Cunliffe David: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeCunliffe David: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 28 May 2014. Volume:699;Page:18385. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]1.Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE (Leader of the Opposition) to thePrime Minister: Does he still stand by his statement “there’s no fundamental underlying reasons to believe there’s a problem in our housing market”; if so has his Government done enough to assist people into their own home?Rt Hon JOHN KEY (Prime Minister): Yes I do not believe there is a crisis in housing particularly when you compare the current situation with that in the mid-2000s when house prices doubled and mortgage rates rose to as high as 10.9 percent. In answer to the second part of the question this Government is implementing a wide range of policies that will help people who want to buy their own home.Hon David Cunliffe: Does the Prime Minister maintain that there is no housing crisis in Canterbury when an entire ward of mental health patients who do not need to be there are living in a hospital costing the district health board $13000 a night due to a lack of affordable accommodation?Rt Hon JOHN KEY: I do not have the details that the member is talking about but in relation to Christchurch there is a significant amount of housing under way taking into context the fact that we have had major earthquakes there.Hon David Cunliffe: What is he doing to speed up the rebuild of Christchurch when Deloitte estimates that fewer than 1000 of the 12000 to 15000 houses that Canterbury needs have actually been built?Rt Hon JOHN KEY: I thank the member for asking that question because it gives me the opportunity to outline what we are doing which is the housing accord with Christchurch—Sue Moroney: Not enough.Rt Hon JOHN KEY: Well not enough is when house prices double and interest rates go to 11 percent. That is a shocker. But anyway we are progressing a housing accord with Christchurch to accelerate development in central government and local government. As the member would have seen in the Budget we are suspending duties and tariffs on imported building materials. We are reforming legislation in this area. We have extended the KiwiSaver first-home deposit subsidy. One of the things we are doing is addressing the issue of land. Interestingly enough I did see a report that said: “Increasing the supply of housing through identifying new land for residential development and lowering the cost of construction which are both inputs into the cost of housing are the most likely ways to achieve a reduction in house prices in the long run.” That was of course Labour’s house price unit which was established in 2007 inthe Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. The then Government led by Helen Clark did absolutelyzippo and that is why house prices doubled under Labour.Hon David Cunliffe: At least we are not trumpeting a housing accord with bare land—Mr SPEAKER: Order! Would the member please ask his supplementary question.Hon David Cunliffe: Minds on maps. Does he agree with the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research economistShamubeelEaqub that having the most expensive housing in the OECD relative to rents is driven by speculation; if so why is he not tackling speculators with a capital gains tax?Rt Hon JOHN KEY: Well for a start off speculators already pay a capital gains tax. Secondly if the member actually wants to quote the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research its quarterly forecast yesterday predicted that house sales are likely to drop and house prices are likely to level off. In the next 6 months it expects house price inflation to be 1 percent nationwide and 5 percent in Auckland. That would be consistent with the fact that under this Government house prices have gone up by 28 percent and mortgage rates are at lows that we have not really seen for a very long period of time and that house prices doubled under Labour. When the member said: “Oh well that just says it all. The housing accord’s the way to resolve the issue.” actually the answer is yes. Releasing land actually reforming the Resource Management Act dealing with development contributions and looking at the other bottlenecks in housing is exactly what the Productivity Commission and everybody has said about housing. This Government is doing it. That Opposition—Mr SPEAKER: Order!Hon David Cunliffe: When New Zealand Institute of Economic Research economistShamubeelEaqub talked about the “itsy bitsy” housing policies was he referring to the Government’s trimming a few cents off duties from paint and varnish or to selling off 13500 State houses including selling down broken P houses to first-home buyers in the provinces?Rt Hon JOHN KEY: The member is free to throw around criticism. Unfortunately the record of the previous Government was so atrocious that it actually left this Government to do the work. The first thing we have done when it comes to Auckland is the Auckland Housing Accord which will produce—Phil Twyford: 6 long years.Rt Hon JOHN KEY: Well actually it might be 9 years very soon if you keep going the way you are son. But anyway that includes 39000 consents over the next 3 years. The housing accord that we have done with Christchurch—unlike what the member actually said it is actually not varnish off wood. It is $3500 off the construction of a new home and it is a reform of wide-ranging legislation including the Resource Management Act.Hon David Cunliffe: Does the Prime Minister take the same view as his Minister of Housing which is that he does not care that people in the regions may actually lose the whole value of their home as a result of imposing loan-to-value ratios?Rt Hon JOHN KEY: The member is quite wrong in the assertion he makes but the member is often wrong. I noticed that a couple of days ago he was on TV with his dog-whistle politics telling the world that he did not—Hon David Cunliffe: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. It is always nice to hear the Prime Minister attempt to address a question but preferably the one that is actually being asked.Mr SPEAKER: The Prime Minister did because the question was whether he agrees with the statement allegedly made by the Minister of Housing and he refuted the statement. He said that he did not agree.Hon David Cunliffe: Does the Prime Minister not realise that when the median house price has increased over 40 percent in Auckland since he took office and wages have been stagnant it is harder to get into a home in Auckland after 6 long years of his tired National Government?Rt Hon JOHN KEY: The member may feel tired but I do not. The second point is that under this Government house prices have risen 28 percent. They might be a little higher than everyone wants but it is not 96 percent. You see if you had to quote them “9 long years” and you did something about it maybe in Opposition you would actually be free to get up and make a few comments or criticise. But given that when Labour was in Government it did absolutely nothing it is no wonder that the public think it is a joke when Labour members talk about this issue. [Interruption] No I am happy to keep going actually if you like.Mr SPEAKER: But I am not.