Phil Twyford
MP for Te Atatū
Housing Spokesperson

MEDIA STATEMENT

6 September 2017

Housing crisis is National’s legacy

Reports of tenants languishing in boarding houses for years because they cannot get a state house is yet more evidence National’s legacy is the housing crisis, says Labour’s Housing spokesperson Phil Twyford.

“We used to pride ourselves in this country on decent housing and affordable home ownership, but instead we’ve become a housing basket-case.

“The housing crisis touches almost everyone, from young middle class families who have given up hope of ever owning their own home, to people who find themselves homeless or living in squalid boarding houses and campgrounds.

“The roots of the crisis lie in policy issues that go back decades, however it’s fair that the public holds National accountable for doing so little to tackle the crisis over nine years.

“The public want solutions and Labour has them. We’ll build 100,000 affordable homes for young families, ban foreign buyers from buying existing homes, and set standards to make rentals warm and dry.

“That’s just a few of the policies in Labour’s comprehensive housing reform agenda. The solutions are all there. We just need a Government with the political will,” says Phil Twyford.

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