Poverty and food insecurity have a detrimental impact on health outcomes, exacerbating the cycle of interdependency between in-work poverty and enjoyment of other human rights. The extent to which the right to food is impacted by poverty in working households in Aotearoa New Zealand, and vice versa, warrants further analysis, including the extent to which our social security benefits are sufficient to alleviate poverty for those both in work and not in work. Impact on civil and political rights Those from working households experiencing poverty often face systematic violations of their civil and political rights in particular the rights to liberty and personal security, and political participation. For example, rights to liberty and security of person are often impacted upon by a person’s status as in-work poor, as a result of disproportionate attention from the police, over-representation in rates of imprisonment and detention, inability to afford adequate legal representation, and a denial of voting rights because of transience or due to incarceration.42 Further, people experiencing poverty often face barriers to enjoying their right to political participation. When an individual’s focus is on ensuring they are adequately fed, engaging in political processes may be viewed as a luxury. The NZWRI Research does not give us enough information to conduct a full analysis of the impacts that poverty has on the enjoyment of civil and political rights of those in working households, highlighting another area for future work. decent work health food housing Poverty in working households civil and political rights education 16 Human Rights Responses to Poverty in Working Households