Responding to National MP Nicola Willis’s
statement
that National was wrong to sell so much state housing,
New Zealand Taxpayers’
Union spokesman Louis Houlbrooke
says:
“What a weak capitulation to
left-wing ideology.”
“Selling a state house
doesn’t make it disappear from the market. In fact, when
governments hold on to state housing they make the housing
crisis worse by slowing down development, limiting supply,
and driving up prices in the private
market.”
“When National left office in 2017,
almost 4000 state houses in Auckland were worth
more than a million dollars, typically because they’re
located on quarter-acre sections in expensive suburbs like
Remuera and Tamaki. That’s an incredible inefficiency –
a sensible private developer would see the rising land value
and take it as a signal to knock down these homes and
replace them with more dense, lower-cost
housing.”
“National, as a party of small
government, should realise that having politicians in charge
of housing does not solve a housing
crisis.”
If you're using Scoop for work, your organisation needs to pay a small license fee with Scoop Pro. We think that's fair, because your organisation is benefiting from using our news resources. In return, we'll also give your team access to pro news tools and keep Scoop free for personal use, because public access to news is important!
Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture tends to be hostile to Islam when we’re sitting in the dark, with popcorn. Any number of movie examples come to mind, beginning with Rudolf Valentino’s role (over a century ago) as the romantic Arab hero in The Sheik... More
Government: One-stop Shop Major Projects On The Fast Track The Coalition Government’s new one-stop-shop fast track consenting regime for regional and national projects of significance will cut red tape and make it easier for New Zealand to build the infrastructure and major projects needed to get the country moving again... More
Government: GPS 2024: Over $20 Billion To Get Transport Back On Track Transport Minister Simeon Brown has released the draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) on Land Transport, outlining the Coalition Government’s plan to build and maintain a transport system that enables people to get to where they need to go quickly and safely... More
Winston Peters has announced NZ is providing a further $5M to respond to the extreme humanitarian need in Gaza and the West Bank. “The impact of the Israel-Hamas conflict on civilians is absolutely appalling," he said... More
Judith Collins has announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister Jason Scott McHerron as a High Court Judge. Justice McHerron graduated from the University of Otago with a BA in English Literature in 1994 and an LLB in 1996... More