Phil

TWYFORD

Housing Spokesperson

7 September 2015 MEDIA STATEMENT

Government knew but didn’t act on building rorts

The Government has known about anti-competitive rorts in the building supplies market for the past four years and has done nothing about them, says Labour’s Housing spokesperson Phil Twyford.

“The building industry is rife with informal deals designed to stifle competition. As a result Kiwis are paying through the nose for building materials – up to 30 per cent more than Australia.

“Fletcher Building has the market sewn up and – according to recent news reporting – uses hidden perk deals like overseas trips, cash bonuses and big discounts for suppliers who agree not to stock competitor products.

“This isn’t fair competition. It is the opposite. Kiwis are being ripped off. All because the Government is too timid to tackle a company that is creaming it at the expense of every Kiwi homebuyer and DIY builder.

“This is one of the things that is making new homes so expensive. The National Government has sat on its hands for the past four years, not even implementing the most basic measures its officials recommended,” Phil Twyford says.

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