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Submission to MBIE on Energy Hardship
Posted December 10, 2021
Salvation Army Submission
- The Salvation Army has chosen to provide a short general submission to this consultation. We have encouraged our national network of financial mentors (FMs) to write their own submission or complete the online survey on the MBIE website. We have engaged with MBIE and other stakeholders throughout the Energy Price Review process and so we welcome this consultation and other progress to this body of work.
- This submission has been prepared with feedback from our financial mentors and budgeters who engage directly with people and whanau on energy-related hardship issues, as well as a host of other issues the person or whanau is facing. However, while it is our financial mentors (and to some extent our community finance loans workers) who are the primary point of engagement with people and whanau facing energy-related hardship issues, it is important to remember that these people and whanau are often facing several complex and challenging social (and other challenges) issues that are happening at the same time for them. Therefore, the 120,000 (on average) New Zealanders that use our services each year are facing multiple issues. Consequently, any energy-related hardship issues they face must be viewed in light of the other surrounding yet impactful issues they are facing in other parts of their lives. This is the reality for many using our social and Christian spiritual support services.
- This submission aims to summarise general views and feedback from our financial mentors on three questions or areas: how do they as financial mentors define EH in their day-to-day work? What types of people or whanau do you see facing EH in your work? How does financial capability and the work of financial mentors help people face and overcome energy-related hardship issues? We have taken this approach because the data and statistical analyses from MBIE is no doubt comprehensive in quantifying EH issues. We aimed for a more on-the-ground approach to give first-hand insights of these areas. Please note that each italicised section/quote is a separate piece of feedback from our FMs.
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