Hayes John: Affordable Housing: Enabling Territorial Authorities Bill — Second Reading In Committee Third Reading 
Hayes John: Affordable Housing: Enabling Territorial Authorities Bill — Second Reading In Committee Third Reading 
[Volume:649;Page:18471] 
JOHN HAYES (National—Wairarapa) 
: 
 I would like to begin by speaking to clause 3A which states: “This Act binds the Crown.” I feel quite sorry for the Minister in the chair the Hon Trevor Mallard because this legislation is abysmal. It is on a par with the emissions trading scheme legislation. What I am getting at is that the Act binds the Crown but this whole bill is concerned with territorial authorities. When the Minister speaks at some point I will be very interested in his explanation as to why this Act binds the Crown because clearly it does not. I feel very sorry for the Minister because this legislation is terrible. I do hope the Minister is reading Paul Quinn’s column in the  
Hutt News 
 which I see he is engrossed in. 
Hon Trevor Mallard 
: Who? 
JOHN HAYES 
: Paul Quinn. He is the fellow who is standing against the Minister. 
Hon Trevor Mallard 
: Is he? 
JOHN HAYES 
: Yes. 
Clause 4 states: “In this Act unless the context requires another meaning”—brilliant—“affordable housing means housing that—(a) is for persons living in households that—(i) have low to moderate income;”. This would apply to most people in my electorate in the Wairarapa who typically earn $12 to $20 an hour. But what is a moderate income in that context? Next subparagraph (ii) states: “have no low or moderate legal or beneficial interests in property;”. That does not stop someone with property held in a trust from being able to make him or herself eligible for affordable housing. Paragraph (b) of the definition goes on: “is priced so that the persons are able to meet—(i) their housing costs;”. Well that is really wonderful legislation. Why do we need a rule for that? Then paragraph (c) states: “is within the regulatory criteria for determining what affordable housing is if regulations setting criteria exist”. This is appalling drafting; it is appalling legislation. 
Let us turn to clause 5 “Purposes”. It states: “The purposes of this Act are to—(a) enable a territorial authority in consultation with its community to require persons doing developments to facilitate the provision of affordable housing—”. Why do we need legislation to do this? The bill goes on to state in clause 5(a)(i) that it is “for the purpose of meeting a need for it that the authority has identified by doing a housing needs assessment:” That is wonderful! Why do we need central government to waste its time to waste the time of the Local Government and Environment Committee and to waste the time of officials by asking them to come up with legislation that states a territorial authority can do a housing needs assessment. We do not need this legislation to do this; this is wasting the taxpayers’ funds. 
Then the bill states in clause 5(a)(ii) that facilitation of housing must be “in a manner that takes account of the desirability of the community having a variety of housing sizes tenures and costs:” For heaven’s sake! This is the real world; we do not need legislation that says that. Then clause 5(b) states that the purpose of the Act is to “void covenants that have as one of their purposes stopping the provision of affordable housing or social housing.” For goodness’ sake! Who drafted this stuff? This is meaningless arrant nonsense. 
This is exactly the theatre that this Government has created around the emissions trading scheme. It is the theatre of appearing to be doing something for a community. But I say that this legislation will do nothing to deliver an affordable house to anybody in this country. It is unnecessary legislation. Clause 6(1) states: “Territorial authorities that want to find out whether there is enough affordable housing in their districts may do housing needs assessments.” What brilliant law! Who was the wizard who thought of this legislation? It is absolute and utter rubbish and the Government is charging taxpayers to produce this sort of nonsense.