Beyer Georgina: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers Questions to Members 
Beyer Georgina: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers Questions to Members 
[Volume:611;Page:8235] 
2.  
GEORGINA BEYER (NZ Labour—Wairarapa) 
 to the  
Minister of Housing 
: How many State houses have been added to the Government’s social housing stock since 1999? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY (Minister of Housing) 
: 
 Since 1999 a total of 3438 State houses have been added to Housing New Zealand Corporation’s social housing portfolio. That restores the total number of State houses to 62750 and the total number of people housed to 179000. Income-related rents and State house acquisitions are ensuring that more New Zealand families get decent housing and represent a major turn-round from the disastrous policies of the 1990s that saw every single house in the questioner’s electorate sold off. 
Georgina Beyer 
: How many more State houses are planned over the next 3 to 4 years? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: The Housing New Zealand Corporation plans to add a further 3400 houses to the social housing stock over the next 4 years through build buy or lease programmes. Of course it will take some time to recover an appropriate level of social housing given that 13000 State houses—more than enough to accommodate the entire waiting list—were sold by the previous National Government. 
Pita Paraone 
: How many of those State houses already allocated went to immigrant families during the period from 1999; and what is the difference as a per centum between the number of those State houses already allocated to immigrant families compared with the number of those to New Zealanders? [ 
Interruption 
] 
Mr SPEAKER 
: I am giving only one warning today about interjecting while a question is being asked and I tell Mr Peters that that one warning has been given. There will be no interjections while a question is being asked—particularly while being asked by a member of his own party. The Minister has the right to answer and that is the one warning today. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I respect that warning. However I hope that it applies to Government Ministers and others over there who are making all sorts of noises as well in an endeavour to try to deflect a fairly asked question. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: It does. The point is well made and that warning applies to every single member of this House. I have given the one and only warning. 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: Houses are allocated purely on the basis of need and a very small proportion goes to immigrants. 
Dr Muriel Newman 
: What is the Minister’s response to complaints that the Government’s purchase of 1800 houses in Auckland last year helped to fuel the rampant house-price inflation which caused Aucklanders to have to pay higher prices and higher rents while Labour supporters enjoyed nice houses at cheap rents? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: My response is that that is nonsense. 
David Benson-Pope 
: What other comments has the Minister seen on the subject of the number of State houses required? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: I recently noted the following comments on State house numbers: “The only basis on which the current policies could work would be to add a sufficient number of houses to accommodate those on the waiting list—over 11000 in number.” Ironically that statement came from a group who sold 13000 State houses—the previous National Government. 
Hon Richard Prebble 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I draw your attention to the Minister’s last two answers. An Opposition member asked him whether it was correct that 1800 State houses had been bought in Auckland and the Minister said that that was nonsense. I take that to mean that 1800 houses have not been bought. He was then prepared to give a long statement in answer to what appeared to be a prepared patsy question in order to attack a previous administration. He is not prepared to answer questions about his own administration but he is wasting the House’s time in criticisms of a previous administration. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: If that were correct it might be valid but the member did not ask just that in her question. There was another question asked and the Minister addressed it with an answer in which he did not agree with the member. 
Gordon Copeland 
: Is the Minister concerned that there are many families who are ineligible for social housing assistance yet in line with the recent ASB survey—confirming that rising house prices are forcing first homeowners out of the market—those families have little hope of owning their own homes; if so does the Government intend doing something further about this issue or is his ministry concerned only with the housing needs of beneficiaries? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: I am concerned about New Zealanders getting into social housing and that is why I keep raising the fact that 13000 houses were sold by the previous Government. Yes the Government is concerned about homeownership which is why in this Budget we have started to re-enter that issue through the mortgage insurance scheme. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: How many new immigrants asylum seekers and refugees have been given State houses and what is the cost of that to this country? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: I do not have those figures with me but I am more than happy to pass them to the member if he would like them. 
Georgina Beyer 
: What else is the Government doing to increase the supply of social housing? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: The Government has a large number of programmes under way as announced in the last Budget which run from the building of houses throughout the country and partnerships with local government and a range of community-based organisations to the leasing of properties from people who are investing their savings in housing and passing them on to tenants. A range of those kinds of policies will result in a real improvement in social housing.