Critics doubt the government’s claim that 1,000 children are now in homes and not temporary accommodation

The government says housing more than 1,000 children in homes and moving them out of motels is just the beginning of a drastic reduction in demand for social housing.

But a tenants’ rights spokesman said cutting social housing simply meant more families would be left homeless and forced to drive, while Labour said the government was making it harder for vulnerable families to access social housing.

Deputy Housing Minister Tama Potak says new figures show a 32 per cent reduction in the number of families living in motels, and that more than 1,000 children have been relocated to homes by Kainga Ora or community organisations since the government came to power.

Potaka said the problem snowballed as families were placed in temporary housing for extended periods when it was meant to be a temporary solution for short periods. That meant children were growing up in motels, and he heard stories of families having to move to eight different hotels in two years, causing “significant disruption” to their children.

The government has set itself a target to reduce the number of families needing social housing by 75 per cent by 2030.

Following queries from RNZ, the Ministry of Social Development confirmed last week that from 26 August the eligibility criteria and responsibilities for people requiring temporary accommodation will change.

Potaka said that while it was still early days, the government would work harder to further reduce the number of families in motels.

“I think it’s clear to us that having a warm, safe and dry home is crucial to the health and wellbeing of not just young people, but also their parents and grandparents, and their whānau,” he said.

“We are very committed to doing everything we can to accelerate tamariki and their whānau out of hotels and motels.”

Although construction is currently underway at Kainga Ora, the agency intends to build “many more” homes in future years, Potaka said.

“There has been a pause in new action while we wait for the recovery plans to be presented to Kainga Ora Board Ministers.

“But I have no doubt there’s a lot of mahi that needs to be done to bring this recovery plan to fruition.”

However, the housing advocate said further reducing the number of families using motels offering temporary accommodation was not sustainable.

Kevin Murray, Canterbury Housing Advocate, said demand for emergency housing was increasing due to high rent prices.

“More and more people will return to the streets, more and more families will live in cars – this is the reality of the government’s decision.”

The reality is that housing providers need more money to build more homes, he said.

Last week, Murray told RNZ that emergency accommodation users had reported living in fear of eviction due to expected “tough” new rules for those using the service.

Community Law said it had told the Ministry of Social Development that the number of homeless people was expected to increase if the new rules, which it said would be open to subjective application, were introduced.

Earlier data showed that in June, about 4,300 people, half of them children, were staying in temporary housing, much of it in motels. But within a month, subsidies for such housing suddenly dropped by $7 million.

Labour’s housing spokesman Kieran McAnulty said the reduction in the number of people needing social housing was because it was difficult for families to access it when they needed it.

“Make it harder for people to get emergency housing – where will they go? Certainly not government-built homes, because the government has put a stop to that.

“They either got into cars, because that was why temporary housing was created, or they will go to their families and live in overcrowded rooms.

“They’ll only be able to achieve that 75 percent because they’re not letting people in. It’s unhealthy and dangerous, and the only really fair way to reduce demand is to fund social housing.”

McAnulty said more questions need to be asked about where people are actually going.

The previous Labour-led coalition government increased the national housing stock, which also helped reduce the current need for social housing, he said, but the current National-led coalition government had done “nothing” to address housing supply.

He believed that the long-term solution to the problem was to build more houses.

“They have the nerve to say ‘yes, this is the way forward’ when they have cut $1.5 billion from the housing budget. Kainga Ora is not building any more houses and they have reduced the amount of money available to public housing providers.”