New research by the Child Poverty Action Group has found that more than 33,000 children and young people are living in severe housing deprivation.
Some are living in overcrowded homes with extended family because they have nowhere else to go. Others are in temporary accommodation, living in uninhabitable housing, or have no shelter at all.
Across parts of the Clutha District and wider electorate, more young people seem to be falling through the cracks.
I regularly hear concerns from residents and community organisations about young people who are not in school, not in training and unable to find work in an increasingly difficult labour market.
At the same time, changes to benefit eligibility and support settings have made it harder for some young people to access assistance when they need it most.
For too many, there appears to be no clear pathway forward.
These figures are distressing, but they should not come as a surprise.
Across New Zealand, community organisations, schools, food banks and health providers have been warning for years about the growing pressures facing families.
Too many children are growing up in households struggling to keep up with the cost of rent, food, power and other essentials.
That is why Budget 2026 was such a disappointment.
At a time when child poverty remains one of the most pressing challenges facing our country, there was little in the Budget that will make a meaningful difference to the lives of children experiencing hardship.
There was no significant new commitment to lifting family incomes, reducing housing insecurity or tackling the root causes of poverty.
The government may point to short-term measures and modest forecasts, but for the thousands of children living with deprivation every day, those promises will offer little comfort.
What makes this particularly frustrating is that reducing child poverty is not only the right thing to do — it is also the economically responsible thing to do.
There is a false economy at the heart of this Budget.
When governments fail to invest in children early, taxpayers end up paying far more later.
The costs show up in crowded emergency departments, increased demand for mental health services, emergency housing, welfare interventions, poorer educational outcomes and, ultimately, higher costs in the justice and corrections systems.
Poverty does not disappear when governments choose not to address it.
The bill simply arrives later, and it is usually much larger.
We know that children who grow up in poverty are more likely to experience poor health, struggle at school and face barriers throughout their lives.
We also know that targeted support, affordable housing, quality public services and adequate incomes can make a real difference.
The evidence is there. What is missing is the political will.
A Budget is more than a set of financial statements. It is a statement of values. It tells us what a government chooses to prioritise and where it is willing to invest for the future.
When tens of thousands of children are growing up without secure housing and there is no meaningful new effort to reduce child poverty, the message is clear: this government is prepared to tolerate levels of hardship that should be unacceptable in a country like New Zealand.
Our children deserve better.
Every child deserves a safe home, enough food to eat and the opportunity to thrive.
That should not be an aspiration.
It should be the minimum standard by which we judge ourselves as a nation.
