Page 1037 - Week 04 - Thursday, 1 April 1993
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Fourthly, Mr Cornwell has raised concerns about the standard of behaviour of some ACT Housing Trust tenants. The most effective way of dealing with the inappropriate behaviour of trust tenants is to focus on the behaviour and not the tenants themselves. This is not to say that the trust should not continue with its current policy of appropriately matching tenants with Housing Trust properties. The trust retains close contact with tenants in flat complexes, in particular where there are known to be difficulties, and encourages meetings between tenants to resolve difficulties, referrals to the Conflict Resolution Service where appropriate, and referrals to other community agencies where tenants require special assistance, for example, with the development of living skills.
In recent times, the trust has placed particular emphasis on addressing appropriate social support structures for tenants in public housing complexes, which have achieved significant results. Civil disorder problems, especially where they persist, are best handled through the legal processes which currently exist. Civil disorder problems can happen anywhere in our city at any time. Additional options that are currently being examined by the trust, in response to the operation of several flat complexes that have been identified as having particular difficulties, include designing-out options, where the physical structures of the complexes are changed to improve local environments, consideration of on-site management of some complexes, which will address in part security issues, and consideration of the location of a greater social mix of people for certain flat complexes. Obviously, building design modifications would need to occur in some instances to enable small family groups to move into large flat complexes, along with the provision of improved playground equipment and landscaping to cater better for small children.
There are many other issues I could raise today to support my argument that no inquiry by the Social Policy Committee into the ACT Housing Trust is needed. However, I mentioned earlier in my speech that I had requested additional information to be provided to me by officers of the trust. That information specifically related to a request for a timeline of significant events which have occurred in public housing in the ACT since Canberra was founded. Madam Speaker, I seek leave to table this timeline, for the information of members.
Leave granted.
MS SZUTY: This timeline establishes the significant work that has been conducted by the ACT Housing Trust since the mid-1980s, and most particularly since self-government. (Extension of time granted)
Finally, in concluding that I do not believe that an inquiry by the Assembly's Standing Committee on Social Policy into the operations of the trust is needed, I draw members' attention to the Industry Commission inquiry currently being conducted into all public housing authorities throughout Australia. Should any issues in relation to the operations of the ACT Housing Trust be raised by this inquiry, I would be happy to refer the matter to the Social Policy Committee at that time. However, on the basis of the information that has been thus far presented by Mr Cornwell, a separate inquiry by the Social Policy Committee at this time cannot be justified.
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