February 02, 2018
Poverty targets make Government accountable
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says addressing child poverty will help government tackle other social and economic issues.
Ticking off one of the last big items in the new Government’s 100-day plan, Ms Ardern this week set a target to halve child poverty within 10 years, with a more detailed three-year target to be set shortly.
The plan includes specific measurements relating to income, housing and material hardship.
She says the Government is tackling the problem of child poverty with confidence, ambition and hope .
"We’ve set some targets, and some people will say ‘What’s the point of that?’ Well, I certainly know from working around government for a really long time that what gets measured gets done and when you hold yourself to account publicly, that changes the way you deal with policy decisions, programmes you roll out," Ms Ardern says.
The plan includes specific requirements to consult with Maori, as about half the children in low income homes are Maori or Pasifika.
The Prime Minister is in Waitangi today, where she met with the Iwi Leaders Forum.
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