Mathers MojoMOJO MATHERS (Green): I think that at the heart of what we are discussing here is what kind of New Zealand we want: one that is compassionate and caring and supports people on the way to having a decent standard of living and supporting themselves and their families or one that is harsh and judgmental of people who are experiencing tough times and harsh and judgmental of disabled people? This is an issue that is really close to my heart. Recent statistics that have been released on cold damp housing show that 38 percent of disabled people cannot keep their houses warm—significantly higher than any other group. Just think about that: people with disabilities are living in cold damp housing—38 percent of people with disabilities. The very people who often for health reasons need to be kept warm—need to be in warm housing—are not.The social support system in New Zealand is failing these people. Year in year out winter after winter they are living in cold damp housing. They are living in cold damp housing because the benefits are not enough to secure rental housing that is warm and dry for them. Not only is the rent too high but for many people there is a shortage of accessible housing housing that meets their needs. Sometimes they are forced both because of their specific needs and because of low incomes to accept the worst possible housing and that is just outrageous. This is not what we want for New Zealand.The other issue I want to pick up on is the one that was raised by my colleague Jan Logie about the culture of Work and Income being intimidating—about this solo woman with a baby who could not get the benefit because she was so intimidated by going into Work and Income. I know what that feels like because I have been there. I have been there under two different Governments. I have directly experienced what it feels like to go to Work and Income under a Government that is harsh and judgmental that rants on about beneficiary bludgers. Do you remember those days?I remember trying to go to Work and Income and asking for the unemployment benefit. It was like being hauled over the coals as to why I should get the unemployment benefit to see me through a few months. It was an incredibly humiliating experience and that was under a National Government. So what happened—jump forward 15 years later—when a Labour Government was in? I thought that the culture at Work and Income might still be the same. When there was a crisis in the family business and there was no money coming in for several months and the cupboards were bare I still could not bear to go to Work and Income because I was terrified of being subjected to the same treatment. Finally a friend rang them and said: Look I have this mum with three children who is actually quite desperate for a food grant."—this was under a Labour Government. They said: "Come on in come on in. Just bring in your records for your business and we'll see what we can do for you." The atmosphere was completely different.I cannot tell you how important that is that fundamental culture of respect when somebody walks in that door and says: "We're experiencing tough times." They should not have to dot every "i" and cross every "t" and produce a billion swathes of documents to show who they are multiple times over. They should not have to prove that they have a disability every 6 months or every year or whatever it is. That is what happens at Work and Income. It is so intimidating so overwhelming that people are desperate when they try to explain. Then they get it wrong—sometimes they get it wrong. They confess they have earned some money that week. They get it wrong and Work and Income cuts off the benefit by 50 percent straight away without actually factoring in that over time they have not earned that much.There are so many things wrong at the moment in Work and Income—so many things. The only way we are going to get things better is to change that culture and that is going to require changing the Government because I cannot see National ever recognising that it has such a serious problem with the culture at Work and Income."