Ardern faces questions on poverty at report launch
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has been quizzed over poverty in an unplanned question-time from a Porirua youth group member.
Ardern made a quiet entrance to the launch of the 2020 Child Poverty Monitor report in the Beehive Theatrette, sitting at the back, before her planned (question-free) speech.
Several dozen young people were there to question an onstage panel, which included Children’s Minister Kelvin Davis. But Lewis Ariu-Woolley, of youth group The Voyagers, had other ideas.
When it came time to ask his question to the panel, he noticed the prime minister was in the room and instead turned and fired a cheeky question at her.
‘‘My name is Lewis, I’m from Porirua,’’ he started. ‘‘I have a two-part question ... and I’d just really like if Jacinda could get involved in this question.’’ No offence to the panel, he said.
The city had high numbers of young people and red-hot housing prices, he said. Moving out was near impossible for young people, causing poverty and pressure in households. ‘‘Is there a plan to remedy this?’’
The Child Poverty Monitor report said one in five children under the age of 18 in New Zealand lived in low-income households.
It revealed that 150,000 kids
experience ‘‘material hardship’’.
It is released annually by the Office of the Children’s Commissioner, philanthropic organisation the J RMcKenzie Trust, and the New Zealand Child and Youth
Epidemiology Service.
Ardern said she planned to ‘‘sneak in the back and have a little listen’’ to get the context of the conversation in the room. ‘‘Good on you for spotting me down the back,’’ she said.
Her answer touched on how income, housing supply and tailoring demand to people who want to live in homes, not speculate on them, were the solution.
Afterwards, Ariu-Woolley said he felt privileged when she agreed to answer his question.
‘‘When we were developing our questions to even come to this, we heard she was going to be here, and I was like ‘no. I’m going to write this question and I want to hear what Jacinda Ardern says’.’’