Should WINZ chase emergency housing debt?

The Auckland community law centre says homeless people who've racked up thousands of dollars of debt to Work and Income for emergency housing may be burdened forever. The government says has ruled out a blanket write-off of debts run up by people who have borrowed money from Work and Income to pay for accommodation. But it says from September, some loans for short term emergency housing will not have to be paid back. In the last two weeks it's been revealed that WINZ clients, who are in emergency housing, often in motel rooms, are paying with loans from the government which must be repaid. Darryn Aitchison is a Senior Solicitor with the Auckland Community Law Centre and Alastair Russell from Auckland Action Against Poverty.