Fuel prices bite: Pacific families in NZ feel the strain as government looks at targeted relief

Pacific families are already feeling the strain of rising fuel prices, even as the Government weighs up targeted help for those most in need.

Finance Minister Nicola Willis says support is being worked on for low and middle-income households.

Willis says the focus is on getting help out quickly through the tax and welfare system.

But one charity says Pacific families are already under pressure.

Ana Ika, the Salvation Army’s social policy analyst, says more families, including many from Pacific communities, have asked for help in just the past week.

Treasury has warned inflation could reach 3.7 per cent if global oil supply problems continue. Food prices have already risen 4.5 per cent over the year to February and now fuel is added to the load.

Watch Nicola Willis' full interview below.

Speaking with William Terite on Pacific Mornings, Willis says global events are pushing up oil prices and that is starting to show at the pump.

“It's likely that will have a flow-on effect to higher prices at the pump at home,” Willis says.

Willis says filling up a car now costs more than $20 extra compared to before the latest fuel shock.

Salvation Army social policy analyst Ana Ika says more families have asked for help in just the past week. Photo/Supplied/PMN Composite.

While the government is looking at ways to help, Willis says broad relief measures such as cutting fuel taxes are unlikely. Instead, the focus is on targeted support.

“We really want to target our support for low and middle income workers so we've got a number of options through the tax system, through the transfer and welfare system,” she said.

“I'm working with our officials on what would get it to the people who really need it quickly and efficiently.”

Labour’s Deputy Leader Carmel Sepuloni says many families were already struggling before fuel costs went up, and this is making things worse.

“This is just exacerbating the struggle and the challenges that so many New Zealanders including Pacific New Zealanders are faced with,” Sepuloni told Terite.

The impact is hitting Pacific communities hard. They already face higher unemployment and many households are under financial stress.

Watch Carmel Sepuloni's full interview below.

For many families, driving is not a choice, it’s a must.

Ika says Pacific workers are often in jobs with early, late, or shift hours where public transport is limited or unavailable.

“They're dependent on driving to work and so it has a ripple effect into other areas such as housing, such as food, which we're primarily seeing at the moment.”

She says families in rural areas and those needing regular medical trips are among the hardest hit.

She warns more people may need help if costs keep rising.

Despite the challenges, Ika says Pacific communities are leaning on each other. “Our Pacific communities are really resilient and our Pacific communities are really communal.

Watch Ana Ika's full interview below.

“So it's looking at avenues where we can in our communities, support those who are on the margins of those statistics that we often talk about.

"The reality is that even though we're talking about numbers here that for our communities, that represents families, that represents stories and that represents children.

“So I think it's about looking at alternative opportunities to be resilient in the current crisis that we're facing at the moment and just reaching out for help because that's a huge barrier for our Pacific communities.”