Government is preparing to take huge dividend from Housing NZ

The Government is preparing to take the biggest dividend in five years from Housing New Zealand, even as children are getting sick from cold, damp, and mouldy Housing New Zealand homes, the Green Party can reveal.

Housing New Zealand is set to pay out $118 million in dividends to the Government, up from $90 million in the past year, according to its Statement of Performance Expectations for 2015/16.

“The Government must rule out taking any more profit from Housing New Zealand till every one of its 68,000 homes is warm, safe, and secure,” Green Party Co-leader Metiria Turei said.

“The idea that the Government is still making money off Housing New Zealand, while children and others are getting sick while living in state houses, is utterly unacceptable.

“After all the public outpouring of sympathy and concern about the state of the homes that Kiwi kids are being brought up in, it defies belief that the Government is still expecting to run a $118 million profit from Housing New Zealand,” Mrs Turei said.

ENDS

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