3. Housing Wellington—Supply and AffordabilityANDREW LITTLE (Leader of the Opposition) to the Prime MinisterHousing Wellington—Supply and Affordability3. ANDREW LITTLE (Leader of the Opposition) to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by his statement that the shortage of rental housing in Wellington is a problem of success"?Rt Hon BILL ENGLISH (Prime Minister): Yes I stand by my full statement which went on to say that the demand for Wellington rental housing was "certainly concerning for people who are looking for accommodation." I also stand by the statements made by the Mayor of Wellington "It's encouraging to see the building of new homes is beginning to kick into gear." and secondly: "For the last 2 years growth in new consents has lagged behind our targets but this year we are in a very strong position and tracking very well." He said that by working with central Government to make it easier to build new homes we are helping to address the lack of supply. That was the Mayor of Wellington.Andrew Little: Putting aside the fine achievements of the Mayor of Wellington when Andrew German a student has been looking for a flat since November without success is the Prime Minister seriously telling him that not having a place to live when he studies is a problem of success?Rt Hon BILL ENGLISH: As I said the pressure on rental housing is certainly concerning for people who are looking for accommodation but I could only repeat the positive statements of the Mayor of Wellington: "It's encouraging to see the building of new homes is beginning to kick into another gear." By working with central government—and that is through mechanisms like the special housing areas the changes to the National Policy Statement on Urban Development—the Mayor says we are making it easier to build new homes we are helping to address the lack of supply. Andrew Little: Putting aside the fact that there is no special housing area at the top of Willis Street in Wellington when couple Nicola Kellerman and Tim Hunter say "The house prices are just so phenomenal. It's just crazy." is he seriously telling them that not being able to buy a place to raise their daughter is a problem of success?Rt Hon BILL ENGLISH: I can only repeat the comments that I have already made and that is that pressure for that family is of course concerning but the Government is working with the council as the Mayor has outlined and as he says himself we are helping to address the lack of supply. There is a whole range of mechanisms in place by which the Government is working with councils to address the need for more supply.Mr SPEAKER: Supplementary question—[Interruption] Order! [Interruption] Order! Mr Brownlee.Andrew Little: When an 84-year-old gentleman has been paying $120 a week to sleep in an old shed in Henderson is the Prime Minister seriously telling him that spending his twilight years in such conditions is a problem of success?Rt Hon BILL ENGLISH: If there is any individual in housing that is obviously of very poor quality and unsuitable for them they have the opportunity for instance to approach the Ministry of Social Development and be placed in the new Luke Street—[Interruption] Mr SPEAKER: Order! The level of interjection means that it is impossible for the rest of the House to hear the answer now. Some members may not be interested in the answer but show respect for the others who do want to listen to the answer.Rt Hon BILL ENGLISH: It may be suitable for him to be placed in a new Luke Street house a group of several dozen new houses built just since October when the site first became available into which three or four families have already moved—a small part of the $300 million programme across New Zealand that will supply over 8000 places for people in emergency housing need and that has never been done before in New Zealand.Andrew Little: When he says that success is students who cannot find a flat young couples who cannot buy a home and our elderly being forced to sleep in sheds does not that just show how out of touch he is?Rt Hon BILL ENGLISH: No. As I have just pointed out the Government has $300 million expenditure on emergency housing which is now beginning to roll out and will supply places for 8000 people. I might say that when that party was in Government in the early 2000s when there were house price increases it did not do anything to deal with the pressures of emergency housing which is why this Government had to create a whole new system for it. But I must say it is pleasing to see that Wellington after a period of relatively low growth is now an attractive place to live and I think we should be proud and the city should be proud of the demand for housing going on in the city.Andrew Little: Which of Nick Smith's so-called successes is he most proud of: building fewer houses than we did 12 years ago falling building consents selling off State houses during a housing crisis the lowest homeownership in 66 years the fourth most unaffordable city in the world or foreign speculators buying more of our houses than ever before?Rt Hon BILL ENGLISH: Dr Smith along with the rest of the Government is very pleased to see a consistently growing economy that is lifting incomes and has reversed the major outflow of New Zealanders to Australia which is the single biggest thing that has changed in our housing market. Five years ago 40000 New Zealanders per year were leaving this country; last year it was a net inflow of 2000. That is the single biggest change in the housing market and Dr Smith along with the Government has introduced a whole range of measures from special housing areas HomeStart grants the National Policy Statement on Urban Development Resource Management Act reforms most recently the $1 billion Housing Infrastructure Fund—Mr SPEAKER: Bring the answer to a conclusion.Rt Hon BILL ENGLISH: —into which Wellington City Council has every right to bid if it wants help with its supply of housing.Andrew Little: Is this not the truth—that with plunging homeownership skyrocketing rents and homelessness at unprecedented levels what he calls a problem of success is actually a failure of leadership?Rt Hon BILL ENGLISH: No because those assertions are wrong. The focus of activity right now is that councils—because remember councils govern all the supply of housing. If they want to bring forward housing supply they can bid into the $1 billion infrastructure fund and currently intensive negotiations are going on between central government and councils testing their capacity and willingness to bring forward housing supply as they have said they want to."