Tariana Turia: Spending now will save us in the future

In February the Savings Working Group released its final report to Government, emphasising the value of saving to economic activity. The key theme was that "saving" shifts resources from those who have no immediate use for them to those who can use them productively to enhance economic prosperity.
Given the emphasis on consumer saving, it was surprising to see the recent growth in so-called retail therapy, with spending on credit and debit cards in June 2011 up 7.7 per cent compared to the same month a year earlier.
The value of electronic card transactions (eftpos) climbed to $5.32 billion in June, with particular increases in furniture, hardware, appliances, food, liquor and chemist retail.
You have to wonder what such spending all means when the Household Economic Survey was released last week, confirming between 170,000 and 270,000 children were in households with incomes below the low-income thresholds (ie "in poverty"). The report revealed that child poverty rates were steady at 22 per cent, and in particular that Working for Families had had little impact on poverty rates for children of beneficiaries. The Maori Party has been clear from the day we signed our coalition agreement with the Government - eliminating poverty is a major priority.
It comes back to the question - save or spend. But it also depends on how you frame the question.
I think it's really important to see inequality, poverty and hardship as multi-dimensional - not just about income. Having sufficient income is of course important, but it is the cumulative impact of multiple disadvantage that has the most significant effect on chances and outcomes, especially for our children.
The most pressing issue facing Aotearoa is the interplay of child poverty, poor housing and difficulty accessing primary health care services. We need to tackle social injustice on all fronts.
To do this, Government needs to reassess its investment priorities. Investing in short-term negative spending such as bootcamps, or growing prisons to accommodate rising prison volumes, will not achieve the change we need.
The Maori Party has achieved great success on some aspects of our strategy to eliminate poverty. The $24 million we achieved during the Emissions Trading Scheme negotiations has meant that 6000 homes of low income whanau have been upgraded through the Warm Up New Zealand home insulation scheme. We have also been able to place some resources ($12 million) around communities confronting rheumatic fever. But our major focus over the past three years has been in raising the profile - in making poverty everyone's issue.
Just before Christmas, my colleague Rahui Katene wrote to every party in the House seeking cross-party collaboration in addressing poverty. It was not just our bright idea - the Children's Social Health Monitor (2010) also recommended it.
We believe we need to work together, to invest in long-term sustainable gains, raising income levels, and providing more support for the children of our most vulnerable families.
The targeted spend we need today will create the long-term savings all our children require to ensure a solid future.