Government plans to introduce a “move on order” allowing police to remove homeless people from Auckland’s CBD are drawing strong criticism from Māori social support workers, who say the proposal ignores the deeper issues driving the city’s homelessness crisis.
Earlier this month, ministers signalled they were considering new measures that would give police powers to forcibly remove people living on the streets in central Auckland. Māori social workers argue the approach fails to address the underlying causes.
Waka of Caring founder Debbie Munroe says using force against vulnerable communities will only escalate tensions.
“We’re going to have unhappy, sad, angry, frustrated homeless people. What do you do when you’ve got those feelings? You’re either going to do crime, violence, suicide. Is the government ready for suicide, are they really? Because this is where it’s going to lead you. You’re giving them absolutely no hope what so ever.”
Te Puea Memorial Marae Trust Board chairperson Hurimoana Dennis says the presence of homeless people in the CBD reflects the realities of living in a major city.
“I also want to say too, Auckland City, they want to spruce up their image to the rest of the world well hello, that’s what reality looks like sometimes. It’s not all going to be pretty.”
Homelessness on the rise
Auckland continues to see a sharp rise in rough sleeping, with a 90 per cent increase between September 2024 and May 2025. As of January this year, 653 people were sleeping in cars, on streets or in parks, according to Auckland Council, though frontline workers believe the true number is higher.
Dennis says he understands the government’s concerns but believes the current proposal is not the solution.
“I’ve had personal experiences with my wife and my daughter walking up and down Queen street. I have to say, my wife and my daughter get intimidated. Some of them have been a bit rough, you give them a kai or a bit of pūtea and then they’ll follow you all the way down Queen street. In saying that, if you don’t like the way they look or they look at you, it can cause some issues. But, more broadly, it creates an unsafe environment. So, I don’t blame them for trying to do this sort of thing, but when you try and fix the problem, you have to understand what the problem really is.”
He says many people living rough are struggling with mental health challenges.
“They’ve just got the wrong lens on this. They need to take another look at what they’re really dealing with, because they need a different sort of help. Not just with a whare, but some support with the hinengaro. Kua ngaro kē te nuinga o rātou.”
Munroe says heavy-handed approaches have been used before, with little success.
“What are they going to do, turn up with paddy wagons and throw them in there and what dump them on the side of the road somewhere or I don’t know, on a farm or something. They did that a couple of years ago in Manurewa, they picked them up and moved them to Manukau, paddy wagons picked them up and moved them to the city. But, guess what they come home and this was their home,” she says.
