Wagner Nicky: General DebateText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeWagner Nicky: General Debate[Sitting date: 20 May 2015. Volume:705;Page:3467. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]Hon NICKY WAGNER (Associate Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery): First I would like to say how disappointed I am in the member Mr Peters and his attitude to the people of Christchurch. Yes the people of Christchurch have been hit by a disaster but we have picked ourselves up and got on our feet. Our province is flourishing and it will continue to flourish.As the Minister for Disability Issues firstly I would like to start by thanking the New Zealand Sign Language interpreters who are working here this week. They have done a great job. Thank you very much.Secondly I would like to start to talk about the focus of Christchurch and Canterbury on housing because absolutely Christchurch has been hit by a terrible disaster: 170000 houses were damaged or destroyed and 170000 families have had to manage their way through that. If you say it quickly 170000 does not sound that much but that is the equivalent of nearly six Palmerston Norths. Of those 170000 homes 10500 were destroyed and had to be demolished and rebuilt.I am going to skip quickly through the resilience of the Christchurch people the emergency housing the emergency repairs the Canterbury Earthquake Temporary Accommodation Service the accommodation subsidies the accommodation villages the Earthquake Commission insurance repairs and the consenting issues with the city council until we get to now—4 years later. We believe we are pretty close to being back to the same number of houses that there were in Christchurch and Canterbury pre the earthquakes. In 2014 alone 4400 houses were built. But there are still pressures.The first problem is that people are coming to Christchurch. People want to be a part of our rebuild. We are a magnet for talent to Christchurch and of course that means that those people have to find housing so there has been increased pressure for housing for workers.Secondly there is a problem with quality homes. We have got better-quality homes in Christchurch. You might say that that is not a problem. It is absolutely not a problem for the people who are living in them but the rents and the costs of those houses have gone up. It means there is less choice for people who have a lower income and that is a real problem. So to overcome that problem Housing New Zealand the city council and housing organisations have created new temporary housing options for the vulnerable. We are working really hard to make sure that that all works. Housing New Zealand is spending $1 billion. It has done 5000 repairs and it is building a new home every day. These are fabulous new homes that are double-glazed and totally insulated. There is no downside to that quality because people are still getting income-related rents.One of the best initiatives in terms of repairing houses has been the initiative we have with Christchurch Prison where prisoners are out there giving houses a new lease of life and at the same time learning skills they can use when they come out of prison into the construction industry in Christchurch giving a new lease of life to them as well.Christchurch City Council is working well. Every week we are seeing new houses opening and all its houses are accessible. I visited a block last week and any one of us would be really happy to live there.The best difference in terms of supply is the housing accords. The Government is working with the city council on four major sites. There will be over 1000 new houses—1000 new houses—and 20 to 30 percent of those houses will be affordable houses. They have already started on the Awatea site over in Hornby the contract has been let for Welles Street and Colombo Street in the centre city—and as a centre city resident I am looking forward to those people moving in to our areas—and the Riccarton racecourse site is under way. That 20 to 30 percent of affordable housing will be available through the KiwiSaver HomeStart package and that is a real opportunity for people who want to get into their own houses particularly young New Zealanders. The policy has been particularly tailored for Christchurch so we can allow second-chance buyers to get that KiwiSaver HomeStart package because of the earthquakes.It is absolutely true that housing the people of Christchurch and Canterbury has been—