Latest news with #WinterEnergyPayment
Scoop
01-08-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
Open Letter To The Members Of Parliament
To the Prime Minister, the Minister for Finance, the Minister for Social Development, the Minister for Tertiary Education, and all Members of Parliament, This winter, tens of thousands of students across Aotearoa are once again thrust into the impossible decision between heating their flats, or feeding themselves. This is not a matter of budgeting or lifestyle. Rather, it is a matter of wellbeing, dignity, and fairness. The Winter Energy Payment, as it currently stands, supports some of our most vulnerable citizens. Yet it excludes one of the most financially precarious groups in our country: tertiary students. Despite facing the same rising power bills and cold, damp housing, students are left out of this essential support simply because of their age and their pursuit of education. This exclusion is unjust. Many students live below the poverty line. They juggle part-time work, high rent, and increasing food and transport costs. Many care for families or face additional barriers, such as disability, chronic illness, or being estranged from family support. Cold homes worsen these hardships. They make students sick, lower academic performance, and damage mental health. Every winter, we hear stories of students wearing jackets to bed, studying under blankets, or choosing between heating their homes and eating three meals a day. The Winter Energy Payment for Students would be a simple and effective way to alleviate some of this hardship. By extending the payment to those receiving Student Allowance, Student Loan Living Costs, or enrolled full-time in tertiary education, the Government could make an immediate difference to the health, safety, and wellbeing of tens of thousands of young people. Advertisement - scroll to continue reading This change would mean amending the Social Security (Winter Energy Payment) Amendment Act 2019 to include tertiary students, and the Student Allowance Regulations 1998 so that Winter Energy Payments would not be considered under the definition of personal income for the purposes of those regulations. This call is backed by social service providers, tertiary education leaders, and students up and down the motu. It reflects a growing recognition that leaving students out in the cold is not only unfair but economically and socially short-sighted. We urge the Government to act now. Students have been doing more with less for far too long. Students deserve warm homes, good health, and a fair go. Don't leave students out in the cold. Extend the Winter Energy Payment to students. Sincerely, Josh Robinson - Campaign Lead, Winter Energy Payment for Students Liban Ali - President, Te Aka Tauira – Victoria University of Wellington Students' Association Aria Ngarimu and Kaea Hudson - Co-Presidents, Ngāi Tauira – Victoria University Māori Students Association Gabriel Boyd - President, Te Rōpū Kahikatea – Auckland University Students' Association Eloise Fleming and Nikita Van Dijk - Co-Presidents, National Disabled Students' Association Caitlin Payne - Senior Administrator, Te Tira Ahu Pae – Massey Students' Association Alicia Lemmer - President, Auckland University of Technology Students' Association Richard Wagstaff - President, The New Zealand Council of Trade Unions Paul Goulter - CEO, Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa New Zealand Nurses Organisation Social Change Collective Lola Fisher - Co-Executive Director, Gen-Z Aotearoa Lauren Craig and Maioha Hunt - Co-Convenors, Young Greens of Aotearoa New Zealand
Scoop
02-06-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
VUWSA Calls For The Winter Energy Payment To Be Extended To Students
Te Aka Tauira – Victoria University of Wellington Students' Association (VUWSA) has re-launched a petition calling on the Government to extend the Winter Energy Payment to include tertiary students. 'Energy companies are announcing record profits whilst students are ending up sick in the hospital with respiratory illnesses such as pneumonia,' said VUWSA Welfare Vice-President Josh Robinson. 'This is whilst the added pressure of the cost of living, and increased transport costs continue to mount.' The Winter Energy Payment is designed to help those struggling with rising living costs to keep their homes warm and dry during the coldest months in Aotearoa. Yet, tertiary students remain ineligible for this vital support — despite often living in some of the coldest, dampest, and poorest housing, and surviving on deeply strained incomes. Access to the Winter Energy Payment would ease the impossible choice students currently face; a warm home or affording the necessities. According to the People's Inquiry into Student Wellbeing, two-thirds of students regularly go without enough money for basic necessities like food, clothing, power bills, and healthcare. Meanwhile, annual electricity prices have climbed by $120 since April 2024, and Aotearoa's four largest energy companies reported a staggering $2.7 billion in combined profits last year. In 2024, nearly 1,000 students applied for Victoria University's Winter Energy Grant, with the most common concerns listed being financial hardship and cold accommodation. The Winter Energy Payment, introduced in 2017 by the Labour Government, currently supports most beneficiary groups — except students. VUWSA believes this is an unjust oversight and is urging the Government to correct it. 'Students deserve to live in warm, dry homes without sacrificing their health or skipping meals,' Robinson added. Te Aka Tauira is calling on all students, whānau, and supporters to sign the petition and support the push to end student poverty and energy hardship.
