Latest News
Auckland’s homeless battle a wet winter: ‘You gotta be a soldier’
Bracing for the relentless onslaught of wet winter days, people living on the streets of Auckland declare themselves warriors in an unyielding battle to stay warm.
In the last year, the number of residents notifying Auckland City Mission about the welfare of people sleeping rough has doubled.
The notifications sounded the alarm on the dire conditions faced by those huddled in flimsy cardboard shelters, seeking refuge at bus stops, or living in their vehicles.
Homeless for 11 years, 36-year-old Ricky said he had seen more and more new faces joining his street whānau every day and they were young.
“It’s the younger generation now, it looks like they just dropped off school. And sometimes you can tell they are up to no good.”
He said his street family was always very welcoming.
“We check on them, check if they are OK, if they need anything. It’s a hard place to be and we know that.”
Ricky said to face winter on the streets, you have to be strong.
“It’s hard, it’s not easy. It’s the hardest thing in the whole life.
“You gotta be a soldier, you know. The hurtfullest [sic] feeling in someone’s life is to be sit in here. Sometimes, I just can’t do it.”
He said the help of other was what kept him warm.
“I have a warm jacket someone gave to me. A warm hoodie we got from the Mission, some strong pants and another pant underneath this one,” he said.
“People help us a lot. Everything I am wearing it was given to me. The socks, the shoes, everything.”
Ricky said he spent the nights under a fried chicken shop at Queen Street.
“The shelter is already there, the cardboard that keep us warm. I just need a few cushions and my sleeping bag, and I’m sorted.”
Number of notifications doubled – City Mission
Auckland City Mission said the number of welfare calls they receive had doubled since last year, as poverty forced more and more people to live rough.
The calls came from people worried about the situation of those without a roof, and could be related to health concerns, poor sheltering conditions or anything that could represent a hazard for people’s health and safety.
City Mission’s Māori general manager Joanne Reid welcomed the extra sets of eyes who were looking out for those doing it tough.
A cardboard shelter in the Auckland CBD. Photo: RNZ / Bailey Brannon
“The notifications from people concerned about those on the streets has had a jump in the last year, mostly after the incident where an elderly woman was found deceased in a vehicle in Remuera.
“We get a lot of people that come into our front-of-housing service, wanting to have a shower, looking for clothing, for bedding, food and housing support.”
She said City Mission volunteers were visiting people at night to check on their welfare.
“It is getting colder and colder, and the rain has been incessant. To the whānau on the streets, all their clothing and their bedding is constantly getting soaked and there’s nowhere for them to dry it.
“Our crews visit them during the week and check on their welfare. Some of them say they are safer on the streets, so we provide them with what they need to stay warm and dry.”
Not enough support for youth – advocate
Youth advocate Aaron Hendry said the system was lacking a safe network for young people experiencing hardship.
“Young people, we often see [young people] develop really complex and addiction challenges due to experiencing homelessness, and we need to have a safety net for them to reach out.”
Hendry said teenagers sleeping rough could become easy targets of abuse and sexual harassment.
“We don’t have adequate services and support for young people when they end up in that situation.
“We need to do more to protect our children.”
No data on homeless
Although there was no current data on how many people were living on the streets in Auckland, an analysis of 2018 Census data by the University of Otago found 18,417 Aucklanders met the definition of homeless.
Auckland Council said the number of homeless people in the city was likely to have been understated because of the unknown number of people living in uninhabitable dwellings, the complexities involved in reaching the homeless and a reluctance by households to reveal their true circumstances.
Meanwhile, as of March, more than 24,000 people around New Zealand were still waiting for social housing.
VIA RNZ
The chief executive of the Parliamentary Service is confident there will be enough room to accommodate the increased number of MPs and their staff coming into Parliament.
On current numbers, up to 131 MPs could be sitting in the Chamber following the election, brought on by a record overhang result.
Clerk of the House of Representatives Dr David Wilson told the Spinoff that currently the debating chamber had enough chairs to seat 124 MPs – including the Speaker of the House – and work was being done to accommodate more by altering the seating arrangement.
In a statement, Parliamentary Service chief executive Rafael Gonzalez-Montero said planning for a larger Parliament had been going for “some time”.
“Now that the election results have confirmed an increase to the number of members we are looking at several options.
“We are confident we will be able to accommodate all members within the Chamber.”
VNP / Phil Smith
Gonzalez-Montero said office accommodation for members and their staff would be “stretched” for a short time, but the new Members’ Building was only a few months away from “practical completion”.
That building – located behind Parliament – was due to be ready to occupy in April next year and had capacity to accommodate around 30 backbench MPs.
“All members should be in fit-for-purpose accommodation from that point,” Gonzalez-Montero said.
Following the 2023 election, 123 MPs sat in the Chamber – a record number at the time. That decreased to 122 following the resignation of National MP Judith Collins.
Collins held the seat of Papakura and stepped down in May and Parliament voted against holding a by-election because it was too close to the election.
The election result also meant high-ranking National Party MPs like Chris Bishop, Paul Goldsmith, Nicola Willis and Gerry Brownlee – Speaker of the House and an MP for 30 years – would likely not make it back into Parliament.
Only resigning or retiring MPs were permitted to give a valedictory speech meaning none of them would get the chance to give a valedictory statement.
Asked if their would be special allowances for valedictories, Wilson said in a statement that normally only MPs were allowed to speak in the House but the House could suspend its own rules or temporarily alter them.
“It could do so to allow former members to address the House.”
Wilson said no such arrangements could be made until the next Parliament opened and members sworn in.
rnz
Police say person who fired gun at officers still at large
New Zealand sides named for RLWC finals
Parliamentary Service working on extra chairs and offices for increased number of MPs
-
Latest News2 months ago‘Chilling’: Business groups speak out against National’s supermarket break-up plan
-
NZ News2 months agoTom Phillips report: The missed opportunities to find the children
-
Politics2 months agoNational vows to try to split Pak’nSave and New World
-
Latest News2 months agoCars bearing Chinese police markings stir unease in Auckland
-
Fiji News2 months agoPlans to have new Constitution by Dec 24th 2026
-
NZ News2 months agoCop who stole $68,000 can now be named as champion Muay Thai fighter Haimona Tamati-Te Paki
-
Politics2 months agoMBIE confirms botched biometric projects costs blown out to $50.7 million
-
Latest News2 months agoFive Karangahape Road venues lose their liquor licences after police intervention