New powers for police to move on homeless people and beggars will result in safer business districts.

The Luxon Government ignores expert advice on their Move-on orders and, as a result, punches down on the vulnerable and least fortunate of us. With them intentionally ignoring this advice, they are actively choosing to cause this harm.

International evidence shows this kind of policy does not decrease criminal activity, but does increase poverty cycles and make it harder for homeless people to access support networks and break the cycle. The new orders are inconsistent with NZ Police and other officials' own advice to ministers, which warned of a "lack of empirical evidence." The orders allowing police to direct people to leave an area for up to 24 hours, backed by fines, up to $2000, or up to three months' imprisonment would not reduce crime. They also said they were "highly likely" to simply shift begging or rough sleeping elsewhere.

The wrap-around approach used in the previous term was already seeing crime rates in central city areas decrease without moving people to other areas, while Coalition funding changes have seen emergency accommodation spots drop from the hundreds to double digits with an 80% decline rate, driving homeless numbers up; Luxon has separately been unaware there is no night shelter in Auckland for those being moved on.

Research shows a housing-first approach nets the best results for both individuals and society as a whole.