11. PHIL HEATLEY (National—Whangarei) Link to this
to the Minister of Housing
Does she stand by the statement with regard to State housing that “cases of subletting are very rare”, that pursuing them would be a “wild goose chase”, and that the Minister is “still waiting for Mr Heatley to front up with a single example”?
Hon CHRIS CARTER
Gerry BrownleeI raise a point of order, Madam Speaker. It might facilitate things if the House were to take question No. 12 now. Clearly, the Minister of Housing, who was in the House just a few minutes ago, has been detained outside somewhere and will, presumably, be back soon so that she is able to answer the questions. Of course, that would be a lot more satisfactory than—
Madam SPEAKER
Hon Dr Michael Cullen Link to this
The Minister left because she is due to catch a flight; she had to leave the Chamber. [ Interruption]
Now that we have established that members not in the Chamber are catching flights, could we please have the answer to the question.
Yes, the Minister of Housing stands by the statement made by the very talented and able former housing Minister in November 2006. Cases of subletting are very rare. Indeed, subletting accounted for just 0.06 percent of all tenancies last year.
Can the Minister confirm that through select committee processes we have discovered that another 44 new subletting scams have come to light so far this year; if so, were these cases serious, in her opinion?
Any cases of fraud are serious, and are dealt with promptly and with due process of the law. I remind the House that when I was privileged to be housing Minister, in the very first case, I think, of subletting that that member brought to me, it was found that the tenant, Maxine Hardy, was in hospital and her brother was looking after the house.
Lynne PillayI raise a point of order, Madam Speaker. My primary question was fixed on subletting scams. The answer to that question was fixed on subletting scams. The member Lynne Pillay is moving well wide of the mark. Madam Speaker, you have never allowed me the scope to move around various Housing New Zealand Corporation management practices, when the question down on the Order Paper and subsequent answers have been specific. The member should not be able to ask a general question about the Housing New Zealand Corporation; it must be fixed on subletting.
Now that I have had an opportunity to hear the full supplementary question, yes, I think that it could relate to the primary question. If I started interpreting supplementary questions very narrowly, we would probably not have many of them. Members should think very carefully about whether that is the ruling they wish me to give.
I say with considerable pride as a member of the Labour-led Government that we have taken many steps to look after New Zealand’s most needy families in the housing area. We have reintroduced income-related rents, which has made a profound difference to the thousands of families that are living in State houses and has lifted many of them out of poverty. In addition, we have added 7,793 homes to the housing portfolio stock, we have given out 3,000 Welcome Home Loans, we have launched a shared-equity pilot scheme, we have transformed urban communities like Aranui in Christchurch and Talbot Park in Glen Innes, we have modernised 5,100 properties, and we have done 17,300 retrofits. And so it goes on—a list of achievements that a Government can be proud of.
Is this a “wild goose chase”, given that, among the latest 44 scams, a New Lynn tenant illegally sublet a house for 8 years 6 months, a Māngere tenant for 8 years 3 months, another Māngere tenant for 5 years 8 months, and a Takapuna tenant for 5 years 6 months?
I hope those are more genuine cases than that of poor old Maxine Hardy, whose case this member brought to the House 2 years ago. We found out that she was in hospital and her brother was looking after the house.
Would the member please rephrase the question. He knows that is not appropriate; he is not a new member.
Will the Minister tell all the needy families on the waiting list that subletting scams are a small problem, or does she think those families would have liked to move into one of those State houses over the last 8 years, instead of living in garages or caravans, or on the streets?
I can, with a lot of pride, say that we have added 7,793 houses to the Housing New Zealand Corporation portfolio, and I can, with shame for that member, say that his previous Government sold 13,000 of them.
Has illegal subletting increased year on year under Labour’s watch, or is it that the corporation is now acting on cases of tenants who have been subletting illegally for up to 8 years, just because such cases are now being publicly highlighted?
The member is clearly very sensitive. We are talking about 0.06 percent of tenancies. That is 0.06 percent too many, but in the greater context of the whole housing portfolio I think it is a very trivial problem.
Can the Minister tell the House whether the corporation has caught up with the high-profile sportsman who sublet his State house while he had a bach in the Bay of Islands; if it has caught up with him, what is the latest information on this case, does he still owe the taxpayer $32,650, and when will that issue be resolved?
I can confirm that that particular individual is in court facing charges. As every member in this House knows, it is entirely inappropriate to talk about a case that is currently before the courts.
I would like to table question time denials by the Minister of Housing that subletting rorts actually exist.