King Annette: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
King Annette: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:678;Page:1507] 
11. 
Hon ANNETTE KING (Labour—Rongotai) 
 to the  
Minister of Housing 
: What action is the Government taking to make housing more affordable? 
Hon PHIL HEATLEY (Minister of Housing) 
: 
 The most important action this Government has taken is to manage the economy well during a difficult period. This includes less tax putting more money in people’s back pockets to pay their mortgage and a sustained period of low interest rates making homeownership more affordable for Kiwis. We have also changed the Building Act and the Resource Management Act to remove unnecessary red tape and we have increased the Welcome Home Loan caps. Since we have been in Government in fact 7500 people have bought their first home using the scheme—a total value of borrowing of $1 billion. That is an awful lot of first-home buying. 
Hon Annette King 
: Is he aware there is now a housing crisis in Christchurch with agents saying last week that it is impossible to find rental accommodation; if so how many of the over 600 Housing New Zealand Corporation rental houses currently boarded up with no decision made to repair or rebuild them could be made available to help relieve the growing housing problem? 
Hon PHIL HEATLEY 
: The member may not be aware but there is a red zone in Canterbury where a large number of those 600 houses are. The Government has made it pretty clear and residents have made it pretty clear that they want to shift out of them. If she is suggesting that we should leave State house tenants in the red zone but everyone else gets moved to safety I do not know where this Labour Party is going. 
Hon Annette King 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. That answer was most unnecessary. I did not raise the red zone. I asked about 600 houses and asked how many of them could be used and made available for people where there is a housing shortage in Christchurch. It did not warrant that answer or attack on the Labour Party and on what we thought about the red zone. 
Hon PHIL HEATLEY 
: I made it clear that many of those houses are in the red zone. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Order! The Minister’s answer I accept was somewhat more aggressive perhaps than necessary but he did indicate that most—he said the majority—of those 600 houses are in the red zone and that is why they would not be used. The member has the chance to pursue that answer further in further supplementary questions. 
Hon Annette King 
: Has Gerry Brownlee raised with him the problem faced by an 85-year-old Christchurch Housing New Zealand Corporation tenant who has been told to vacate her temporary accommodation on Saturday with no accommodation offered by Housing New Zealand Corporation and with her family finding it impossible to even contact the department and if so what action has he taken to assist this woman? 
Hon PHIL HEATLEY 
: It has not taken Gerry Brownlee to tell me of that particular case. I am aware of it and so is Housing New Zealand Corporation. There is no doubt that there are significant housing issues in Canterbury but it would be fair to say that over the last 12 months the pressure on Housing New Zealand Corporation tenants—the way that they have been managed shifted to alternative accommodation—has caused very little political or actual noise at all and Housing New Zealand Corporation has done an excellent job. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Just before I call the next question I thought the question asked what was done about this particular case which the Minister has acknowledged he is familiar with. Given the nature of the Minister’s answer perhaps he could have said what was being done for this person since he is familiar with it. 
Hon PHIL HEATLEY 
: I was asked whether Gerry Brownlee had told me about it. I started my answer with that but I am happy to develop the answer if you would like me to.  
Hon Annette King 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I asked whether Gerry Brownlee had raised it and what he had done about it if it had been raised. In his answer he said he was aware of it so he could have told us.  
Mr SPEAKER 
: Order! I accept that people interject when they should not—on my right here—when a point of order is being considered. One could technically argue that it is two questions. Had the Minister been absolutely 100 percent helpful in his answering of these supplementary questions I might have ruled differently but given the fairly aggressive answers that have been given I will ask the Minister to provide the further information—what has he done to assist this person? 
Hon PHIL HEATLEY 
: I had been assured that Housing New Zealand is looking at the case. It looks at many hundreds if not thousands of cases. I am not completely up to speed with where that one is at the moment. I think if the member gets permission for me to release the details on that particular woman perhaps I will look at providing her with a detailed response.  
Dr Jian Yang 
: What recent reports has the Minister seen regarding home affordability? 
Hon PHIL HEATLEY 
: I have seen a report as recently as this morning by Massey University’s real estate analysis unit stating that in the 3 months ended February the national affordability measure has improved even more. According to the report falling house prices rising wages and falling mortgage interest rates have all combined to make housing its most affordable in 8 years.  
Hon Annette King 
: I seek leave to table the said report that the Minister has just mentioned which goes on to say— 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Which report is this? 
Hon Annette King 
: This is the home affordability report from Massey University. It goes on to say that there is demand causing pressure in the housing market particularly in Auckland and Christchurch.  
Mr SPEAKER 
: Leave is sought to table that document. Is there any objection? There is no objection. 
Document by leave laid on the Table of the House. 
Rino Tirikatene 
: What reports has he received on affordability and overcrowding in Christchurch—for example of 11 people crowded into a two-bedroom house people renting a garage to live in for $160 a week or the young man sleeping in his car when he is not delivering pizzas because he cannot afford the rental or find a place to live? 
Hon PHIL HEATLEY 
: I am aware of some of those media reports. I think Opposition members need to realise that yes there are housing pressures in Canterbury due to the earthquake but they should also remember that when we set up temporary accommodation whether in the form of caravans or the units that are very successful in Kaiapoi and Linwood now the Opposition parties attacked that and opposed it. They cannot have it both ways. 
Hone Harawira 
: Why did the Government get rid of the rural housing fund leaving more than 7000 Tai Tokerau households without the badly needed renovations that had been approved under the fund? 
Hon PHIL HEATLEY 
: Because we decided to put that amount of money plus some into the development of new housing particularly papakainga housing on multiple-owned Maori land or other land that Maori and iwi use. That fund has been very successful. We figured that new houses well insulated and well designed are much better than patching up roofs that are leaking and rusting and patching up houses that are uninsulated and rotting which is what happened under the previous Labour Government.  
Hon Annette King 
: Has he got his priorities right when he has Housing New Zealand Corporation restructuring its services at a cost of $80 million— 
Andrew Little 
: How much? 
Hon Annette King 
: —$80 million—getting rid of staff and overspending its transformation project budget by $8 million so far and when you have a woman in Christchurch who cannot get a house from Housing New Zealand Corporation and to this moment nothing has been done about it? Where is this better service? 
Hon PHIL HEATLEY 
: Housing New Zealand Corporation provides almost 70000 houses across New Zealand. That is 70000 families—actually that is 220000 people. That is a huge commitment. The fact that it is increasing the housing supply in places like Auckland is the right direction. What happened under previous Governments where you had one person rattling around a four-bedroom house and entertaining gangs in State houses and all those things are being put behind us. I believe that Housing New Zealand Corporation is heading in the right direction. 
Denis O’Rourke 
: Will the Government regulate the exploding home-rental increases in Christchurch?  
Hon PHIL HEATLEY 
: I refer the member to the answer in the House by the Hon Gerry Brownlee in recent weeks. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Order! I think it is unreasonable to refer a member to an answer in the House in recent weeks. The Minister is the Minister of Housing he has responsibility for Housing New Zealand Corporation and I think he should answer the question.  
Hon PHIL HEATLEY 
: I do not think he was asking particularly about Housing New Zealand Corporation; I think he was talking about the rental market in general. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: I apologise to the Minister. The question did indeed ask about the general housing market; it did not specify. To sort this matter out I invite Denis O’Rourke to repeat his question because he should have realised that the Minister is not responsible for the general housing market. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. Where does it say that this Minister is not responsible for housing practice and building and construction in this country? 
Hon PHIL HEATLEY 
: Speaking to the point of order— 
Hon Trevor Mallard 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker.  
Mr SPEAKER 
: No. I will hear the Hon Phil Heatley first. 
Hon PHIL HEATLEY 
: Can I introduce Winston Peters to the Minister for Building and Construction. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Order! The House will come to order and stop this nonsense. Someone will be leaving very soon unless there is silence all around. This nonsense will stop. Of course the Minister is not responsible for markets. I have not cut out the member’s question. I was not happy with the answer the Minister gave; it was not good enough. However he points out that the question went beyond his responsibilities so I invite the member to repeat his question to make it clearly within the Minister’s responsibility and I expect an answer. 
Hon Trevor Mallard 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. It may or may not assist the Minister but he is the Minister responsible for housing policy. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Order! The member will resume his seat. It is nothing to do with the Opposition which Minister is responsible for what; that is a Government matter. 
Hon Trevor Mallard 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker.  
Mr SPEAKER 
: I have heard the member sufficiently and as far as I am concerned it has nothing to do with the order of this House. I have ruled on the matter and I will hear Denis O’Rourke’s supplementary question. 
Denis O’Rourke 
: The question was will the Government regulate the exploding home-rental increases in Christchurch? 
Hon PHIL HEATLEY 
: We are not considering that at this time. 
Denis O’Rourke 
: Will the Government do anything about the exploding home-rental increases in Christchurch? 
Hon PHIL HEATLEY 
: The Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery announced last week that we are providing more temporary accommodation in Christchurch to provide more supply. Clearly we have got new developments coming on stream and we believe that supply will help meet demand and will therefore drive down rents and house prices. That is what our primary objective is. 
Denis O’Rourke 
: Given that some people forced out of their homes in the red zone in Christchurch cannot afford to buy a replacement home will the Government provide some form of affordable bridging finance to assist them? 
Hon PHIL HEATLEY 
: At the moment there are a number of forms of finance that the Government does supply. Clearly we are buying people out of housing properties in the red zone so they can take that cheque and buy elsewhere. I am assured by the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery that when he reads a newspaper there are sections and house packages available. We also have the temporary housing villages. We have the accommodation supplement. Those who are seeking rental in Housing New Zealand Corporation properties have the income-related rent supplement. Yes we are open-minded to any other interventions but at this stage we believe that our progress so far is sufficient. If we need to ramp up we will.  
Denis O’Rourke 
: Given the growing gap between accommodation allowances and actual rentals in Christchurch will the Government review those allowances? 
Hon PHIL HEATLEY 
: Those particular allowances are a matter for the Minister for Social Development. I believe that they are passed through her department so it might be best to put that to that Minister.