The new homes enabled through additional borrowing capacity for Kāinga Ora announced by Government today must have a Te Tiriti o Waitangi lens, having Māori take the lead in developing homes.

“This additional building capacity for Kāinga Ora must have a strong focus on ensuring the Māori housing sector is able to thrive.

“This looks like ensuring that the additional funds have a strong Te Tiriti lens, with iwi and community housing providers being supported to build homes for whānau.

“New Zealanders have the right to live in decent homes. Specifically, our own whānau across Aotearoa need to have the right tautoko and more resource to be able to access homes.

“Ideally, we would like the Kāinga Ora debt limit to be increased by $5 billion, rather than $2 billion, to better resource the building of homes. Our target would be 5000 new homes every year.

“There needs to be better management around land use, remembering the mana Māori hold as kaitiaki over their lands, therefore iwi-led organisations need greater support to ensure our whānau, tamariki and mokopuna live in warm, and safe homes.

“With this first step, we will continue to push for better outcomes specifically for our vulnerable communities.”

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