A new report from the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) says urgent action is needed to help the increasing numbers of New Zealand children who they say are being failed by the system.
The report, entitled ‘Left Further Behind’, was launched yesterday and makes several recommendations to improve the situation of children in New Zealand, including establishing a dedicated children's senior cabinet minister.
Report co-editor Dr Claire Dale says at least one in five New Zealand children experience “significant deprivation that compromises their health, their education, and their future”.
Recommendations made in the report include increased monitoring of child poverty indicators, removing work-based rules around financial assistance for low income families, and free healthcare access for all children under six.
CPAG says the facts of child poverty are well established, and the focus should shift to policy design, with co-editor Associate Professor Mike O’Brien saying New Zealand “has the means, we now just need the political will”.
Labour has welcomed the report, which deputy leader Annette King says “has mirrored much of the policy that has already been announced by Labour”.
She says Labour will be announcing new policies to combat child poverty in the near future.
Green Party co-leader Metiria Turei says the report lines up with the Greens’ plan to bring 100,000 children out of poverty by 2014 by talking about how “important it is to set a goal to end child poverty, and targets along the way”.
“We have four solutions: make Working for Families work for every low income family, provide better study support for sole parents and beneficiaries, raise the minimum wage to help working parents, and make sure rental properties are warm and healthy for kids," she says.
“I am gratified to see that these solutions are echoed in the recommendations of this report.”
3 News