Heatley Phil: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Heatley Phil: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:643;Page:12562] 
6.  
PHIL HEATLEY (National—Whangarei) 
 to the  
Minister of Housing 
: Does he have confidence in Housing New Zealand Corporation; if so why? 
Hon CHRIS CARTER (Minister of Housing) 
: 
 Yes I do have confidence; because under the Labour-led Government Housing New Zealand Corporation provides affordable homes for almost 200000 people. We have turned Housing New Zealand from the real estate agency it was under National to a vital social service working across the country to securely house needy families repair substandard rural houses help Kiwi families in their first home ownership support local authority and community organisations to develop social housing—the list goes on and on. 
Phil Heatley 
: What action did he take following revelations last year via his answers to parliamentary questions that damage by tenants and their guests to State houses had risen by a staggering 30 percent from $16.5 million to $21 million in only 12 months; and was the action that he took successful? 
Hon CHRIS CARTER 
: Statistics have to be looked at in their context. We house almost 200000 people living in New Zealand. The average tenant debt is just $370 and we take all reasonable steps to recover that debt. But it needs to be pointed out that it is rare among our tenants. Only 9 percent of properties have any damage to them. 
Phil Heatley 
: If he is so successful at managing the housing stock why has tenant damage and vandalism and the damage caused by tenants’ guests risen again this year to $23.3 million—now a 40 percent increase over the last 2 years? 
Hon CHRIS CARTER 
: A very active reaction to damages is one of the reasons why the statistics have gone up. But I remind the House again that the most common form of damage is actually broken windows which can be caused by the most minor thing. 
Phil Heatley 
: How is allowing a current tenant in Henderson to run up a damage bill of $11762 and another in Waitakere to run up a damage bill of $10439 addressing this problem; what does he say to those 10000 people languishing on the waiting list who would value the State homes that these vandals still live in? 
Hon CHRIS CARTER 
: What I would say to people listening to this question time today is that the average tenant debt is $370. What I would also say is that the 13000 houses that were sold under National could easily have addressed our 10000-person waiting list. 
Sue Moroney 
: What has Housing New Zealand Corporation achieved in this past year? 
Hon CHRIS CARTER 
: Housing New Zealand Corporation has continued to expand its range of services reflecting the Labour-led Government’s strong commitment to ensuring that all New Zealanders have access to affordable sustainable good-quality housing. In the past year alone we have increased our social housing stock by 1923 homes housed nearly 3000 more tenants retrofitted 2000 homes helped more than 1000 people to buy their first home and supported the development of 384 social housing units by local government and community providers. There is more to do and this Government can be relied upon to continue investing in social housing—unlike National which true to form wants to start selling State houses again. 
Phil Heatley 
: What was the point of recording the vandalism debt of $11762 or the Waitakere vandalism debt of $10000 when Housing New Zealand Corporation according to answers this Minister has given has written off $2478000 worth of damage debt owed by tenants just in the last year? 
Hon CHRIS CARTER 
: I remind the House again that the average size of debt for damage is $370. The two cases the member has plucked out to try to demonstrate his argument actually show in the context of Housing New Zealand Corporation’s 200000 tenants how incredibly small this issue is. 
Phil Heatley 
: If the Minister is saying that it is just a few individuals who are involved and the corporation clearly knows who they are why does he let them run up huge damage debts then write off the debts all the while allowing them to remain in their State houses while thousands of genuinely needy families languish on the waiting list? 
Hon CHRIS CARTER 
: Yes it is a great pity they are on the waiting list. If his party when in Government had not sold off those 13000 houses we would not have a waiting list. Much of the debt the member is alluding to is of a very trivial nature. Often it would be more expensive for the corporation to pursue the cost of repairing a couple of broken windows than it would be to wipe off the debt. 
Phil Heatley 
: I seek leave to table the Minister’s own figures on the extent of the damage and vandalism costs. 
Madam SPEAKER 
: Leave is sought to table that document. Is there any objection? Yes there is. 
Phil Heatley 
: I seek leave to table some photos of State house vandalism that is not broken windows. 
Madam SPEAKER 
: Leave is sought to table those documents. Is there any objection? Yes there is.