Page 2135 - Week 06 - Thursday, 8 June 2017
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We are also pleased to see that funding has finally been restored to the Environmental Defenders Office, a vital organisation for legal protections of the environment in the territory. The EDO provides free legal advice and education to members of our community, and has persevered despite losing its federal funding over three years ago. After continued advocacy, we are pleased to see that the EDO’s work can now carry on with more certainty.
The budget tackles long-term community concerns about building quality. A common example is that people have been buying brand-new apartments only to find major problems like faulty waterproofing that costs tens of thousands of dollars to repair within a year or two of the building being completed. Reflecting community concerns, the parliamentary agreement includes a commitment to the establishment of a panel of independent auditors who would conduct mandatory annual audits of building certifiers. The budget delivers both on this item and on other actions to resolve building quality issues.
The Greens have been raising housing energy efficiency for decades, going right back to Kerrie Tucker in her time in this place. We are pleased that the budget provides for EPSDD to review the energy rating system and that this review will finally look to apply the scheme to rental properties.
The Greens are proud that this budget supports our community and the community sector that supports Canberrans. Sadly, rising house prices, sluggish wage growth and the rising cost of living have left many of our city’s most vulnerable out of luck and unlikely to ever find themselves in a place of secure, long-term housing. There is an ever-widening gap between the rich, middle class and poor in this city, and we have an obligation to ensure that all of our residents can have a roof over their head.
Many people in the two lowest socioeconomic quintiles in Canberra pay a significant proportion of their income on housing, leaving little for the other necessities of life. They find themselves compromising on groceries and health and medical appointments. They are often unable to provide children with any extracurricular activities like music or sport with their peers. This can have a significant impact on development, education attainment, wellbeing and inclusion.
In that vein, the Greens are pleased to see the ongoing investment in the public housing renewal program. This important program will ensure access to housing for some of our most vulnerable people, and a quality of housing that we have not seen in recent times. It has been the biggest investment in public housing since self-government, providing more comfortable and cost-effective housing for tenants.
We are, of course, concerned that the number of Housing ACT properties reduces temporarily, noting that the target of social housing properties for 2017-18 is around 240 fewer properties than the previous year. We know that this reduction is temporary, as 1,288 properties that are being replaced will come back under the public renewal housing program, and that no tenants will be made homeless, but we note the pressures that this places on our waiting lists. As our population grows, the Greens
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