Budget 2024: Fears govt funding ignores inequities

There are concerns the government's Budget brushes over areas where Pacific communities need extra support.

The coalition government campaigned against it calls race-based funding, and made true on that promise in yesterday's Budget announcement, with overall funding for Pacific services down $26 million.

Salvation Army policy analyst Ana Ika says the Budget lacks compassion, and won’t make much difference to the families they support.

“When you give generalised funding, that doesn't address the disparities that we're seeing in society.

“The Salvation Army supports quite a niche of society that are the most vulnerable, which often have a lot of Pasifika and Māori families, and we will always advocate for targeted funding because there’s such a disparity when we're looking at the outcomes for the families that we support.”

In June last year, the average household income for Pacific families was $47,797. With the government’s tax savings from July, this would mean at least $11.65 savings per week, and more if there are children living in the home.

Speaking to William Terite on Pacific Mornings, Ika says it’s disheartening to see the government prioritising blanket tax cuts instead of issues like food insecurity.

“The first thing that goes when our Pasifika families are trying to pay off bills or pay off unexpected expenses is the shopping bill, and so often that's why we see such an influx of people needing support around food, and we didn't see any funding other than the funding for school lunches, which declined."

Economist Filipo Katavake-McGrath says the impact of yesterday’s Budget and squeezed economy will be felt differently by different social groups.

“The purpose of the tax relief is to help people on a slightly higher income navigate the costs that are in the economy, however for Pacific families who are on lower incomes who have greater reliance [on some support services], the economic outlook actually look that good for the next couple of years.”

Katavake-McGrath says the next few years may be hard on everyone.

“Over the next few years the economic outlook sees inflation still being quite high which impacts on the price of things that families purchase, wage growth will slow as well as increased unemployment, so potentially more people out of more people relying on benefits.”

Looking ahead for Pacific programmes

In 2024/25, total baseline funding for Pacific Peoples now sits at just over $90.2 million dollars, a drop of more than $26 million from last year.

Cuts to Pacific-led programmes include $25.6 million in job cuts at the Ministry for Pacific Peoples, $1 million annual reduction to the Pacific Business Procurement Support Service, and ceased funding for the Pacific Cooperation Fund.

Labour deputy leader Carmel Sepuloni says when they were in power, they made a point of investing in programmes for rheumatic fever, Pacific languages and festivals, and business.

“These are things that are specifically targeted toward our Pacific community, and are in the best interest of all New Zealanders.

“The narrative around ‘race-based funding’ that this government has been driving, ignores the fact that actually if Māori and Pacific are not thriving, then the rest of the country can’t thrive as well.”

Minister for Pacific Peoples Dr Shane Reti released a statement to PMN, stating that he's committed to Pacific peoples following the budget drop.

"I have a strong, ongoing commitment to Pacific peoples," his statement read.

"Budget 2024 confirms funding for the Ministry for Pacific Peoples to continue its work. [And] for the term ahead, my priorities for the Pacific Peoples portfolio will be housing, economic development, education and employment, and health. I am working with the Ministry for Pacific Peoples to ensure existing funding is directed towards the most effective investments in these areas, that will make the most difference for Pacific communities. I look forward to making specific announcements about these priorities in due course."

Watch the full panel discussion on Pacific Mornings: