 00:01:47,040 --> 00:01:49,040 Speaker 1: So look, I had an interview earlier this morning where 36 00:01:49,040 --> 00:01:50,480 Speaker 1: I was talking to a guy about the cost of 37 00:01:50,480 --> 00:01:52,400 Speaker 1: building and it's gone up forty four percent over the 38 00:01:52,480 --> 00:01:55,600 Speaker 1: last four years. Housing is not getting any more affordable. 39 00:01:55,840 --> 00:01:58,440 Speaker 1: We know this is the problem. We have been trying 40 00:01:58,440 --> 00:02:01,240 Speaker 1: to fix it for an AID. So do you have 41 00:02:01,280 --> 00:02:04,440 Speaker 1: any great ideas about how the government could tackle child poverty, 42 00:02:04,440 --> 00:02:06,680 Speaker 1: because so far, with all the will in the world, 43 00:02:06,720 --> 00:02:07,360 Speaker 1: it hasn't worked. 44 00:02:08,680 --> 00:02:10,440 Speaker 2: But I think we've seen some changes in the way 45 00:02:10,480 --> 00:02:12,919 Speaker 2: we build houses and the sort of houses we need. 46 00:02:13,240 --> 00:02:14,920 Speaker 2: You know, for a long type of decades, we were 47 00:02:14,919 --> 00:02:19,399 Speaker 2: building very big homes, multi bedroom, very expensive, and we've 48 00:02:19,400 --> 00:02:21,560 Speaker 2: seen that people have gone towards and more less the 49 00:02:21,680 --> 00:02:25,400 Speaker 2: kits at home and that they've really improved in quality. 50 00:02:25,680 --> 00:02:28,120 Speaker 2: They're more compact, they're cheaper to build, and you know, 51 00:02:28,240 --> 00:02:30,760 Speaker 2: that's a potential way of solving our issues as looking 52 00:02:30,800 --> 00:02:34,160 Speaker 2: at how can we build smaller, better, good quality homes 53 00:02:34,160 --> 00:02:36,840 Speaker 2: but are definitely more affordable. And the other thing is 54 00:02:36,880 --> 00:02:40,280 Speaker 2: we need to look at the lowest incomes and that's 55 00:02:40,280 --> 00:02:44,000 Speaker 2: for our sole parents families. They're struggling on forty six 56 00:02:44,480 --> 00:02:48,639 Speaker 2: thousand per annum disposable income and that's absolutely shockingly low 57 00:02:48,680 --> 00:02:50,600 Speaker 2: by any measure for a family to be trying to 58 00:02:50,600 --> 00:02:53,120 Speaker 2: live on in this day and age. Amongst the costs 59 00:02:53,160 --> 00:02:54,760 Speaker 2: that we face for fase a. 60 00:02:54,800 --> 00:02:56,880 Speaker 1: Living, Jackie, you face a challenge. Thank you for all 61 00:02:56,880 --> 00:02:59,120 Speaker 1: the work you do. Jackie is Save the Children, New 62 00:02:59,160 --> 00:03:00,919 Speaker 1: Zealand's advocacy research director. 63 00:03:02,120 --> 00:03:05,080 Speaker 2: For more from Early Edition with Ryan Bridge, listen live 64 00:03:05,200 --> 00:03:08,200 Speaker 2: to news Talks it Be from five am weekdays, or 65 00:03:08,280 --> 00:03:10,200 Speaker 2: follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.