1. Housing—First-home Buyers and AffordabilityANDREW LITTLE (Leader of the Opposition) to the Prime MinisterWEDNESDAY 24 AUGUST 2016Mr Speaker took the Chair at 2.20 p.m.Prayers.ORAL QUESTIONSQUESTIONS TO MINISTERSHousing—First-home Buyers and Affordability1. ANDREW LITTLE (Leader of the Opposition) to the Prime Minister: Does he have confidence in the Minister for Building and Housing given the falling rate of homeownership especially among young people?Rt Hon JOHN KEY (Prime Minister): Yes. As I have noted in the House previously New Zealand's homeownership rates peaked in the late 1980s and early 1990s so this is a long-term trend under successive Governments. It is also in line with what has happened in many other countries. The Government is taking a number of steps to help first-home buyers including the expanded $435 million KiwiSaver HomeStart grants and getting more houses built faster.Andrew Little: Why is his Government allowing young families to be shut out of homeownership while speculators make millions from land banking?Rt Hon JOHN KEY: I suspect speculators have always been involved in the markets and at various times have made money. The Government is not stopping young people from being involved in houses. That is what the $435 million expanded homeownership programme is about and we know that around about I think 90000 people will benefit from that.Andrew Little: Why despite years of his Government promising solutions are 328 properties currently being promoted on TradeMe as land-banking investments?Rt Hon JOHN KEY: Firstly they will be private properties that people own and they have—Dr David Clark: Oh that makes it all right!Rt Hon JOHN KEY: —made their own call—well they have made their own call actually in that world to allow them to decide what they want to do with it. But it is worth putting in a bit of perspective. Last year in Auckland alone nearly 32000 properties were sold. If a small number of people think they should land bank it well that is their own personal choice.Andrew Little: Why do just one in five young families own their own home in Takanini while in the same suburb a land banker is advertising a two hectare section for $4.5 million a $2 million increase on what they paid for it just a year ago?Rt Hon JOHN KEY: There will be a variety of reasons why people do that but the issue is not whether one or two people decide they want to hold a property and sell it to someone else; the question is whether others get an opportunity to do that. One of the ways they can do that is actually through the Government having a strong fiscal plan and managing the Government's resources and finances well. One of the ways we have seen that is that interest rates have halved under the National Government's leadership. They are now 5.4 percent. So for a family with a $300000 floating mortgage rate they are saving nearly $16000 a year—that is a huge amount—under this Government.Andrew Little: Does he agree with Harry Wotton that It's the Kiwi dream to own your own bit of dirt … It's almost beyond the reach of people in Auckland … It's getting more and more difficult to buy in Tauranga and Hamilton … It's getting beyond the ridiculous."; if he does not agree why?Rt Hon JOHN KEY: No. I accept that it has had some challenges but as I said earlier interest rates are half what they were. So if we were under Labour those people would be paying $16000 more after tax. That would be an issue. I simply point out that in the last 12 months alone 37 percent of all sales in Auckland—11842 properties—were under the rate at which KiwiSaver HomeStart provides support.Andrew Little: When speculators are making a fortune out of tying up land that is desperately needed for houses is it not time to adopt Labour's comprehensive housing plan which includes cracking down on speculators by taxing them when they flick houses on within 5 years abolishing Auckland's urban growth limit and banning offshore buyers?Rt Hon JOHN KEY: No and the only thing comprehensive was King Tuheitia's view that the Labour Party is toast."