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Widowed pensioner Kathleen Chase has severe heart disease and says the end of the winter energy payment on October 1 means she will have a hard time keeping her home warm in New Zealand.
During the winter, she has relied on the weekly winter energy payment to cover most of her electricity bill for her small apartment in Christchurch.
Chase said he was concerned about what the end of the $ 40-a-week payment would mean as he struggled with his one-time pension to make ends meet.
“I really struggle with energy costs during the winter, even paying for winter energy,” he said.
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“My cardiologist said, for the health of my heart, I have to have the house at 20 degrees and it is difficult to keep my house at that temperature.”
Even during the summer, energy bills can be high, he said.
“When this is over, I don’t know what I’m going to do.”
Joseph Johnson / Stuff
Kathleen Chase, a retiree receiving the winter energy payment, has underlying health issues and is concerned about what will happen when the payment ends on October 1.
The winter energy payment is automatically paid to everyone who receives a primary benefit, including the New Zealand Retirement Pension and Veterans Pension.
As of July, 355,648 people received one of the main benefits and 809,001 people received a retirement or veterans pension, according to the Ministry of Social Development (MSD).
Winter energy payments doubled this year to adjust for Covid-19-related costs.
Single people without children receive $ 40.91 per week. Couples receive $ 63.64.
Chase isn’t the only one worrying about what’s to come after the winter payment ends.
Student and single mother Chloe Hattaway said the looming winter payment due date added to her sometimes overwhelming anxiety.
“I was talking to my case manager in tears. This money is critical and even though it only costs $ 60 a week, it is very stressful to lose it.
Hattaway said money was so tight that she sometimes went without food to make sure her daughter was fed. The winter energy payment provided some leeway to cover costs.
“We are not eating expensive food. It’s bread, it’s the basics. When the payment is finished, it will be more difficult. “
Another recipient of the winter payment, who Stuff agreed not to name, said winter power payment barely scratched the surface, but better than to do without.
“[It’s the difference between] frozen dinners some nights and more heating hours, instead of chills and sandwiches for lunch, or just lunch when the bread goes moldy, ”he said.
“I am in a sustained life and with my rent and food bills, I start and end my payday with $ 0 in the bank and an overdraft. I can’t work and going out is exhausting and I still can’t cover the costs. “
He said he was dreading the end of the month when the winter payment was withdrawn.
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ActionStation economic justice activist Ruby Powell said families are at risk of falling further into poverty with the end of winter energy payments.
“Life on the benefit is a humiliating period and receiving pennies temporarily in times of crisis is an insult when the wealthy receive Covid-19 payments. We have $ 25, it makes me sick. Even that plus winter pay is not enough to live with some kind of dignity, whether you are disabled or out of work, or both. “
The demand for food packages has exploded during the Covid-19 crisis.
ActionStation economic justice activist Ruby Powell said the country couldn’t risk pushing families deeper into poverty by ending the winter energy payment, particularly at this time.
“Covid-19 has disrupted everyone’s life, including the beneficiaries. Before Covid, people spent a lot of time and energy looking for complementary ways to get food for their family and take care of their families, “Powell said.
For example, on a cold day, families can go to the library, he said.
“But at various points through Covid, those informal ways of meeting your family’s needs have been removed.”
The winter energy payment helped people pay their energy bills so the money could be spent on other essentials, he said.
More needs to be done to alleviate poverty in New Zealand, he said.
Lynn Grieveson / Press room
Social Development Minister Carmel Sepuloni says the government focused on lifting families out of poverty.
“The reality is that 50 percent of our population owns 2 percent of the wealth.
“That means the resources we take for granted, like being able to do your garden to plant a vegetable garden, like being able to borrow a car if your car breaks down, having friends who can give you firewood, if your firewood runs out, those options aren’t there. available to a lot of people, ”Powell said.
But Social Development Minister Carmel Sepuloni said the government had introduced a series of measures to alleviate the poverty of the beneficiaries.
“I recognize the importance of income adequacy to achieve this and that is why it has been a critical part of our program to reform the welfare system.”
If beneficiaries and retirees needed support after winter power payments ended, they should contact MSD, Sepuloni said.
