Whaitiri Meka: General DebateText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeWhaitiri Meka: General Debate[Sitting date: 05 November 2014. Volume:701;Page:657. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]MEKA WHAITIRI (Labour—Ikaroa-Rāwhiti):The big State house sell-off is real and it is amongst us and it is the result of this Government and its plans to abdicate its responsibility in the State housing space.I want to stand and bring up a very localised situation that I am experiencing in the Hastings and Napier area when it comes to a real lack of State housing stock. I have got numerous reports in the papers that go back months and months saying that the situation is getting worse. I am having meetings on a regular basis. It was quite hurtful to hear the honourable Alfred Ngaro talking about people having to look after themselves because I am proud to say our first family home was achieved through the capitalisation of my sister’s family benefit. That allowed my family—my parents and five siblings—to get on the homeownership ladder. I acknowledge that and we are proud. She keeps reminding us that she actually owns the family home even though she is 55 now.But in all seriousness there have been some great policies in the past that kept our obligations as a State as a Crown to help those who do want to get into homeownership. I just want to remind this House that those policies in the past did actually work and we did get people into homeownership. I want to stand and say there is nothing that makes you more proud than to know that you own your own home. But the reality for a lot of the communities and constituents we on the Opposition side represent is that just getting a decent roof over their heads for themselves and their family is a basic right for every New Zealander.Like I said I want to put a spotlight on three areas. When I spoke earlier addressing the Speech from the Throne I highlighted some amazing people—local champions who are working in the advocacy role of their own will and through their own commitment because they see the hardships many many families are facing in the Hastings and Napier area. I want to acknowledge them for what they do on behalf of those on the long waiting list.Kiri Swindell is a wonderful lady from Napier who every Friday at 6 p.m. is in the Clive Square soup kitchen feeding between 15 and 40 homeless people mainly men—15 to 20 in Napier who come to her soup kitchen which she provides with her husband. She does not work for any agency. She does not receive any funding. She does it because she sees a need. So I want to acknowledge what Kiri says. She along with the other advocates who I know in the Hawke’s Bay are meeting on a regular basis so that we can bring the issues on homelessness and the struggles of people in both Napier and Hastings to the public’s attention. A lot of it is getting led by this Government saying that everything is kei te pai when really we all know that at the end of it it is not. So I want to acknowledge Kiri and her husband for the work they do in Napier.I want to also acknowledge Florence Karaitiana who is another local housing advocate who works in the Raureka Camberley and Flaxmere areas. These women have taken it upon themselves to be informed about the housing situation. Florence has aerial photographs of all the State homes of Raureka of Camberley and of Flaxmere—all the State homes. Her question is: why are they vacant when we have so many on the waiting list? It is a pretty simply question. In fact they were in my electorate office and we literally counted each State home from these area maps and we got up to at least 100 in those three suburbs.It baffles me that we hear from the Government that it has got a housing plan when in reality when I go back to my electorate office in Hastings and Napier I have people coming in daily who are waiting for State houses. It is just not fair. In Maraenui we have over 100 vacant State homes boarded up. I want to acknowledge that we have had some new two-bedroom futureproofed homes built in Maraenui but the supply is not keeping up with the demand. Thank you.