1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:02,520 Speaker 1: Let's go to New Plymouth. Rough Sleepers there have been 2 00:00:02,520 --> 00:00:06,480 Speaker 1: told to basically move on, remove your belongings from foot 3 00:00:06,519 --> 00:00:10,120 Speaker 1: paths or risk losing them. New Plymouth District Council says 4 00:00:10,119 --> 00:00:13,160 Speaker 1: homeless people are in breach of by laws by obstructing 5 00:00:13,200 --> 00:00:17,400 Speaker 1: public places. The district's emergency shelter close in twenty twenty three. 6 00:00:17,480 --> 00:00:20,320 Speaker 1: New Plymouth District Mayor Neil Holden is with me this afternoon. 7 00:00:20,360 --> 00:00:24,239 Speaker 1: Hey Neil Coday, Ryan, good, thank you. Is this a 8 00:00:24,239 --> 00:00:26,159 Speaker 1: bit heavy handed or I mean, are you allowed to 9 00:00:26,200 --> 00:00:27,480 Speaker 1: just go and take people's stuff? 10 00:00:29,320 --> 00:00:32,040 Speaker 2: Well, the reality is what we've done is said to 11 00:00:32,080 --> 00:00:35,479 Speaker 2: people that you're not meant to camp on the main 12 00:00:35,520 --> 00:00:38,360 Speaker 2: street of town, on the footpath and blocking shops and doors. 13 00:00:39,720 --> 00:00:41,760 Speaker 2: It's not heavy handed at all because what we've done 14 00:00:41,800 --> 00:00:45,200 Speaker 2: is we're actually we've invested in a social worker trying 15 00:00:45,200 --> 00:00:48,199 Speaker 2: to get these people into housing where actually we've got 16 00:00:48,200 --> 00:00:51,600 Speaker 2: a proposal coming on the first of April where we're 17 00:00:51,640 --> 00:00:56,240 Speaker 2: potentially going to be considering putting hundreds of thousands of 18 00:00:56,280 --> 00:01:01,560 Speaker 2: dollars into funding a home the shelter because the government 19 00:01:01,680 --> 00:01:06,480 Speaker 2: closed the last one. In partnership with YMCA, we've actually 20 00:01:06,480 --> 00:01:09,920 Speaker 2: put twelve million dollars into building social housing and we're 21 00:01:09,920 --> 00:01:13,760 Speaker 2: actually going to be building starting constructing some additional social 22 00:01:13,800 --> 00:01:17,839 Speaker 2: housing this year. But we don't want people camping in town. 23 00:01:17,920 --> 00:01:20,679 Speaker 2: That The issue that we've had there is we've got 24 00:01:21,520 --> 00:01:24,319 Speaker 2: it's a liquor band area. We've got people drinking in there, 25 00:01:24,319 --> 00:01:26,639 Speaker 2: we've got people taking drugs in there, we've got people 26 00:01:26,680 --> 00:01:32,080 Speaker 2: intimidating people, intimidating shoppers. We've got these parts of the 27 00:01:32,120 --> 00:01:34,960 Speaker 2: CBD have not felt safe, and then in the last 28 00:01:35,000 --> 00:01:37,880 Speaker 2: couple of weeks they've started building structures out of cardboard. 29 00:01:38,280 --> 00:01:40,160 Speaker 2: And what we've said is, look, we're trying to look 30 00:01:40,200 --> 00:01:42,600 Speaker 2: after you. We want you our people, we want to 31 00:01:42,640 --> 00:01:45,520 Speaker 2: find you shelter and food, and we're looking Our plan 32 00:01:45,640 --> 00:01:49,160 Speaker 2: is to get something in place before winter. You've got 33 00:01:49,200 --> 00:01:52,960 Speaker 2: to respect other users of town and we've had about 34 00:01:53,080 --> 00:01:55,880 Speaker 2: thirty complaints and the police have been called about nine 35 00:01:55,960 --> 00:02:01,080 Speaker 2: or ten times due to violence, intimidation, drug use, alcohol abuse, 36 00:02:01,680 --> 00:02:04,480 Speaker 2: and we just we want to look after these people. 37 00:02:04,560 --> 00:02:07,560 Speaker 2: But there's also an expectation that people obey the law 38 00:02:07,680 --> 00:02:11,560 Speaker 2: and give people the space to enjoy town and not 39 00:02:11,639 --> 00:02:16,120 Speaker 2: scared businesses or shoppers away from businesses, which has been happening. 40 00:02:16,480 --> 00:02:18,600 Speaker 1: Where do they go once you know, you take this 41 00:02:18,680 --> 00:02:20,760 Speaker 1: stuff away, you take the cardboard the way I mean, 42 00:02:20,840 --> 00:02:23,600 Speaker 1: until you've got the shelters, and where do the people go? 43 00:02:23,639 --> 00:02:24,080 Speaker 1: Do you reckon? 44 00:02:24,880 --> 00:02:28,600 Speaker 2: Well, the reality is that I've heard already some of 45 00:02:28,639 --> 00:02:31,120 Speaker 2: them have made some arrangements, some of them going to 46 00:02:31,160 --> 00:02:34,200 Speaker 2: a local church area. The social workers that we've funded 47 00:02:34,280 --> 00:02:37,799 Speaker 2: and the group that we're looking at funding are working 48 00:02:37,840 --> 00:02:40,880 Speaker 2: hard to find places for them. And that's but what 49 00:02:40,919 --> 00:02:43,120 Speaker 2: we've actually said is we haven't said you have to go. 50 00:02:43,280 --> 00:02:46,200 Speaker 2: What we've said is you can't be I mean, we're 51 00:02:46,240 --> 00:02:50,800 Speaker 2: talking about a press all tables and building rooms on 52 00:02:50,840 --> 00:02:54,560 Speaker 2: the footpath out of boxes and bicycles. This isn't just 53 00:02:54,639 --> 00:02:58,240 Speaker 2: mattresses and blankets, Ryan, this is building a you know, 54 00:02:58,240 --> 00:03:01,640 Speaker 2: they're building a campsite and struck right in the middle 55 00:03:01,639 --> 00:03:03,799 Speaker 2: of the CBD. And we've so what we said, we're 56 00:03:03,800 --> 00:03:05,720 Speaker 2: not we have no right to move people on and 57 00:03:05,720 --> 00:03:08,360 Speaker 2: we're not looking at moving people. But we've said you 58 00:03:08,440 --> 00:03:12,000 Speaker 2: can't set up a trestle table outside a shop and 59 00:03:12,040 --> 00:03:15,040 Speaker 2: then start piling boxes on it and then build a 60 00:03:15,080 --> 00:03:17,919 Speaker 2: cardboard box bedroom outside somebody's shop. 61 00:03:18,320 --> 00:03:21,080 Speaker 1: When the shelter, when the shelter comes, now, will it 62 00:03:21,120 --> 00:03:24,399 Speaker 1: actually do people move? They're like, when the old one closed, 63 00:03:24,639 --> 00:03:26,480 Speaker 1: did you have this problem? Or is it just a 64 00:03:26,520 --> 00:03:30,000 Speaker 1: group of people who for whatever reason will always be there. 65 00:03:30,840 --> 00:03:34,400 Speaker 2: There's look, we think that when the shelter opens that 66 00:03:34,520 --> 00:03:37,600 Speaker 2: many of these people will they want They actually want 67 00:03:37,640 --> 00:03:40,400 Speaker 2: to be sleeping someway, warm and safe. And what they're 68 00:03:40,440 --> 00:03:43,160 Speaker 2: doing is clustering together, because you know that people pack 69 00:03:43,200 --> 00:03:46,120 Speaker 2: on homeless people. But what we've also had is because 70 00:03:46,120 --> 00:03:48,360 Speaker 2: they've been clustering together, we've got people that do have 71 00:03:48,480 --> 00:03:50,800 Speaker 2: homes that go, oh, there's some fun to be had here. 72 00:03:50,800 --> 00:03:52,960 Speaker 2: I can probably sell some drugs here. I can go 73 00:03:53,040 --> 00:03:55,080 Speaker 2: in there with them and sit there and drink in 74 00:03:55,120 --> 00:03:58,240 Speaker 2: town even though it's a liquerband area, and smoke some weed, 75 00:03:58,560 --> 00:04:03,200 Speaker 2: you know, in the middle of the days. And we've 76 00:04:03,240 --> 00:04:07,360 Speaker 2: basically said that that we're looking to support everybody. We 77 00:04:07,400 --> 00:04:10,360 Speaker 2: want an inclusive society and you know, my viewers, people 78 00:04:10,360 --> 00:04:12,880 Speaker 2: should be free to do whatever they want up until 79 00:04:12,880 --> 00:04:15,200 Speaker 2: the point that they start harming others. Yeah, fair enough, 80 00:04:15,280 --> 00:04:18,200 Speaker 2: and it has been harmed to others. So we've given 81 00:04:18,240 --> 00:04:20,040 Speaker 2: them seven days. I think the hope is that we 82 00:04:20,080 --> 00:04:22,880 Speaker 2: don't have to impound anything. And my understanding is they've 83 00:04:22,880 --> 00:04:26,120 Speaker 2: already they're already moving on some of them, they're moving 84 00:04:26,160 --> 00:04:30,400 Speaker 2: their stuff. We've taken a very softly, softly approach because 85 00:04:30,800 --> 00:04:33,400 Speaker 2: but the point of mate Ryan is you know that 86 00:04:33,520 --> 00:04:35,760 Speaker 2: the Prime Minister mentioned to us to get back to basics, 87 00:04:35,800 --> 00:04:39,760 Speaker 2: and I'm pretty keen on that. But the housing, welfare 88 00:04:39,960 --> 00:04:42,480 Speaker 2: and mental health are all issues that we pay tax 89 00:04:42,560 --> 00:04:45,279 Speaker 2: for for central government to deal with. Here's how much 90 00:04:45,600 --> 00:04:48,480 Speaker 2: the government has put into the solutions that we're working on. 91 00:04:48,839 --> 00:04:52,400 Speaker 2: How much not one not one dollar? They are nowhere 92 00:04:52,440 --> 00:04:53,240 Speaker 2: to be safe. 93 00:04:53,080 --> 00:04:55,479 Speaker 1: To be fair, I mean, the thing is, you've got 94 00:04:55,480 --> 00:05:01,000 Speaker 1: governments who are paying welfare payments. There are housing programs, 95 00:05:01,040 --> 00:05:03,560 Speaker 1: there as housing assistance. I mean, the government's already paying 96 00:05:03,560 --> 00:05:06,119 Speaker 1: a lot of money. I mean, and there are people 97 00:05:06,160 --> 00:05:09,640 Speaker 1: who are hard, hard up who don't live on the street. 98 00:05:10,520 --> 00:05:13,320 Speaker 2: You know. I look and I agree with that, right, 99 00:05:13,360 --> 00:05:15,840 Speaker 2: But I suppose So I've got on one hand the 100 00:05:15,880 --> 00:05:18,040 Speaker 2: Prime Minister telling me get back to Bay six years. 101 00:05:18,080 --> 00:05:20,920 Speaker 2: You're there to pick up rubbish, mo lawns, do the water, 102 00:05:21,040 --> 00:05:23,159 Speaker 2: and I'm happy with that. Then I've got the senior 103 00:05:23,200 --> 00:05:26,279 Speaker 2: bureaucrats that work for government saying Oh, we want you 104 00:05:26,320 --> 00:05:29,080 Speaker 2: to take a leadership issue on this homelessness, right so 105 00:05:29,160 --> 00:05:31,640 Speaker 2: you Neil, and we're not going to You're not going 106 00:05:31,680 --> 00:05:32,600 Speaker 2: to provide you any fun. 107 00:05:32,680 --> 00:05:34,880 Speaker 1: Now you're getting at both ends, Neil, I understand. Thank 108 00:05:34,880 --> 00:05:37,000 Speaker 1: you so much. New hold the new Plymouth District mayor. 109 00:05:37,640 --> 00:05:40,800 Speaker 1: For more from Heather Duplessy Allen Drive, listen live to 110 00:05:40,880 --> 00:05:41,400 Speaker 1: news Talks. 111 00:05:41,440 --> 00:05:44,640 Speaker 2: It'd be from four pm weekdays, or follow the podcast 112 00:05:44,720 --> 00:05:45,680 Speaker 2: on iHeartRadio.