June 03, 2024
Māori biggest losers in Budget 2024
Analysis from the ‘Budget Lockup’
Māori are the biggest losers in the 2024 budget. Over $300m of previously targeted Māori funding has been cut, while some initiatives have been completely scrapped.
The targeted funding came from intense lobbying and collaboration between Māori and the previous Labour Government. In 6 years Māori received around $2b to deliver health, housing and te reo language programming. Justice programmes to address recidivism like Hokai Rangi and Te Ao Marama were also part of the funding initiatives.
Last week, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Finance Minister Willis delivered a ‘universal budget’ saying it’s a more fiscally responsible way to balance the country’s books. Infact, they’ve spent six months trying to convince Māori that they’re focussed on delivering better outcomes for whānau. But universal funding makes it difficult to identify direct benefits for Māori, which means measuring the outcomes against cost is difficult. Universality also ignores te ao Māori results and aspirations which is more than financial. It’s about identity, connection, language, land as well as material wealth.
The only targeted funding in this budget is for the world class event Te Matatini. The extraordinary cultural showcase of excellence in stage performance, artistic expression, language and entertainment received $48m spread over three years up to 2028. This is over and above its baseline funding of $2.94m per year. Willis was very excited at the announcement saying it was a promise she’d made to Minister for Māori Tama Potaka.
But Te Matatini is standing on a ‘fiscal cliff’. Funding dries up in 2028, so the generational planning and strategizing the organisation has done, remains dependent on government-by-government support. Depending on the amount allocated in 2028, will determine how far off the fiscal cliff Te Matatini will fall.
Whānau Ora had a slight increase in commissioning pūtea but a cut in operational funding so this year resulted in a flatline. It’s an organisation delivering measurable sustainable results, the type that Minister Willis is looking for. So why fund a Social Impact Agency?
There are also serious impacts for Māori in Health and the u-turn on funding of the 13 cancer drugs. $245m from scrapping the First Home Grant. $116.1m from reinstating the $5 prescription fee. $60m cut from the Affordable Housing Fund. $58.9m from scrapping a programme to replace minimum wage exemption permits for disabled people.
So Māori have been double ‘whammied’ by the coalition-government budget? Just how the Government is going to achieve outcomes for Māori who now make up 1:3 of the population is going to be very difficult.
Here’s the breakdown of the targeted Māori pūtea cuts from the 2024 budget:
TE PUNI KOKIRI
$96,726m
A third of this comes from the 6.5 per cent or $39.7m backroom savings demanded by the government. It also includes $4.9m from Te Tumu Paeroa. $300,000 from Future of Work Māori Leadership – Te Ānamata o te Mahi. $22.8m from Hapori Māori – Increasing Community Resilience through Data Capability and Access.
$40m
The biggest disappointment for Māori is the $40 million cut from the ‘Whai Kainga, Whai Oranga’ housing programme. This is a collaboration between Te Puni Kokiri and Ministry of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). It has overseen the construction of 1,018 whare and approval of 1615 infrastructure sites to the end of 2023. HUD has also signed four iwi partnership agreements to prototype their housing supply delivery models in priority regions, Te Taitokerau, Te Tairāwhiti, Taranaki, Hawkes Bay and Bay of Plenty. These prototypes will deliver more than 550 homes for whānau on their whenua.
TE ARAWHITI
$32, 641m
The government demanded savings of 4% from an organisation that’s already facing debt issues. It told applicants its $12mill Takutai Moana budget for the next financial year won’t be enough to meet the demand. Budget 2024 confirms it has saved $4m. $22.9m from Te Ringa Hāpai Whenua Fund. $9.5m Claimant Funding for Historical Treaty of Waitangi Settlement Claimants.
WHĀNAU ORA
$1.5m
Community and Māori Governance Organisations and Commissioning Whānau Ora Outcomes.
MINISTRY OF PRIMARY INDUSTRIES
$37mill
Mātauranga Māori-based Approaches to Agricultural Emissions Reduction. It’s a greenhouse gas mitigations programme using kaupapa Māori methodologies.
MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
$4m
Disestablishment of Te Pae Roa a strategy to grow Māori learners in kohanga reo, kura and wharekura to 30% by 2040, and to increase the kaupapa Māori workforce.
$22m
Disestablishment of Te Kawa Matakura, a programme designed to provide educational opportunities to study New Zealand Diploma in Mātauranga-ā-Iwi (Level 5 for rangatahi demonstrating a passion for iwi knowledge to grow them into future leaders for their iwi and te ao Māori.
MINISTRY OF HEALTH
$35m from
Disestablishment of the Māori Health Authority – Te Aka Whaiora.
MINISTRY OF INTERNAL AFFAIRS
$2m
Disestablishment of funding grants for the Aotearoa Reorua and bilingual road signs.
MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT
$35m
Mātauranga Māori-based climate and agricultural emissions reduction and greenhouse gases mitigation programme.
$55m
Disestablishment of Jobs for Nature Programme. The scheme is a high volume employer of Māori. It’s whakapapa started with the Provincial Growth – Shovel Ready initiative under Minister Shane Jones under the former Labour government. Included in JObs for Nature is the large scale restoration mahi covering three significant sites within the Te Aupouri rohe in the Far North. Raukūmara Pae Maunga – a partnership between Te Whānau-ā-Apanui, Ngāti Porou, and DOC involving habitat, species recovery and pest control over 150,000 hectares of land in Te Tai Rawhiti. Te Awa Tupua o Whanganui project is a 4 year landscape-scale restoration project designed to mitigate soil erosion, improve freshwater quality and enhance biodiversity of Te Awa Tupua.
$37m
Disestablishment of funding for indigenous biodiversity implementation.
MINISTRY OF JUSTICE
$4.6m
A reduction to Te Haerenga pūtea – a programme to improve the Ministry’s relationships with iwi.
$6m
Mana Orite, from a report ‘Inaia Tonu nei’ setting out recommendations on legislative and policy settings to better improve the criminal justice system.
$25.3
Disestablishment of Te Ao Marama programme focussed on the Family Court care and protection, care of children and family violence cases, in the Youth Court and the adult criminal jurisdiction.