New powers will enable police to require people to leave a public area for up to 24 hours.
In an amendment to the Summary Offences Act, the ‘move-on’ orders can be applied to anyone over the age of 14 who is exhibiting disorderly or threatening behaviour, obstructing a business entryway, rough sleeping, or begging. Those who breach the order risk a fine of up to $2000 or a three month jail term.
The SMC asked experts to comment.
Dr. Emmy Rākete, Professional Teaching Fellow, School of Social Sciences, University of Auckland, comments:
“The Salvation Army reports that in Auckland, there has been a doubling in the number of street homelessness in Auckland between September 2024 and September 2025, alongside a $79 million reduction in budget allocation for homeless support work. This means that street homelessness has worsened under this government, while the support services it claims these expulsion orders will connect people to are underfunded to the point of service failure.
“The government has failed to present any kind of evidence base to support its claim that criminalising public homelessness will somehow help people into stable, long-term housing, because no such evidence exists. Instead, we know from research conducted by Associate Professor Alice Mills that people who serve prison sentences become more likely to experience housing insecurity after they get out, and that housing insecurity is associated with increased likelihood of recidivism and reimprisonment.
“Punishing the poor doesn’t work, but helping them does. ‘Housing first’ is an approach to housing policy which provides chronically homeless people with unconditional housing, on the basis that stable housing is a precondition to sorting out all of the things in a person’s life causing them to experience homelessness. A systematic review of housing first programmes found that it was more effective at reducing homelessness than other models, so we know that this approach works.
“Instead of expanding promising housing first programmes and addressing homelessness, this government is spending billions of dollars on prison expansions to cope with the massive increase in incarceration that its policies are driving. These policies benefit the rich and multinational corporations, but they harm the working class, who have to accept worse infrastructure, worse social services, and worse lives.”
Conflict of interest statement: “I am also press spokesperson for People Against Prisons Aotearoa, a community organisation working for an Aotearoa in which prisons are not necessary and do not exist.”
Associate Professor Polly Atatoa Carr, Te Ngira Institute for Population Research, Waikato University, comments:
“While the pathways to homelessness in Aotearoa New Zealand are diverse and complex, there are important themes that emerge. One of these themes is financial challenges to securing and sustaining tenancies and our research has demonstrated that high levels of personal debt are common for those who are experiencing homelessness. We have significant concerns that the ‘move-on’ orders, and potential fines involved, will only further exacerbate the situation for individuals and communities, rather than support successful and safe housing and community outcomes.
“Working in partnership with a local Housing First service, we demonstrated that not only were those experiencing homelessness in high levels of debt, but that institutional debt, particularly to government institutions, was both the most common type of debt and made up the largest amount of money owed. Multiple debts were also common. These debts not only make housing difficult, but also impact on the ability to access other resources important for securing work and wellbeing, including health services.
“The ‘move on’ orders also apply to those as young as 14-years-old. Our research has also demonstrated that many young people in Aotearoa New Zealand experiencing homelessness are caught between government services eligibility criteria, are under significant financial (and other) strain, and we know that child poverty is an issue in our country. The potential impact of these orders on the ability of young people to have a normal life (such as without poor credit records) may be life-long.
“Rather than providing more opportunities to criminalise and punish those experiencing homelessness, it is likely that more successful outcomes would result from the government reviewing the need to repay emergency benefits and other costs incurred when navigating complex lives and circumstances.”
Conflict of interest statement: “Nil.”
Distinguished Professor Philippa Howden-Chapman, Co-director He Kainga Oranga/Housing & Health Research Programme, University of Otago, comments:
“The National Government has turned its back on modern social democratic welfare. The problem of growing homelessness is solely due to the erratic and inadequate supply of affordable homes for people on low incomes. This Government has predictably manufactured the dire housing shortage by defunding most emergency housing and reducing the building of affordable housing. Moreover, they have reallocated some of the money the previous Labour Government allocated to Kāinga Ora, to building roads, not to Community Housing Providers as promised.
“The distressing sight and disturbing disruption of rapidly increasingly homeless women and men, young and old is seriously upsetting and avoidable. This Government has literally returned to the Medieval Poor Laws, which were modified in England and Wales in the 16th century and not abolished until the 19th century social reforms. The focus of the Poor Laws was to physically punish homeless people, who survived by begging. Their local church was expected to provide a bed in a room in a work-house, pilloried by Dickens, but was not expected to house those who were not known locally. Homeless people, who were not registered in a local area, were forced to return to their birth-place, or the last place they lived, to receive any succour.
“The answer to homelessness is not to amend the Summary Offences Act, which would enable police to punish people as young as 14 of “No Fixed Abode” with substantial fines and possible imprisonment if they don’t “move on.” Instead, governments need to guarantee significant investment in sustainable housing with the support they need. The expansion of Housing First accommodation shows that this kind of support enables homeless people to regain their health. There is robust local evidence of the significant positive impact on the health and wellbeing of homeless people, who are settled in long-term, affordable housing. Evidence shows that people who are housed through Housing First, public or community housing are hospitalised less, have improved mental health, increased income from employment and less contact with the police.
“The Aotearoa New Zealand Government has signed up to the internationally recognised right to decent housing as a fundamental human right. The modern democratic 21st century state has a fundamental responsibility to ensure that everyone has access to secure, healthy, affordable and homes. Homes that are not crowded and have the essential services, such as water, energy, (working) sanitation and support that we all need sometimes.”
Conflict of interest statement: “Previously Kāinga Ora Board director.”
Dr Brodie Fraser, Senior Research Fellow, He Kāinga Oranga, Department of Public Health, University of Otago Wellington, comments:
“Criminalising homelessness does not work. These changes can’t even be considered a ‘band-aid’ solution; there is no benefit to them beyond the Government trying to improve its image in an election year. Forcing rough sleepers to move on, and fining and/or imprisoning them does not solve, or reduce, rough sleeping. The Government should consider evidence-based policy that we know works; increasing benefit rates to reduce poverty, expanding Housing First programmes, and increasing the numbers of public houses. Instead, we have a Government that seems to believe poverty is an individual failure, rather than a structural one.”
Conflict of interest statement: “None.”