8. Housing Supply—Construction Rates and ReportsPHIL TWYFORD (Labour—Te Atatū) to the Minister for Building and ConstructionHousing Supply—Construction Rates and ReportsPHIL TWYFORD (Labour—Te Atatū): My question is for the Minister of Housing—Mr SPEAKER: Order! The member will ask the question as it is written on the sheet. If he cannot manage to do that I am quite happy to move to the next question. Question No. 8—Phil Twyford.Phil Twyford: They don't have a Minister of Housing; that's the problem.Mr SPEAKER: Order! I gave the member a chance. I am very tempted to move immediately to the next question. I will be generous on this occasion but the member had better not abuse my generosity.8. PHIL TWYFORD (Labour—Te Atatū) to the Minister for Building and Construction: Does he stand by his statement this building boom is 30 percent stronger than the boom back in 2004 in inflation-adjusted terms"; if so what does he think has been a larger cause of that the 137 percent increase in the cost of building a home in Auckland or the fall in consent numbers there by 2185?Hon Dr NICK SMITH (Minister for Building and Construction): I absolutely stand by the statement that the current building boom is 30 percent stronger than in 2004. The raw numbers are $19 billion in 2016 as compared with $11 billion in 2004 which adjusts to $14 billion in today's terms. That is a $5 billion real increase. The exact increase is 34.8 percent. There are two reasons the value of building work is much higher compared with the number of homes. The current building boom is not just houses. We have record levels of commercial industrial and infrastructure construction. That should be welcomed because we want jobs schools and services for people as well as homes.The second reason is that in 2004 there was an unusual one-off boom in shoebox apartments as small as 40 square metres. [Interruption]Mr SPEAKER: Order! I am sorry to interrupt the member. The level of interjection now is totally unreasonable. If I have to take more action I will do so.Hon David Parker: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. [Interruption]Mr SPEAKER: Order! We now have a point of order.Hon David Parker: You having called my colleague Clare Curran to order for an overly long question the Minister is now being allowed to make a very very long answer better characterised as a speech.Mr SPEAKER: And as I have pointed out to the member many times I am the judge of that but I did neglect to inform the House at the start of the question that my office had been advised the answer would be longer than normal to fill the details. I was distracted because of the way the question was delivered at the time. The Minister can now complete his answer.Hon Dr NICK SMITH: Buildings costs per square metre have risen more slowly under this Government at an average of 5 percent per year as compared with 8 percent per year under the previous administration.Phil Twyford: Why is he boasting about the biggest building boom in history when the real difference between now and the last peak in 2004 is not the number of homes being built but that building is getting more expensive and if the cost of building had remained the same as in 2004 the value of building work today would be half of what it is today only $9.5 billion compared with the $19 billion he boasts about?Hon Dr NICK SMITH: I think that member should be welcoming the fact that more houses were built last year than in any year for more than a decade. In respect of cost increases the member should ask the colleague sitting next to him because the cost per square metre of building houses grew by 8 percent per year under the previous Government and has grown by about 5 percent per year under this Government.Dr Parmjeet Parmar: What reports has the Minister received in support of the Government's housing policies?Hon Dr NICK SMITH: I have read reports saying you cannot boost house construction overnight and that it would take any Government many years to achieve a goal of 10000 houses per year. I have also read reports from the same person saying that the Government does not control house prices. I agree with both of those statements from Mr Little.Phil Twyford: Will he confirm that the number of dwellings consented in the last year is not higher than in 2004 or 1974 but only the cost is?Hon Dr NICK SMITH: The number of homes built last year was just under 30000. That is a record period of 5 years of 20-plus percent growth it is the highest in 10 years and in all of New Zealand's history is exceeded only by 2 other years. In anybody's terms that is a building boom.Phil Twyford: When the actual number of dwellings consented per 1000 of population is 6.2 less than half the 13.1 in 1974 when Norman Kirk was Prime Minister how can he claim we have the most building activity ever?Hon Dr NICK SMITH: If the member reads the history of what occurred in 1974—it was a Labour Government where spending was out of control and there was a massive building boom that collapsed in 1976. What you see from this Government is steady ongoing improvement. This is the longest and strongest period of home construction growth of 20 percent per year 5 years running.Phil Twyford: When will he stop trying to confuse the public with alternative facts and admit that his housing policies have failed that not enough houses are being built and that the dream of Kiwi homeownership is falling further and further behind?Hon Dr NICK SMITH: That is a bit rich from the man who is the architect of Chinese-sounding names. I am happy to stand by my figures any day compared with some of the garbage that member has been spinning.Phil Twyford: I seek leave to table analysis done by the Parliamentary Library based on Statistics New Zealand's building consents issued data produced earlier today.Mr SPEAKER: Leave is sought to table that particular information sourced from the Parliamentary Library. Is there any objection to it being tabled? There is none.Document by leave laid on the Table of the House."