38567 (2025). Hon Kieran McAnulty to the Associate Minister of Housing

38567 (2025). Hon Kieran McAnulty to the Associate Minister of Housing: Does he agree with the Minister of Housing’s comment regarding the government’s emergency housing policies that “we've made it easier to get out, but we've made it harder to get in, and that was a deliberate policy choice” and if so, has the government made it too hard to get into emergency housing for people struggling with the high cost of living?

Hon Tama Potaka: The emergency housing policy changes, implemented in 2024, shifted emergency housing to a more rules-based approach which ensures that emergency housing grants are targeted to those in genuine need that have met their responsibilities. Under this Government, we have seen an increase in the number of households entering stable housing after exiting emergency housing, families with children in emergency housing for longer than 12 weeks are now prioritised into social housing through the priority one fast-track, with approximately 1,041 households being housed from emergency housing since May 2024. Emergency housing is also just one part of the response to urgent housing need. The Government funds a wide range of supports to help people stay in their homes and to assist them if they are experiencing housing instability or homelessness.