The media have created a controversy over Louise Upston’s accommodation allowance. Naturally the story has triggered public anger because it appears, at first glance, to confirm every suspicion people already hold about politicians. A minister receives around $1,000 a week in taxpayer-funded accommodation support while also owning an apartment in Wellington. Politically, it ain’t a great look. A minister tightening accommodation support for ordinary people while receiving accommodation support herself was always vulnerable to being seized upon by opposition including media.
