The Green Party has urged the Government to commit to effective solutions to end homelessness after the National Homelessness Data Project reported that homelessness rates across all areas are either stagnating or worsening. The party argues that the findings highlight a growing crisis that requires immediate political action rather than incremental or punitive measures.
Green Party housing spokesperson Tamatha Paul said the rise in homelessness is a direct consequence of government decisions that have made emergency housing harder to access and reduced public housing construction. She pointed to Auckland, where homelessness has more than doubled between 2024 and September 2025, and criticised the Government for considering approaches such as criminalising homelessness, which she said are costly and ineffective compared to investing in housing and healthcare.
Paul also noted that frontline organisations report little improvement despite recent government initiatives. She said the additional Housing First places have been insufficient to meet demand and that increased discretion for Work and Income case managers has not translated into meaningful change for people experiencing homelessness.
The Green Party maintains that addressing homelessness requires tackling its root causes, particularly the lack of adequate housing and support services. Their proposed approach includes reversing restrictions on emergency housing, significantly increasing the supply of public homes, and providing sustained funding to community housing organisations to deliver both housing and wraparound support. Paul concluded by questioning how many critical reports the Government would need to confront before taking serious and lasting action to end homelessness in Aotearoa.
