Page 2141 - Week 06 - Tuesday, 22 June 2010
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MR STANHOPE: Thank you, Mr Speaker. It is an enormous credit to the Land Development Agency and all of the officers within the Land Development Agency to deliver this innovative and now highly recognised and regarded affordable housing initiative, the OwnPlace initiative, through which the Land Development Agency, as the development arm of land and, in some instances, housing in the ACT, is delivering on the government’s commitment that, until recently, 15 per cent of all housing in greenfields estates would be affordable—house and land packages of $300,000, a level now lifted to 20 per cent, with a new affordability definition of $320,000. You need to reflect on that. We have mandated in the past that 15 per cent of all new housing in greenfields estates constructed for first home entrants will be valued at $300,000 for house and land—house and land at $300,000; 15 per cent of all greenfields developments—now 20 per cent, with an affordability definition of around $320,000. It has been recognised in its delivery.
The LDA, as a land developer, has also been required by the government to deliver that same proportion of affordable housing at that same price, and it has done it to a degree of excellence that has now been recognised by the Property Council of Australia as leading and as representing the most significant initiative and leadership by a government in Australia in relation to the delivery of affordable housing. It is a great recognition for the people involved and of this government and its policies.
MS PORTER: Supplementary, Mr Speaker?
MR SPEAKER: Ms Porter, a supplementary.
MS PORTER: Thank you, Mr Speaker. Chief Minister, what other housing affordability activities are undertaken by the ACT government?
MR STANHOPE: There are a whole range of affordability issues that have been pursued by this government. Indeed, through our affordable housing action plan, which was developed some years ago now, we identified, I think it was, 64 initiatives that could be vigorously, aggressively and productively pursued to deal with issues of affordability within the territory, and some of them have been stunningly successful.
OwnPlace we now see recognised throughout Australia at a national level as the most significant example of leadership by an Australian government in relation to affordability, and land rent—of course the Liberal Party are not too keen on discussing OwnPlace after their assault, most particularly, on the part of the builders through the estimates process a couple of years ago, and Mr Coe will remember that.
But then we moved from that, of course, to the land rent scheme, which the Liberal Party actually worked for 18 months solid to destroy because it offended the notion and the ideas that the Liberal Party had about the right and the entitlement of everybody to home ownership, the right and entitlement to dream of home ownership.
Mr Seselja interjecting—
MR STANHOPE: Mr Seselja most particularly led the charge to destroy that scheme. “It was a joke,” he said. “It will never work,” he said. The subtext was, of course:
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