The Opposition has slammed Housing Minister Phil Twyford for being in the job for 145 days and not producing a single KiwiBuild home.
But Twyford and Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern say there is an “extensive pipeline” of houses on the way and new KiwiBuild announcements are “imminent.”
On Tuesday, National’s Housing Spokeswoman Judith Collins used her first question in the new role to needle Twyford on the Government’s progress on its flagship project.
“How many KiwiBuild houses have been built in the 145 days he has been in Government?” she asked.
Twyford said it is “the same as the number of cars that she crushed,” a nod to her bill, turned law, allowing boy racers' cars to be crushed after multiple infringements.
Although he wouldn’t say the words in the House, he told media earlier in the day the number was zero at this stage.
He says the KiwiBuild programme kicks in on July 1 this year, with details of a $2 billion appropriation to be announced in the Budget.
After that, Twyford expects roughly 1000 KiwiBuild homes in the first year, 5,000 in the second year, and 10,000 in the third year.
Collins says this amounts to just 1000 KiwiBuild homes by June 30, 2019 – almost two years after Labour was elected to Government.
“That’s almost two years for a relatively small subdivision in Auckland,” she told Interest.co.nz.
But Twyford says the Government is working with the private sector on plans to buy and underwrite KiwiBuild properties off the plan.
“Our land for housing programme is working with third-party developers to develop vacant Crown land and private land that's been acquired for that purpose and we're building KiwiBuild homes on Housing New Zealand land that's been developed, and we've got large-scale urban development projects underway that will include thousands of KiwiBuild houses.”
Collins says this is not actually adding anything – “it’s bludging off the private sector.”
National Party leader Simon Bridges also had a crack in Wednesday’s Question Time, asking when the first KiwiBuild house will “actually be built.”
Ardern responded by saying announcements on this are “imminent.”
She did not go into any more detail.
34 Comments
The are absolutely “dropkicks”
If anyone is still believing that they are capable of fulfilling their policies or dreams, then you are in Dreamland!
They are rudderless and will never achieve much for NZ.
Seriously, the election has delivered a major disservice to our Country.
The promise was 10,000 extra affordable homes per year for the next ten years - check the pre election soundbites
the reality is - buying a few existing houses, simply transferring from private rental to social housing for the same people but subsidised by the taxpayer and then continuing to buy properties that were already consented or part of larger subdivisions - in no way adding to existing numbers of builds
Even those will then be massively discounted and subsidised by the taxpayer - unless they are going to move their definition of an affordable home from the 400,000 they quoted at the start of their election campaign to the $600,000 that is pretty much the minimum cost to build a 3 bed on a 400sqm ( tiny section) on the fringes of Auckland
A bit like the 1 billion trees that now includes the 500,000 million that were already scheduled - but worse
Young smiley face is not looking quite so happy - given the last two weeks of sexual abuse, Winnie backing Russia against our big trading partners, Jones telling ANZ what to do, the greens giving up questions to the opposition - Still at least JK did the decent thing and after a round of golf will let her meet Obama!
Do you think the Government would be better off setting up it's own development and construction companies, or outsourcing to existing companies? Most infrastructure paid for by the Government is through contracting external companies, why would this be different?
Personally, I'd love to see the Government building them itself and removing the need for profit, but I understand this makes me something of a lefty anomaly and I'm sure there'd be plenty of criticism if this model was chosen.
Even working through the private system the Government can make a big difference by guaranteeing a certain volume of work, guaranteeing that there'll be a buyer at a known price for a large number of units. It's the kind of guarantee that will help companies achieve economies of scale and may even get prefab off the ground properly.
they could set up their own company, build at cost and then outsource the management to CHP's and HNZ - maybe selling off a % of each development to create mixed ownership models --
The issue is one of capacity - as each builder / chippie / plumber etc that comes to work for the company - will be one less out there building current and planned developments - ergo not really changing the actual number of new builds - but of course to do that and attract teh workforce they will need to pay a premium in wages - so increasing their and of course the sector costs as they try to compete
you may get a bit of an increase - given that the state houses are likely to be glorified shoeboxes - 80sq m three beddies - and again - tradies not likely to prefer that to 250 sq top of the range fit outs -
Maybe prefabs will help - but they still require labour that does not exist - a basic fact is 4.5% unemployment - and of course very very few of those are actually employable and ready to build houses - in any way shape or form
For all those joining j.collins in ridiculing the minister by doing the maths of 100,000/no:ofdays ; for an average Kiwi its all about HOPE of owning a home. I see a positive in the minister's answers
Shocked at the arrogance of j.collins asking about the already consented houses.. seems like the national-party has started to believe that kiwibuild will do whats it intended for; now just making claims for their share of 'good-work'
Four/five months from scratch, they will have barely settled on any land that may have been purchased, speaking of which, I believe there is a large, affordable (whatever that means) high rise to be built in the city of Auckland, not sure what stage they are in the purchase of the land for it, except to say that I do know it is a done deal. If they are working on getting things moving then there will be a large number of houses coming on pretty much at once. If the govt does buy existing for social housing, that is better than peeling off note after note from the public purse for private landlords.
Collins has no ground for criticism, I know it, she probably knows it, but she has no filter where that goes, so no surprises there.
Affordable high density high -rise = SLUM
High rise is horrendously expensive to build and even more expensive to maintain things like lifts and cleaning of common areas and fire escapes .
Its unlikely to ever be affordable .
Excessive Rates and taxes , Body Corp levies and fees , maintenance reserve funds , insurance , property managers costs , intercom and security systems that have to be monitored 24/7 by expensive staff ,vehicle access control systems that get damaged or broken ...........its a headache no one wants , trust me
Even little things like a broken window on the 15th floor could cost $3k to replace with specialist lift gear .
And then you have the issue of communal living , shared spaces and fights over parkings and noisy residents .
High rise is not for everyone , and not for me for sure
Honestly, my guts turn every time I watch this Not so clever minister trying to fool us all everyday that he is the most clever dude in the bar !... Ambiguous and little to let out mysterious minister - complemented with those yellow smirks.
Most of us know that he is lying in his teeth, as he must know by now that what he is proposing is next to impossible, and most of us are almost certain that he will keep playing with mysterious numbers while playing the same broken record of what or not National have done ...that alone is so childish and reveals how shallow he is !
the $2B will be allocated and wasted in the first 18 months as he could only build 4000 homes/units @ $500K each --- most of that will NOT be sold and will go to HNZ to house beneficiaries and homeless people waiting at the top of the queue.
I bet that he has no idea about how he is going to build the 12000 units a year from year 4 onwards - he is kicking the can down the road until some prefab partners are tested or found. He has absolutely no plan and just stabbing in the dark for that last 150 days. .. we won't be surprised if he will sort to include the pre-consented projects and claim them as part of his "achievements".
Boatman is spot on in listing the additional costs and hidden expenses of owning apartments and units in big community like complexes ...there is a massive running cost to these units well beyond the initial purchase price and that would mount up to more than twice the council rates. -- renting an apartment is very different from owning one.
Time will tell - and the fools will soon realise that money does not grow on trees.
Soon NZ will have Kibbutz type programs where everyone will put in money to buy a house. First we could afford a house on single income, then double incomes with family, now double income no family. Then 10 to a house.
Yee hah what a cool country NZ is becoming worth celebrating with a good old Pinot I say old chap.
Your comment is basically speculative emotive rambling. You sound fearful. You sound fearful of the possibility that houses will be build specifically for first home buyers. You sound fearful of mere intent.
And as you are well are aware in debt based monetary system, money is created far more easily than anything grown on trees. Most money is created at key stroke based off signature in the form of loans, most loans being for residential housing. Fresh money constantly being pumped into a specific asset class that is unfortunately a human necessity. That is why we are in the trouble we are in. That's why we have housing inflation.
Just be a reasonable person and give Labour a chance to bring balance.
Better a pipe dream and hope then wanton destruction of hope for FHB. Not to mention the systematic dismantling of everything good about NZ from less Community spirit and more greed, where less is more in terms of immigration, the worst statistics of home ownership ever, unaffordable housing, traffic jams, most homelessness ever, house prices at 10 times debt to income, ques for hospitals and the list goes on. Not sure how people can defend this, but hey as long as your cabbage patch is growing who cares about the rest.
Just a jolly wee country National has left for us.
Why do you blame National? If my memory serves successive Labour, National and coalition governments along with local administrations have all been complicit in your perceived ‘dismantling’ of NZ. If that perception is correct it has only been achieved through an underlying nonpartisanship that pervades most ostensibly democratic systems. Even the most naive can surely see it hence we all carry the blame. The day I blame any government for failing me is the day I have truly lost any claim I might of had to being a capable and rational individual with at least an ounce of self-possession and self-interest. You come into this world but once, I sure as hell am not going to spend my time and squander opportunity either waiting on or expecting nanny state to do for me want is in their best interests. Your life is your own, what you do with it is up to you. End of. If victimhood is what you aspire to then blame away but it doesn’t take a telescope to see things are closer to home than you might have thought.
We welcome your comments below. If you are not already registered, please register to comment.
Remember we welcome robust, respectful and insightful debate. We don't welcome abusive or defamatory comments and will de-register those repeatedly making such comments. Our current comment policy is here.