It’s looking like a warmer start to winter for many with the winter energy payment helping around one million people and NIWA predicting a winter with a possibility of warmer temperatures than usual.
NIWA’s seasonal outlook for May and June indicated a 45 per cent chance of above average temperatures in the top of the south and a 45 per cent chance of near average temperatures. Their predictions show just a 10 per cent chance of colder than normal temperatures.
Rainfall figures were looking similar, with a nearly 50 per cent likelihood of a drier winter and a 40 per cent chance of a near normal season. Again, the likelihood of a wetter than usual season was low.
The NIWA outlook for the country says that though frosts will occur, they are expected to be brief.
From May to October all seniors, veterans and beneficiaries will again receive the winter energy payment. For couples with children, the payment is just over $30 a week and for single people, just over $20
a week.
In introducing the payment this year, the Labour party says it will decrease the chances of people ending up in hospital because of cold damp living conditions. They say it will also protect renters and lift some of the financial pressure off people who struggle to afford insulation and heating.