Blaming homeless questioned
Academic calls out Ministry of Social Development for ‘cheap shot’ criticism
UNIVERSITY of Otago social work academic Dr Emily Keddell has taken issue with Ministry of Social Development comments which seem to blame two Dunedin women for problems in finding them a home.
It was also ‘‘taking a bit of a cheap shot’’ to further blame the women for allegedly making it harder for other homeless people in future, Dr Keddell said.
An apparent shortage of suitable state housing and the use of motels as emergency housing put MSD in a powerful situation in which it could effectively act as ‘‘judge and jury’’ over what happened to the homeless.
It was not the fault of homeless people that emergency accommodation was being provided through motels, she said.
It was the State, not moteliers, which carried the ultimate responsibility of ensuring that the human rights of the homeless were upheld, she said in an interview.
Dunedin South MP Clare Curran spent four nights sleeping in the Octagon this week to highlight housing problems faced by Kylie Taggart (30), who is 27 weeks pregnant, and mother of several children Amy Stuart (25).
The two women were living in emergency accommodation in motels.
When she ended her tent protest on Thursday, Ms Curran said one woman had been offered a private rental property and the other had ‘‘very strong prospects’’ of renting privately.
Ms Curran said she had at times been ‘‘very cold’’ and had at times felt vulnerable during her tent protest, but she had no regrets, and had learned a great deal more about the ‘‘sick’’ situation arising from homelessness and insufficient state housing.
She had staged the protest action to highlight the women’s housing needs and also to object to an MSD approach which blamed the women for their situation.
MSD regional commissioner southern Sue Rissman said in a statement to the ODT late last week that one of the challenges faced by MSD was ‘‘when clients repeatedly exhibit behaviour that makes them unattractive to landlords and many motel owners’’.
Ms Rissman said that allegedly adverse behaviour by the women had also made it more difficult for other MSD clients to receive support in emergency motel accommodation.
She said that initially funding had been provided by way of emergency accommodation grants which would not have to be repaid because the priority was ‘‘responding to emergency need’’, but later indicated that some of the money would have to be repaid because of behavioural issues.
MSD would continue to work to ‘‘find these clients and their children more stable, sustainable places to call home’’, she said.
Dr Keddell, a senior lecturer in social work, said she appreciated that MSD faced difficult problems, but New Zealand should be taking a ‘‘wider perspective’’ on the homeless.
Approached for comment on concerns about blaming clients and difficulties with housing and in using motels, an MSD spokesman said there was nothing to add.
john.gibb@odt.co.nz
AUCKLAND: Prime Minister Bill English is set to announce new funding for housing in Auckland tomorrow.
The New Zealand Herald understands Mr English and other cabinet ministers will create specialpurpose vehicles to fund infrastructure for housing, mostly in South Auckland where the announcement will take place.
Two weeks ago, the Government announced $300 million of new infrastructure investment to bring forward the construction of 10,500 homes in northwest Auckland at Whenuapai and Redhills. The funding was part of the Government’s $1 billion housing infrastructure fund to boost housing in the country’s fastestgrowing regions.
It is understood the specialpurpose vehicles are being set up to hold debt off the council’s balance sheet so it can stay within its debt limits. The council is close to its debt ceiling, which, if breached, could lead to a credit rating downgrade, drive up borrowing costs and reduce investor confidence in Auckland Council. — NZME