Minister of the Community and Voluntary Sector Priyancha Radhakrishnan met with members of Socialink in Tauranga this week.

Radhakrishnan who was promoted to Cabinet this week discussed a community-led development fund, Lotteries funding, and her role in promoting volunteers.

She also discussed work that the Ministry of Social Development is doing around social cohesion in response to the March 15 mosque attack, and the review of the Charities Act.

Labour List MPs Jan Tinetti, Angie Warren-Clark with MP Priyanca-Radhakrishnan at Socialink. Photo: Supplied.

Local Labour List MPs Jan Tinetti and Angie Warren-Clark also attended the meeting. Tinetti has taken on extra work in the education portfolio as part of this last week's Cabinet reshuffle.

SociaLink general manager Liz Davies outlined to the MPs the role of SociaLink, local social issues and issues community organisations were facing.

Community Insights manager Liz Flaherty showed them the newly launched social and community organisations dashboard designed by Community Insights, which enables better understanding of the local charities operating in the Western Bay of Plenty.

Liz Davies says the meeting with the Ministers and MP was helpful in outlining the many issues social agencies and charities are facing.

'They were particularly interested in the impact anti-money laundering legislation has for not-for-profits trying to open a bank account or change signatories, and that food prices are highest in Tauranga of all places in New Zealand,” says Davies.

'The evident prosperity in Tauranga masks significant areas of high deprivation and high levels of income inequality. Tauranga is a tale of two cities and we suspect that Tauranga does not get as much Central Government funding as it should because of its perceived prosperity.”

Multicultural Tauranga also welcomed Radhakrishnan, Tinetti, Warren-Clark and Fungai Mhlanga at a special korero at their centre.