National needs to face the music. Housing Minister Chris Bishop’s grand “turnaround plan” for Kāinga Ora involves cancelling thousands of new builds and flogging off 900 social homes a year to his wealthy mates while claiming it’ll "refocus" the agency on being a landlord. Meanwhile, building consents for new homes dropped 24% in 2024 compared to the previous year, according to Statistics New Zealand. So, fewer homes are being built while Bishop sells the silverware. That’s not a plan; it’s a complete surrender to the housing crisis.
The Salvation Army has sounded the alarm, linking tightened emergency housing criteria to a 53% spike in rough sleeping in Auckland. Yet Luxon, in a March 2025 RNZ interview, had the gall to reject any connection between his government’s policies and rising homelessness, saying, “We’ve got a lot of work ahead of us.” But instead of working to help Kiwis, National is busy working to dismantle the safety net.
Today, the Post reported:
PM avoids talk about homeless numbers in New Plymouth
The Government has been severely criticised by New Plymouth mayor Neil Holdom about a lack of involvement or willingness to find or fund a solution when it came to the growing number of rough sleepers in the central business district and related antisocial behaviour.
A lack of action has led the council to put $800,000 towards a homeless shelter at New Plymouth’s YMCA in an attempt to ease the situation.
When asked about the Government’s position, Luxon handed the problem over to New Plymouth MP David MacLeod to speak about it.
“I am aware of it,” Luxon said after an invite-only Taranaki Chamber of Commerce event at the Plymouth Hotel.
Instead, Luxon spoke about the Government’s housing record, which he said meant rental prices had not increased during the term.
Luxon’s corporate polish can’t mask his disconnect. This is a man who, in 2020, rallied against a 54-home development in Howick, whining about preserving single-dwelling zones. Now he’s PM, and that NIMBY streak hasn’t faded…he’s just outsourced it to a party that’s gutting social housing while pretending it’s reform. His coalition’s obsession with deregulation and privatization, as seen in their push for wealthy foreign investors to buy up Aotearoa, reeks of prioritizing the elite over everyday hardworking Kiwis.
The human cost is gut-wrenching. Ihi Research found four out of five homeless women in Aotearoa are Māori, some as young as 15. Auckland City Mission reports over 200 women over 55 are waiting for social housing...and they're the lucky ones who were allowed onto the wait list. Under National, most housing deprived people get turned away. These aren’t just stats...they’re lives unraveling while Luxon plays at a CEO whose too important to give a damn, dodging accountability while waffling on about how wonderful everything is. He's all talk. His claim that it’s “unacceptable” for kids to grow up in motels rings hollow when National's policies are kicking families onto the street and offering them tents.
Luxon’s stupidly banking on Kiwis not noticing all those new homeless people out there. His March 2025 dismissal of polls showing Labour’s Chris Hipkins overtaking him as preferred PM...where he shrugged, “I’m focused on Kiwis, not polls”...is a tired old worn out dodge. Focused on Kiwis? Tell that to the tens of thousands of homeless Kiwis doing it tough. This isn’t leadership; it’s willful ignorance.
National’s housing failures are a betrayal of the most vulnerable, and Luxon’s refusal to own it is a stain on his hopefully short tenure. Time to wake up, Chris, before more Kiwis pay the price for your apathy and disdain for the poor.
