Page 509 - Week 02 - Wednesday, 18 February 2015
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park goes ahead. Some motor park residents have lived there for more than 20 years. The possibility of an additional 600 people being evicted, possibly becoming homeless or being added to the public housing waiting list, would place significant pressure on our public housing waiting list, not to mention our homelessness services. If the motor park is sold and its residents are evicted, does the government have a plan to rehouse these people if required?
We need to have a transparent plan for the management and repair of our public housing properties. Many ACT public housing properties were built in the 1950s and up to the 1980s and they need significant maintenance work. During 2012 and 2013 the complaints and information unit of Housing ACT received approximately 1,930 complaints from public housing tenants. Many of those complaints concerned maintenance issues.
The 2015 report on government services showed that a public housing dwelling is assessed as being of an acceptable standard if it has at least four working facilities—for washing people, for washing clothes or bedding, for storing or preparing food, and for sewerage—and not more than two major structural problems. According to that report, the proportion of ACT public housing dwellings with at least four working facilities and no more than two major structural problems was 75.7 per cent. That figure is too low.
Given the high demand for ACT public housing properties and the fact that there is not enough public housing stock to meet that demand, maintenance should be of paramount importance. Maintenance is essential, as well as early detection and repair of structural problems. The government needs to lay the foundation for an effective and efficient public housing system in the ACT. To do that it needs to implement a workable strategy for the management and repair of public housing properties.
Many Canberrans face limited accessibility to the ACT private rental market. This reinforces the need for an effective and efficient public housing system or community housing or social housing. Today I ask the government to provide visibility in relation to how it will manage issues facing our public housing system in light of the recent damning report on government services which showed the ACT in quite a poor light. I call on the government to take immediate action in response to the urgent public housing situation here in the ACT.
MS BERRY (Ginninderra—Minister for Housing, Minister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs, Minister for Community Services, Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Minister for Women and Minister assisting the Chief Minister on Social Inclusion and Equality) (4.26): I rise to speak to this motion today and move the amendment to the motion circulated in my name:
Omit all words after “That this Assembly”, substitute:
“(1) notes that:
(a) the Productivity Commission Report on Government Services (ROGS) for 2013-14 provided a snapshot of public housing and homelessness services in the ACT;
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