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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2000 Week 12 Hansard (7 December) . . Page.. 3881 ..

MS TUCKER (continuing):

We know that stability in housing gives people a chance to begin to address some of the chaos in the rest of their lives. I would like to see a government that claims to be caring acknowledge that fact.

MR SMYTH (Minister for Urban Services) (5.24): As always, Mr Speaker, we are preached to by Ms Tucker on what we believe. It is interesting to note that Ms Tucker believes that she knows better than anybody else what they believe, what they stand for and what they care about. I have to say, as the minister for housing for the last 21/2 years, that I took my responsibility very seriously. You have no right to preach to me and to tell me what it is that I believe.

Here is the proof of the pudding, Mr Speaker. We are told that we don't care, yet we have got rid of two of the three worst housing sites in the ACT, and we are working on the third - Macpherson Court, Lachlan Court and Burnie Court - because we know that that sort of housing is no longer acceptable. We did not stop there. It started with Bill Stefaniak. I followed it through, and Mr Moore will complete it through the multi - unit plan and the big flats strategy. We got ecumenical housing to tell us what was wrong so that we could fix it. That is happening. Something like $60 million will be spent in coming years to get rid of the worst sort of housing in the ACT. So don't tell me I don't care.

Mr Speaker, for the first time in years and years we are going to lift the level of assets that people can bring with them into ACT Housing because we know things have changed. The limit is being lifted from $20,000 to $40,000. So don't tell me that we don't care.

They are saying that we do not provide services in ACT Housing. Well, it is curious that evictions have gone down under this government. We work with our tenants. You have to congratulate the housing staff for the good work that they do. We have put in place procedures to try to take the angst out of it. We now fund debt counselling. We have moved to direct debit so that tenants avoid getting into trouble.

Mr Stanhope made the amazing assertion that we do not understand the changing nature of families. He ought to open his ears. He should have listened to Mr Moore's recent announcement that, unless in special circumstances, we will not be building one - bedroom flats because we know that two - bedroom flats are better because they meet the needs of the modern family. We will be looking at relaxing the guidelines for split families, where the custody arrangements for children mean that the children move backwards and forwards, so that they have adequate accommodation when with one parent and then the other. Both sides of the family can enjoy a real family circumstance instead of being locked into inappropriate one - bedroom flats. We are doing that. What did Labor do? What is their record on this? Where are the shining examples that they bring forward to show that they cared about public housing? There is nothing. They are mute about their own record. I am sick of being preached to.

Ms Tucker says it is illogical in a tight market to force people out of public housing. We are not forcing people out of public housing. What we are saying is that those who do not need to be in public housing and can survive reasonably in the market should vacate premises when their circumstances change in order to free them up for these people who

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