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With the rising cost of living, many people are struggling to pay the bills, particularly over winter as the cost of power rises. New research from the University of Otago finds that the cost of heating a child's bedroom through the night in a Wellington winter would eat up nearly half of the government's Winter Energy Payment. The Winter Energy Payment is paid to qualifying beneficiaries and all superannuitants to help with heating costs. Lynn speaks with Otago University researcher Dr Caroline Shorter about the study. Also on the programme, Christchurch Budget Service's manager Dave Marra, who tells Lynn having a low income in today's economic environment, and living in private rental accommodation (as the majority of low wage earners are) is a recipe for hardship, resulting in a huge rise in the number of people buying basics like food using buy now, pay later services like Afterpay.
