Page 1882 - Week 09 - Thursday, 19 October 1989
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Private Sector Rentals
MR KAINE: I would like to address a question to the Minister for Housing and Urban Services, and I did not provide her with the answer to this question beforehand. Minister, this morning we were debating the question of housing policy and your housing policy review report. Included in there is a section dealing with the private sector rental housing trust. I have two questions. First of all, how do you see that the intrusion of Government into what is essentially private sector business is going to add to the efficiency and effectiveness of the provision of housing? Secondly, what exactly do you intend to expend the $210,000 on this year? Is it going to be spent on staff or is it actually going to be spent on housing?
MRS GRASSBY: In the housing review we have also looked at the question of whether the housing department should be involved in helping people who want to own their own homes and do not have the opportunity to do so and whether we as a government can help people in the lower income scale. This is what we are looking at in the housing review. That money will not be spent on staff. It will be spent in some way so that we can enter into private housing. We are talking to banks and to building societies about ways in which we can get into the market to help people on that very low rung of the ladder who are unable to afford houses of their own.
MR KAINE: I ask a supplementary question, as that did not really answer my question at all. The first part of my question was: how do you see the intrusion of the Government into this private sector business adding to the efficiency and effectiveness of the provision of housing? The answer did not address that question at all.
MRS GRASSBY: Seeing that the housing department is so efficient, I think it can enter into it very well and do a very good job. That is how I see it doing it, Mr Kaine.
Mr Kaine: A statement does not answer the question. I asked how it will do this.
MRS GRASSBY: As I said, Mr Kaine, we are looking into it in the housing review and no decision has been made on that yet.
Mr Kaine: Mr Speaker, we are back to the old business where Ministers simply decline to answer questions.
MR SPEAKER: Order! Mr Kaine, the situation is that you were about to debate what was said.
Mr Kaine: On a point of order, Mr Speaker; that was not my intention. I asked a specific question. The Minister, as has been the case many times in the past, simply has not answered the question. We are back to the old days where
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