Grant Robertson
MP for Wellington Central
Finance Spokesperson

7 June, 2017

Labour backs Capital’s housing initiative

Wellington Mayor Justin Lester’s initiative to encourage affordable inner city apartments shows that large-scale housing programmes like KiwiBuild can be achieved with innovative thinking, says Wellington Central MP Grant Robertson.

“Housing is one of the biggest challenges facing New Zealand and too many Kiwis are being locked out of the housing market because of rampant house prices.

“Any solution to the housing crisis must involve bold and innovative thinking, and I back Wellington’s Labour Mayor Justin Lester’s fresh thinking on housing. It’s what Wellington needs, and it’s what New Zealand needs.

“Making it easier for developers to convert under-used inner city buildings to affordable apartments, and building 100,000 new affordable homes under Labour’s KiwiBuild programme, are good examples of the action we need to get more Kiwis into affordable homes.

“Labour backs the idea of more affordable inner city housing developments, just like Labour backs all Kiwis wanting to get onto the property ladder.

“Under Labour’s fresh approach to housing and KiwiBuild, we’ll build more homes and apartments for first home buyers, sell them at cost and raise more money to build more affordable homes. Labour will also ban foreign speculators, close the tax loopholes and level the playing field for first home buyers.

“Labour, at local government level and New Zealand-wide, is taking the housing crisis seriously – unlike the National Party who still refuse to acknowledge a housing crisis exists,” says Grant Robertson.

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