When care is in the community, whānau stay connected to the people and places we love. All of us want our family members to get the support they need to live independently and well. People who deliver care and support to our older ones, disabled whānau, and folk recovering from illness or injury are key to the infrastructure of care communities need to look after everyone. For far too long, their work has been undervalued because funding agencies and governments of all stripes have underpaid for work that has traditionally been done by women. We urge you to fund the pay equity settlement for all care and support workers as soon as possible. For over a year we have undergone a rigorous pay equity process. We have systematically proven and measured the undervaluation of care and support workers based on their gender. Thousands of hours and many resources have been devoted to analysis that was signed off at each milestone. Unions and employers are ready to make this happen. But your agencies that fund care and support work continue to lag behind on providing sufficient funding to deliver pay equity and have interfered in an evidence-based and prescribed process adhered to by employers and unions. As a result, too many workers are struggling to make rent payments and put food on the table while they’re made to wait. The need for care and support grows as our population ages while services lose staff to better paying professions and strain to recruit new people. We are calling on you to stop the delays and interference now so the claim can progress. The situation is now urgent and overdue. You have a huge opportunity to strengthen this cornerstone of our community health system, nourish services that care for families, and transform the lives of 65,000 workers. Aotearoa celebrated proudly in 2017 when unions won an historic pay increase for care and support workers following landmark legal wins championed by aged care worker Kristine Bartlett. We knew it wasn’t right that care and support workers were struggling to make ends meet while doing some of the most important work there is. Since then, their wages have regressed back to minimum wage while the cost of living has skyrocketed. Care and support workers change catheters and stoma bags, and make sure medicine is taken. They support families through the difficult changes that come with health problems. They assist disabled people to live independently at home. They show up for folk who don’t have friends or whānau to come to visit. They help people shower, turn over in bed to avoid pressure areas, and to live well. They support people through mental ill-health or addiction to keep going. They’re with loved ones at the end of their lives. Once again, it’s time to make sure care and support workers are paid what they’re worth. This time for good. Please fund the pay equity claim for all care and support workers urgently so we can reach a settlement. From, Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi, E tū, and New Zealand Nurses Organisation Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa With the support of: Carers New Zealand Alzheimer’s New Zealand New Zealand Society of Diversional and Recreational Therapists Grey Power National Council of Women New Zealand Auckland Women’s Centre YWCA Kristine Bartlett Saunoamaali'i Dr. Karanina Sumeo, Equal Employment Opportunities Commissioner / Kaihautū Ōritenga Mahi Professor Katherine Ravenswood (AUT) Migrant Action Trust Gabriela Aotearoa New Zealand Migrante Aotearoa New Zealand New Zealand Council of Trade Unions Unite Union NZEI Te Riu Roa New Zealand Professional Firefighters Union MERAS Midwifery Employee Representation & Advisory Service Tertiary Education Union Te Hautū Kahurangi Tertiary Institutes Allied Staff Association National Union of Public Employees

This request is rooted not only in the impact of her visit in March this year, but also her extensive history of hateful speech and incitement of violence. Her return to Aotearoa would pose a significant threat and risk to public order and the public interest - this holds especially true for our takatāpui, transgender and gender diverse communities. Disinformation Project Researcher Dr Sanjana Hattouwa reported that after Keen’s visit to New Zealand, the amount of vitriol towards the trans community was “to a degree we’ve never studied before ” with “extraordinarily violent” content towards trans people being distributed widely. He described the level of hate towards trans people as “genocidal”. Outside of Aotearoa, Keen-Minshull’s public statements and actions have included: - Threatening that transgender people, gender diverse people, “and anyone else who stands in [her] way” will be “annihilated” - Stating trans men should be sterilised - Calling for men to carry guns to patrol women’s bathrooms against the imagined threat of trans women - Encouraging violent outbreaks at her tours in the UK and US, with her supporters allegedly assaulting counter protestors and inflicting violence on trans people - Organising rallies attended by members of the Proud Boys - a designated terrorist group in Aotearoa - Being excluded by other groups and members of her own anti trans circles because of her racism, Islamophobia and aforementioned ties to far-right white nationalism.* As the Minister for Immigration, Mr. Little, you have the right under s.16 of the immigration act 2009 to deny a visa, entry permission or entry waiver to a person likely to be a threat or risk to public order or to the public interest. The threshold for both appears to be low, considering that it was the same section used to bar the rap group Odd Future from Aotearoa in 2014. At the time, Immigration New Zealand said in a statement that their rationale for the ban under s.16 included "incidents at past performances in which they have cited violence." In an email dated 12 February 2014, obtained by Stuff as part of the OIA, Immigration NZ wrote: "[Odd Future] clearly has a history of promoting and inciting hatred…were they permitted to travel to New Zealand and perform I believe on the basis of their track record thus far, they are likely to incite violence towards women, racial, sexist and homophobic disharmony in New Zealand". Keen-Minshull is a person who causes demonstrable risk of harm to our public. Who employs hate speech and calls for violence against some of Aotearoa’s most vulnerable citizens. Whose public events have already caused disruption to public order here and overseas. TLA believes this justifies you, Minster Little, in exercising your powers under s.16 of the Act to deny her entry to Aotearoa, and for the safety of our trans citizens and the general public interest, we call on you to do so. Yours sincerely, Trans Liberation Alliance Sources: Posie Parker to return to NZ in September: Will Border Officers Let Her In? New Zealand Herald, 2 August 2023 https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/posie-parker-to-return-to-new-zealand-in-september-will-border-officers-let-her-in/QMFZ42LTVNFD7DS5KAF5C6URFQ/ Green Party Aotearoa Veale J, Byrne J, Tan K, Guy S, Yee A, Nopera T & Bentham R (2019). Counting Ourselves: The health and wellbeing of trans and non-binary people in Aotearoa New Zealand. Transgender Health Research Lab, University of Waikato: Hamilton NZ. https://researchcommons.waikato.ac.nz/bitstream/handle/10289/12942/Counting%20Ourselves_Report%20Dec%2019-Online.pdf?sequence=54%26isAllowed=y Anti Trans Hate in NZ becoming 'genocidal’ - One News, Friday, 5 May 2023 https://www.1news.co.nz/2023/05/05/anti-trans-hate-in-nz-becoming-genocidal-disinformation-project/ Why we need to protest Posie Parker, Redflag, 5 March 2023 https://redflag.org.au/article/why-we-need-protest-posie-parker

Elections are a time when our entire country comes together to decide on our political leadership. Everyone has a right to participate and share their view on the direction of our country, no matter their background. However, we are deeply concerned with your recent comments on NewstalkZB which incite violent rhetoric towards Pacific communities. You told listeners that in your fantasy you’d "send a guy called Guy Fawkes in there [The Ministry for Pacific Peoples] and it would be all over.” Threats of violence are not a “joke”. They can normalise violent behaviour and lead to fatal real-life repercussions. In fact, staff at the Ministry for Pacific Peoples had already been harassed at their workplace due to politicisation and race-baiting already aimed at their work. In 2022 you stated yourself, that violent rhetoric “does not belong in New Zealand politics”. Now we’re asking you to practice what you preach, retract your statement on NewstalkZB, apologise to the Ministry for Pacific Peoples and commit to an election free from violent speech. Elections should be a time when everyone can participate democratically, without their culture or workplace being threatened or insulted. Violent speech chips away at our democracy, when we need it to be stronger than ever. In a time of shared economic and climate crises, we need political leaders that are willing to respect people of all backgrounds, and refuse to stoke the fire of fear and division in Aotearoa New Zealand. ----- [1] Deputy PM Sepuloni blasts Seymour's Guy Fawkes 'joke' about Ministry for Pacific Peoples. Newshub, 17 August 2023: https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2023/08/deputy-pm-sepuloni-blasts-seymour-s-guy-fawkes-joke-about-ministry-for-pacific-peoples.html [2] Incident at Ministry of Pacific Peoples leaves staff rattled, police called in. Stuff, 18 August 2023 https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/300952879/incident-at-ministry-of-pacific-peoples-leaves-staff-rattled-police-called-in [3] ACT Leader David Seymour slams Te Pāti Māori for 'threatening violence' in jokes about him. Newshub, 14 July 2022: https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2022/07/act-leader-david-seymour-slams-te-p-ti-m-ori-for-threatening-violence-in-jokes-about-him.html

The Mental Health Matters Initiative is a group of youth activists who have come together to fight for better mental health care in Aotearoa. We believe in the power of youth voice and experience and we are demanding the government to reform their Mental Health Policy. For years young people have been left to navigate an overworked and underfunded Mental Health System. Current and past Governments have handled the Mental Health Crisis with apathy, leaving behind a dysfunctional system. The Mental Health Matters Initiative holds a vision for what our mental health care system should look like (MHMI - Mission Statement): 1) Empathetic Providers and Leaders. We need empathetic leaders and mental health providers that work hard to ensure that every young person is able to access the care that they deserve, and understands the nuances and trials that come with every individual mental health journey. We need the Government to create policy that protects not only its patients needing care, but the workers who supply it. 2) Accessible Care. Everyone needs to be able to access the care that they need in a simple, stress-free way. We want to create viable pathways to care through policy and breaking Mental Health stigma. 3) Fair and Equitable Treatment. Access to treatment and care should be fair and equitable. Everyone should have access to the care that they deserve and that distribution of resources is fair on not only patients but workers. The current status-quo is not good enough. Experts, young people, workers, and those currently trying to navigate the system are demanding better. It is time to listen. We demand the government to implement these policies to ensure a functioning and supportive mental health system in Aotearoa.You have ignored us for too long, and this is a matter of life or death for many. Ngā Mihi, The Mental Health Matters Initiative

Te Reo Māori - the Māori language forms a part of our unique identity and culture in Aotearoa New Zealand. It is one of the official languages of our country and as English is spoken every day, everywhere by everyone so should te reo Māori (with sign). A strategy to enable its growth was to have a concentrated period to celebrate and promote te reo māori, that is Te Wiki O Te Reo Māori - Māori language week and has been the case since 1975. Almost 50 years has passed and it's time to uplift the concentrated celebration and positive promotion of our Reo Māori - Māori language to further enable its growth to thrive and flourish, and its development as a language of value for all Aotearoa New Zealanders. It is what makes us uniquely different in the world. Making the official celebration for the month of Mahuru ( September) called Mahuru Māori will really boost the promise of a vibrant future for te reo Māori.

Electricity is an essential service, necessary for health and wellbeing. Most of us rely on it to stay warm, cook dinner, do our homework and keep the lights on. But lack of action from the regulator - the Electricity Authority, who sets the rules for electricity retailers - is causing unfair hardship. *** Disconnection and reconnection fees are adding debt to whānau already suffering. *** Prepay electricity is more expensive, even though many people who use prepay are doing so because they struggle to pay their bills and have no other option. *** The Consumer Care Guidelines, which are meant to protect vulnerable people, remain voluntary and retailers can ignore them. The Electricity Authority needs to protect people, especially the most vulnerable, by setting better rules for retailers. In 2022, electricity retailers disconnected at least 8,500 households on standard plans where people could not afford to pay their bills. (1) Retailers were then allowed to charge these households “disconnection fees” and “reconnection fees”, which can total over $200, pushing people further into debt. The majority of households who are disconnected then end up with no choice but to use prepay plans, on which overall costs are on average 13% higher than standard plans (2). These prepay users - some 30,000 households - are paying a premium for being poor. Consumer NZ estimates that each night, as many as 50 households on pre-pay are sitting without electricity because they can’t afford to top up (3). Official data about these prepay disconnections is not even recorded. The good news is that the Electricity Authority has the power to intervene. In December 2022, Parliament gave them an explicit objective to ‘protect the interests of domestic… consumers’ (ie households). No group deserves this protection more than the most vulnerable households. It is time for the Electricity Authority to use this power. We’re calling on them to: ***Protect consumers who are already struggling, by banning fees for disconnection/reconnection in cases of unpaid bills. ***End the ‘penalty for prepay’ by requiring retailers to publish prepay disconnection data and to ensure that prepay costs are no higher than their cheapest post-pay plan. ***Protect all consumers by making the full set of Consumer Care Guidelines mandatory, monitoring compliance and introducing penalties when retailers don’t follow the rules. This petition is organised by Common Grace Aotearoa in collaboration with Anglican Advocacy, the Salvation Army, FinCap, Community Law Centres o Aotearoa, Child Poverty Action Group, Consumer NZ, He Kāinga Oranga Housing and Health Research Group (University of Otago Wellington), Citizens Advice Bureau, Toast Electric, Sustainability Trust, NZ Council of Christian Social Services, Presbyterian Support, Family Works New Zealand, The Bishop's Action Foundation and United Community Action Network. We will deliver the petition to the Electricity Authority Board in 2024. Learn more, and get involved, at everyoneconnectednz.com. (1)Data received under the Official Information Act from the Electricity Authority. www.ea.govt.nz/documents/3370/9_June_2023.pdf (2,3)Consumer NZ analysis in June 2023. www.consumer.org.nz/articles/prepay-customers-paying-much-more-for-power Photo sourced from iStock.

All people should have a secure and healthy home to live in. A place to come back to, for quiet and rest, a place to experience joy with friends and family, a place to feel grounded in community. But people in government having a hands off approach to the economy means it is geared towards protecting private profit – treating houses as commodities, rather than homes for living. Housing affects every part of our lives. The stress of hyper-short tenancies, week-to-week emergency housing grants, and the looming threat of rental increases pricing people out of their communities has a major impact on people’s wellbeing and working lives. Public housing can provide stable and safe homes for people, yet successive governments have neglected the state housing programme, choosing to privatise and commodify houses instead of ensuring everyone has a home. [1] Real estate magnates are extracting profits while everyday people are being locked out of homes. We need a bold plan out of this crisis, not piecemeal change and band aid solutions. An ambitious and significant public housing programme is a proven way of truly addressing the issue of housing. In Aotearoa, this must happen alongside a Te Tiriti based housing system where Māori have tino rangatiratanga over housing. Government neglect of public housing impacts everyone. Forty years ago, it was possible for a family to buy a home because household income was equal to the average house price in Aotearoa. Today, families need eight times their household income to buy a house.[2] If the government takes action to prioritise public housing, it can create the conditions where housing will be more affordable for everyone. 1 in 4 renters spend 40 percent or more of their income just on rent. [3] Health care workers and teachers are being priced out of their communities. [4] If we had more public homes available to more people in more areas of Aotearoa it increases people's opportunities to lead thriving lives - teachers can walk to their local schools to educate your kids, and health care workers to our hospitals to care for your loved ones. By the government’s own criteria we have nearly 30,000 people and families waiting for homes right now. [5] But if we consider all the people and families living in unaffordable, uninhabitable and insecure housing who don’t meet the government’s criteria – the need for a build and buy programme able to house everyone becomes abundantly clear. We know from research there are 105,747 people struggling with some form of homelessness or housing deprivation.[6] There are also 346,998 people who are reliant on Accommodation Supplements because they cannot afford homes. This starts to paint a picture of a ‘true waitlist’ that could really benefit from more good quality, affordable public homes. Right now, the government spends millions of dollars a week on the accommodation supplement, and emergency housing. These mechanisms are ways the government subsidise the profits of private landlords and moteliers who can charge exorbitant prices and raise this at will. Instead of doing this, the government can choose to prioritise building and buying public homes, rather than propping up property magnates and corporate profits. Aotearoa New Zealand is falling behind when it comes to public housing, making up just 3.8% of all homes, far behind the UK at 17%; and Austria, Denmark and the Netherlands all above 20%. [8] Countries with higher public housing and more generous eligibility criteria have better housing outcomes for people and families. Public housing is infrastructure for care, connection, cohesion and contribution. We need the Government to look after all of our long-term wellbeing by building and buying more public homes to house everyone. Public Housing Futures (PHF) is a group made up of Aotearoa based researchers and organisers who believe that everyone in Aotearoa should have access to beautiful, accessible, sustainable and secure housing, and that public housing is a pathway towards this. ActionStation has teamed up with Public Housing Futures to work on this campaign. 1. Kāinga Kore: The Stage One Report of the Housing Policy and Services Kaupapa Inquiry on Māori Homelessness. Waitangi Tribunal - WAI 2750, 2023 https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/WT/wt_DOC_197630281/Kainga%20Kore%20W.pdf 2. Generation Rent: Rethinking New Zealand’s Priorities. Eaqub and Eaqub, 2015; New Zealand house prices drop again but still out of reach for first-time buyers. Guardian, 10 May https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/may/10/new-zealand-house-prices-drop-again-but-still-out-of-reach-for-first-time-buyers 3. Housing affordability more challenging for renters than homeowners. Stats NZ, accessed Jul 2023 https://www.stats.govt.nz/news/housing-affordability-more-challenging-for-renters-than-homeowners/#:~:text=In%20the%20year%20ended%20June,released%20by%20Stats%20NZ%20today 4. Housing costs driving teachers, aged care nurses away from cities that need them. Stuff, Aug 2021 https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/126061577/housing-costs-driving-teachers-aged-care-nurses-away-from-cities-that-need-them Public Housing Quarterly report. HUD, March 2023 https://www.hud.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Documents/Public-Housing/HQR-Mar23-web-V2.pdf 5. Public Housing Quarterly report. HUD, March 2023 https://www.hud.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Documents/Public-Housing/HQR-Mar23-web-V2.pdf 6. Severe housing deprivation in Aotearoa New Zealand. Amore et al., 2018 (updated Jun 2021) ​​https://www.hud.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Documents/Severe-Housing-Deprivation-2018-Estimate-Report.pdf 7. Over 100,000 people are in severe housing deprivation and struggling to access a home. Human Rights Commission, accessed July 2023 https://housing.hrc.co.nz/over_100_000_people_in_severe_housing_deprivation_and_struggling_to_access_a_home#:~:text=A%202022%20OECD%20report%20found,OECD%20average%20of%207%20percent

Time and time again, we have reports that tell us Oranga Tamariki residences are not fit-for-purpose and are not meeting the therapeutic needs of children under their care. Many organisations and individuals have raised concerns about Oranga Tamariki residential care. Still, the urgency of these concerns continues to go unaddressed. This is not just a question of which government department is in charge. It is time these facilities are replaced with a new, more effective system that is fundamentally redesigned to centre the complex needs of the children and young people in their care. Our current system is causing more harm to communities by failing to address the underlying issues that lead to children and young people requiring residential care. Punitive “Tough in crime” approaches to youth crime are holding our country back. We need to build paths that lead young people to better outcomes and address reasons for reoffending by understanding and overcoming issues in a young person's life. It is time these facilities are replaced with a new, more effective system. New Zealand needs a system in which young people who require care or have offended are being met with rehabilitation and therapeutic methods. We need resources and pathways that help prevent offendings, such as mental health support, educational support and addiction services. Our communities deserve to have preventative services to ensure we solve the underlying issues that are causing harm. We want to see whānau and community focused solutions making them less reliant on state care. Having the current workforce trained and upskilled in therapeutic and trauma informed practices will help them support the communities in need better. We also ask for transparency and accountability from those on top so that when things go wrong policies are set in place that allows for real change to happen We all want to see our youth thriving and right now they need our support because the current system is failing them. We ask the Government to do better for the next generation and create new community focused rehabilitation services. References and further reading: 1. Report: How we fail children who offend and what to do about it: ‘A breakdown across the whole system’: https://www.borrinfoundation.nz/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Children-Who-Offend-Final-research-report-March2022.pdf 2. Ko Te Wā Whakawhiti, It’s Time for Change - A Māori Inquiry into Oranga Tamariki https://whanauora.nz/publications/ko-te-wa-whakawhiti 3. Young Adults in the Criminal Justice System in Aotearoa New Zealand Young-Adults-in-the-Criminal-Justice-System-in-Aotearoa-NZ-report.pdf (borrinfoundation.nz) 4. John Campbell on OT youth justice: 'Most of us will never meet kids this broken' https://www.1news.co.nz/2023/07/05/john-campbell-on-ot-youth-justice-most-of-us-will-never-meet-kids-this-broken/

Where a gap once existed, this state of the art centre has served many whānau, aiga & families. Over 860 babies have been born there. Thousands of women have experienced vital support via labour cares, antenatal clinics, lactation consultant appointments, contraception and birth education/hapū wānanga. 75% of women birthing at Nga Hau Māngere identify as Māori and/or Pasifika. Research has shown that in the first 2000 days Māori and/or Pasifika have preventable, inequitable experiences. Pregnant Māori and/or Pasifika have the highest death rates and are less likely to receive specialist care. Nga Hau Māngere is an already 'up–and–running' solution aligning with new health reforms under Te Whatu Ora's Te Pae Tata (2022). "Kahu Taurima | Maternity and early years" is 1 of the 5 priority actions this government plan (under priority action 1 ‘place whānau at the heart of the system to improve equity and outcomes’). The local community have spoken of how important the centre is: "Māmā in South Auckland deserve the best care while they are pregnant. Speaking from experience Nga Hau Birthing Centre was exactly that for me. They were amazing from the beginning until the end... I truly believe that if I had been with Nga Hau for my first pregnancy it would not have been so traumatic." "Our experience at Nga Hau truly set (us) up for success when we took our baby home. We were as rested as we could be and I was given all the help they had to offer to start our breastfeeding journey... I’ve always had such a sense of calm and a strong feeling of safety when walking through those doors. Mothers deserve to birth at Nga Hau and Mangere/South Auckland deserves to have this incredible facility in our backyard." "All in all a 10/10 experience for me... I pray to God that this place stays so that midwives are able to birth more of mine and other ladies' babies!" Nga Hau Māngere provides an essential service to the community and the Government needs to ensure funding is provided so it can remain open.

1. Learning is an inherently valuable contribution to society. To genuinely acknowledge education as a public good, we must value not only our educators, but also the students. 2. The current means-testing of the student allowance scheme exacerbates student poverty and is too flawed to truly ensure equity and fairness to marginalised groups. 3. We want to stop the downward trend of students dropping out because they can’t afford to keep studying. We need more students, including those who otherwise could not afford to study, in tertiary education so we have citizens prepared for an increasingly complex world. 4. Tertiary education is not just an investment into the individual, but to their whānau, community and Aotearoa. 5. Pre-1990, Aotearoa had relatively universal student allowances, and free tuition. Overseas, since 1996, Denmark has provided a universal student allowance too (which was 860 euros per month in 2022). Our own history and Denmark prove that a Study Wage for All is entirely possible. Normalised student poverty is not inevitable, it is a political choice. There are no more excuses to keep putting student poverty on the back burner. Barrier-free education is a public good that benefits our collective future. A Study Wage for All is critical to achieving this. Reference: * Calculations for a Universal Student Allowance prepared by the Parliamentary Library using HYEFU 2022 (at p148), the Ministry of Social Development’s Monthly Benefits Update – March 2023, current minimum wage rates, and StudyLink Statistics (2022).

No matter who we are, where we live, or what we do, everyone should have the resources they need to build the lives they want for themselves and their families. To do this, we need strong public services that look after our basic needs. This looks like well-staffed hospitals that can provide medical care to our whānau when we need it. It looks like teachers who feel valued so they contribute to thriving schools, kōhanga reo, kura kaupapa and early childcare where our children can receive a quality education. It looks like more public housing that can offer a stable roof over our heads. It sounds like buses showing up on time that are free and accessible. It looks like preparing for climate change so that our natural world is restored and communities can withstand and recover from severe weather events. But right now, large corporations are extracting profits that are throwing our society out of balance. Many of us are feeling the stress of high costs and prices which forces us to make huge sacrifices every day. While workers miss important family events in order to work longer hours, and people are forced into debt to cover essentials such as food and petrol, corporate profits have increased by 39% to $72 billion in the most recent year. According to the data available, this is the largest increase we have ever seen. In just one example, the major supermarkets were making around a million dollars a day in excess profits, while most people are struggling to make ends meet to put kai on the table. The price increases people are experiencing aren’t random: they are corporate decisions, and right now no one is reining them in. The story of corporate greed is not new, but what we've seen over the past few years is an alarming trend where multinational companies will exploit the pandemic and public health crisis to grow their wealth. Right now, corporations exploit lacklustre tax laws and are laughing all the way to the bank, while everyone else feels ripped off at the checkout or petrol pump. It doesn’t have to be this way. It is unacceptable that corporate profits can continue to blow out of proportion, while wages cannot keep up and food banks are struggling more than ever to keep up with growing need. Our country has enough wealth to look after all of us. Bernard Hickey writes that we have a net household wealth of $2.25 trillion, which is $450,200 per person. When large corporations use their power to increase profits, and not give back to workers or wider society, then it enables the massive syphoning of wealth that locks more and more people into poverty. Our Government has an important role to play in keeping our society fair and funded for the services we need to thrive. Tax and economic experts have offered a range of policies from a windfall tax (which means taxing the excess profits made from unexpected circumstances such a global crisis) to increasing the corporate tax rate (which is a tax on corporate profits). Many solutions are available, we just need to commit to taxing our largest profit-makers. It means we can keep prices down, and build public services up, while holding corporations accountable to pay their fair share. Now is the time to rebalance the scales and make sure corporations increase their contribution to the collective pool, so that we can all thrive together. ------------------------- References: 'Is the inflation in NZ because of profits?' RNZ. https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/afternoons/audio/2018849004/is-the-inflation-in-nz-because-of-profits 'Supermarkets making profits of around $1m a day; Govt announces steps to lower prices.' NZ Herald. https://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/news/business/government-to-address-commerce-commission-report-into-supermarket-industry/ 'The twin crises that fuelled the hostel fire.' Bernard Hickey, The Spinoff. https://thespinoff.co.nz/politics/18-05-2023/the-twin-crises-that-fuelled-the-hostel-fire

As of October 2022, employment data shows New Zealand needs 643 Mental Health staff, including 120 Psychiatrists, 408 mental health nurses and 115 Clinical Psychologists. New Zealand needs Mental Health workers, which starts with degrees. New Zealanders should not struggle to access Mental Health services, in 2017 it was found that 90 children a day were being referred to the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (Camhs), and the number of severe cases has been increasing. In 2016 1824 children were rejected or quickly referred from Camhs. This is a real problem as we had 538 people die from suicide in the 2021 to 2022 financial year. The 1.9 billion dollar budget for Mental Health has not seen any change to accessibility in specialist Mental Health services in the last five years. The vision for this subsidy is to increase the number of people taking degrees. that lead to mental health jobs. This could lead to an increase in people going into Mental Health jobs and decrease the shortage of Mental Health workers in New Zealand. A subsidy for study would incentivise students to study mental health by relieving the financial burden of study (which for a practising clinical psychologist is 6 years, and much longer for a psychiatrist). In Australia, the NSW Labor Government has recently announced it will invest $97 million in health study subsidies to attract staff and retain talent in the public health system, New Zealand should be following in their footsteps and investing similarly.