Smith Nick: Social Housing Reform (Transaction Mandate) Bill — In CommitteeText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeSmith Nick: Social Housing Reform (Transaction Mandate) Bill — In Committee[Sitting date: 17 February 2016. Volume:711;Page:9093. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]Hon Dr NICK SMITH (Minister for Building and Housing): I am very happy to answer some of the members’ questions on the Social Housing Reform (Transaction Mandate) Bill. Firstly I want to respond to the honourable member from the Green Party Catherine Delahunty in respect of the Government’s intent around social housing and her question around whether this is ideologically driven. I would draw her attention to very constructive discussions I have had with the Green Party housing spokespersonfrom Tasmania. In the state of Tasmania they have actually been doing just what we are doing in this bill expanding the community housing sector via the Tasmanian state Government moving community housing over to community housing providers. The experience of that Green Party spokesperson was that it was hugely beneficial in that state. I am sure there would be the same result for New Zealand.The second point I want to make is to the question of who is going to buy these houses. The answer is registered community housing providers of which there are about 30. I do not claim to know the details in Auckland Central; I have got total confidence in the very effective member of Parliament there Nikki Kaye. But I can give a very local example in my own Nelson constituency. The Nelson Tasman Housing Trust is a very successful organisation. It has recently purchased three very run-down properties in Orchard Street in Stoke. The area has been referred to as the Bronx of Nelson. It desperately needs redevelopment. The Nelson Tasman Housing Trust is going to build 12 houses on where there were previously three houses. What that means I say to members opposite is that nine more families get a house. That is a good thing. What is more I have to tell you from the community of Stoke there is a very warm welcome for that community housing organisation now running those former Housing New Zealand properties and getting stuck in and upgrading them.Members have asked where the money for these transactions will go. It goes into the funding of Housing New Zealand and Housing New Zealand today has the most ambitious capital programme—Phil Twyford: It goes into the consolidated account Nick.Hon Dr NICK SMITH: Well the advice I have had is that the funding goes to Housing New Zealand. We are spending more money as a Government on the upgrading of properties than has ever been done before. The broader programme for the Government is that we actually think a mix of housing rather than the Labour ideology of having large blocks of State housing works better. We actually think communities work better with mixed housing. That is where we are heading with the redevelopment in Tāmaki. That is what we are heading to in terms of other redevelopment projects and in Christchurch and other parts of New Zealand. The truth here is that the ideology is actually coming from the left side of the Chamber. If you look at the changes that have occurred in the United Kingdom around community housing organisations—I have had so many solid Labour Party supporters come to meet with me and say: “My goodness Labour in New Zealand has to move away from a 1930s notion that everything has to be owned by the State.”If Labour was a modern social democratic party it would embrace the content of this bill because it is actually the outcome that is far more important than who owns the bricks and mortar. On that note I challenge the backwards-thinking that we have heard from the Opposition parties this afternoon.