Page 3788 - Week 10 - Wednesday, 19 September 2018
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MS FITZHARRIS: Yes, I did, and we had a wide-ranging discussion about those matters.
MRS DUNNE: Minister, what did you tell the CEO designate about your strategy for the ACT hospital system?
MS FITZHARRIS: I outlined a range of matters, which I have previously outlined in the Assembly and in public as well, about my intention to deliver the highest quality health care services to the Canberra community; about the many initiatives we have underway; the challenges we face; and the many initiatives we have to roll out from here on in.
MR COE: Minister, did the CEO-designate have a signed contract at any point prior to her departure?
MS FITZHARRIS: Yes, I believe she did.
Housing—affordability
MS ORR: My question is to the Minister for Housing and Suburban Development. Can the minister update the Assembly on the performance of the ACT government’s land rent scheme?
MS BERRY: I am very happy to update the Assembly. The land rent scheme is an important option for Canberrans looking to own their own home at a reduced cost. Last week I had the great opportunity to meet two Canberrans who are benefiting from the scheme, Christine and her daughter Chloe. It was a very big day for them, getting the keys to their new home, and the process of getting together the deposit and the loan was made easier by the scheme.
Christine and Chloe’s new home is one of over 2,000 land rent leases that have been issued since the program began in 2008. It allows Canberrans to rent the land from the government rather than pay up-front for land costs. In effect the ACT government offers a discount rate to eligible people who would otherwise be unable to afford the full market purchase price of land and construction.
Community Housing Canberra have been able to connect their tenants to the scheme, and Christine and Chloe’s new home is one of 10 houses recently developed. Overall, CHC has prepared 157 houses for land rent, providing home ownership options for their tenants and Canberrans who are looking to enter the market.
The ACT land rent scheme has been recognised as a national model to tackle housing affordability in a recent Australia Institute study. The scheme ensures that the government subsidy of lower housing costs goes directly to the owners and is not added to the bottom line of the developer.
Nation-leading programs such as this one are working to address housing affordability in Canberra, and I look forward to bringing more forward as part of the housing strategy that I will be releasing later this year.
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