Maryan Street

26 August, 2008
A major social housing upgrade for Wellington

Mayor, councillors, fellow Member of Parliament, Pat Snedden and Lesley McTurk, it is a pleasure to be here today representing the government and to be able to handover this grant which will make a huge difference to people’s lives.

Providing people from all walks of life with good-quality, affordable rental housing is a priority for this Government, which is why we decided to work with the council to upgrade its housing stock.

Being able to offer financial assistance has enabled the council to retain and improve its current level of social housing and, in turn, provide security of tenure for council tenants and ensure their homes are improved to better meet their needs

Provision of social housing is both a government and a community responsibility and a partnership approach to social housing is the way of the future if we want to continue living in vibrant and mixed communities such as Newtown.

The partnership which has developed between the council and central government reflects the government’s commitment to working with other organisations to provide good quality homes to those in need.

Encouraging and supporting other agencies to provide social housing is an important part of the Government’s role. We do this through Housing New Zealand’s Housing Innovation Fund and in special situations such as Wellington city.

The size and range of the Council’s housing stock complements the nature of the social housing provided by central government in Wellington. The council’s mainly one- and two-bedroom central city units, complement Housing New Zealand’s larger state houses which are located throughout the Wellington region.

Thanks to this joint venture, council tenants can now look forward to larger, warmer and quieter homes and rest assured that the council will continue to provide social housing for the next 30 years.

Today’s signing is the culmination of a great deal of work, negotiation, and goodwill between the Government and the Council. But the real work is about to begin and I, for one, am really looking forward to seeing the results.

ENDS

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