Prime Minister's Column- Delivering more social housing to New Zealand…

New Zealand is in good shape and getting better. We are making great strides towards building a stronger, more prosperous country.

Our focus this term is to continue to build on our success. We have a clear plan for continuing to build a stronger economy that creates more jobs, lifts incomes, and provides essential services and support that families need.

One area we are concentrating on is housing. That’s why last week I announced a social housing reform programme that will see more low-income and vulnerable New Zealanders receiving housing support that better meets their needs. 

We will be investing another $40 million a year to increase the overall number of social housing places – where tenants received an income-related rent subsidy from the Government – by 3,000 to 65,000 over the next three years.

We are also encouraging and developing a more diverse ownership of social housing that will be more innovative and responsive to tenants and the community’s needs. That means more people with high housing needs – who might be, for example, a sole parent, an older person, or someone with mental health issues – can get into social housing, whether it’s run by Housing New Zealand or a community housing provider.

This programme will run alongside other initiatives we have announced in housing, and in supporting the most vulnerable New Zealanders when they need it most.These include HomeStart, which will be up and running from 1 April this year, helping an estimated 90,000 home buyers into their first house over the next five years.

Earlier this year we also outlined some significant changes to the Resource Management Act to streamline and simplify it, which will help improve the supply and affordability of housing. 

Our social housing reforms are part of the National-led Government’s wider approach of delivering better services to New Zealanders who rely on them – and to do this more effectively for the taxpayers who pay for them.