Page 1954 - Week 05 - Thursday, 6 May 2010
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the preservation of the assets. Increasingly, we are structuring the maintenance program to focus on planned rather than responsive maintenance.
In 2009-10, $35 million was allocated to the Housing ACT capital program to maintain the public housing portfolio which is currently valued at approximately $3.8 billion. This allocation of maintenance funding includes an appropriation of $2 million to improve energy efficiency in public housing dwellings. Over the past four years, Housing ACT has spent around $30 million per annum, on average, on maintaining its public housing dwellings. This equates to an average expenditure of over $2,600 per dwelling each year.
The challenges of maintaining public housing stock are not limited to the ACT. It should be noted that it is not limited to the ACT. The maintenance costs per dwelling across all states and territories, excluding the capital upgrade or refurbishment costs, have been reported in the 2006-07 Housing Assistance Act annual report issued by the commonwealth Department of Family, Housing and Community Services and Indigenous Affairs. These costs range from as low as $1,357 per dwelling in Victoria to $3,076 per dwelling in the Northern Territory. The Australian average was $1,690 per dwelling, with the ACT costs being above this national average.
In closing, public housing is a significant government asset and more managed maintenance is critical in managing this asset. It is also important that we provide good service to our tenants. The Auditor-General’s report and now the report of the standing committee have helped us to focus on the efficiency in the delivery of our services.
Debate (on motion by Mr Coe) adjourned to the next sitting.
Women—equity of remuneration
MS BURCH (Brindabella—Minister for Disability, Housing and Community Services, Minister for Children and Young People, Minister for Ageing, Minister for Multicultural Affairs and Minister for Women): I seek leave to make a 30-second comment and to table a letter.
Leave granted.
MS BURCH: I table the following paper:
Pay equity audit—Copy of letter to Ms Hunter from Ms Burch, dated 6 May 2010.
On 24 February the Assembly passed a resolution requiring the government to report back to the Assembly during this sitting week on the government’s progress on investigating a gender pay equity audit of the ACT public service. This motion was originally from Ms Hunter and I have provided interim advice to her in writing and have now tabled that advice.
MS HUNTER (Ginninderra—Parliamentary Convenor, ACT Greens), by leave: I note that this correspondence from the minister, Minister Burch, to me is in regard to
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