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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1996 Week 10 Hansard (3 September) . . Page.. 2979 ..

MS REILLY (continuing):

These have been in existence since 1944, and they set out the principles whereby housing assistance is delivered by States and Territories, in the main with Commonwealth Government funds. These agreements have successfully delivered many billions of dollars to assist low-income people to access quality public housing stock over many years. There are now more than 390,000 public housing units spread across Australia, and the ACT has 12,500 of them. Many Australians have benefited from these agreements both through housing and through the construction industry.

Government has always been a big player in public housing and housing provision in Australia. In fact, the Industry Commission report of 1993 on public housing found that the provision of public housing was a cost-effective way of meeting government housing objectives of affordability, security and appropriateness of housing. CSHAs, the Commonwealth-State housing agreements, are usually for a number of years. Originally, the interim agreement that was to be signed on 1 July this year was for three years. We now have a new agreement that will be for only one year. For one year it is difficult to plan. It is difficult for anyone to know what is going to happen in the future, and this is the important question.

It is claimed that the new agreement, to be signed in July 1997, will allow a more flexible approach to the provision of public housing. If there are going to be these major changes, surely this is the time to discuss with the ACT community what it wants for public housing and what sort of housing we should have in the ACT. With the signing of the agreement less than nine months away, there should be massive public discussion and consultation on these issues. But what have we heard from this Carnell Labor Government? Nothing or virtually nothing. Yes, there is a committee that has on it a number of people from the public housing sector and from the community housing sector, and it is meeting; but this is only a small group. Important as they are, they do not tell the whole community what is going on; they do not inform them of these changes that are planned. There are going to be changes. The Commonwealth's role is changing. It will take responsibility for income support for public and private tenants, while the State housing authorities will have the responsibility for the supply and management of public housing. They are changes that affect how much money comes into the ACT, and surely we should have some say in that or be informed of what is going on.

The Commonwealth provides cash assistance to tenants, but it will provide no capital grants to public housing authorities. The Commonwealth will have no requirement about stock levels being maintained, and this is what is important. We have a good, strong, quality asset in the ACT, but in the future the ACT Government will decide what it will do and it is not required to consult on this. At this stage, it has not felt the need to consult. What is going to happen to our stock levels? The other tied grant programs go, except for the Aboriginal rental housing program. The other tied grants affect pensioner housing. They affect crisis accommodation and those types of programs. We need assurances of what will happen to those programs in the future. ACT Housing has been a good manager of the public housing stock; but there will be changes, and we need to be informed of those changes.

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