Page 2107 - Week 07 - Thursday, 16 June 1994
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it would have spent the $9m that it still has available. Of course, that is not the only thing that is missing from the Housing Trust budget. Also missing, although it is buried away at page 147 of the program estimates, is advice that there will be an increase in rent from tenants, because the base rental rate of 21 per cent is going up to 22 per cent this year. Nowhere else is that mentioned in this Government's housing budget. That is something of which I would have thought the Government should have had the courage to advise its tenants. Instead it prefers to bury it.
What is even better is the announcement by the Government that the ACT Housing Trust will create a new shelter for homeless men in the city, costing $300,000 to establish and $150,000 in the first year to run. The only problem is that that was in last year's budget. We have yet to see this shelter for homeless men. Not only was it mentioned and trumpeted in last year's budget; it was also in this Labor Government's social justice policy last year. There is an amount here in 1993-94 for a men's shelter, $378,000, with another $142,000 to be spent in 1994-95. What is the matter, Government? Does social justice, in the view of the Labor Party in this town, apply only to women and children and not to men? Where is the men's shelter that you promised last year?
There are also creative initiatives shown in this housing budget to the same extent. Mr Kaine identified one down in Tuggeranong. I think it was an enclosed oval. I found this an interesting creative initiative. At page 13 of the budget speech the Chief Minister said:
A new housing loan option known as HomeEntry will be introduced to target existing and potential Housing Trust tenants and to provide some people, otherwise not able to purchase, with an option to own their own home.
However, when I turn to page 151 of the program estimates, I see under the heading "Major Resource Variations", "Opening Balance will increase by $3.1m or 147 per cent due to delays in the introduction of the HomeEntry program". Why do you have it in your budget statement and speech if you have delayed it? Is it another bit of creative initiative, Chief Minister? Is it something else that you can trot out this year and, if nobody notices it, you will trot out again next year? I do not regard this as very satisfactory behaviour by a government, and I certainly believe that you are fooling the community.
In respect of housing we have the usual flim-flam of promises. Mr Lamont, in announcing improved services for Housing Trust clients, talked about the establishment of client service teams which will be able to respond to queries, applications and requests for services such as public housing allocations, rent rebates, private rental assistance, home loans and sales, and respond to tenants' requests for property repairs. Do not hold your breath. Ominously, his statement goes on to say:
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