Page 1134 - Week 03 - Thursday, 18 March 2010
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Mr Seselja: It is a terrible, terrible conspiracy between the Liberal Party, the Property Council—
MR STANHOPE: Of course, it is very interesting on any debate in the Assembly on housing affordability that Mr Seselja instinctively begins to look just a touch embarrassed because he knows the subject of land rent is going to be raised. Of course, we will get to land rent in a minute, but in the interim—
Mr Seselja: Yes, tell us about it. How many people do you think will go out backwards as a result of land rent?
MR STANHOPE: Here we go. Here is the Liberal Party position. He asks, “How many people will go out backwards?” Here we have the Liberal Party position on land rent summarised. We have it now out of Mr Seselja’s mouth: the people who access land rent will go out backwards. What a judgement! What a judgement that actually represents of the position of the Liberal Party on who is entitled to own a house. There we have it. They do not deserve to own houses. They are not worthy. They will go out backwards, anyway. They will go out backwards, anyway.
But to get to the views that the Liberal Party did not want to hear about—
Ms Le Couteur: Point of order, Mr Speaker. Mr Stanhope has not attempted to answer Ms Porter’s question. I would love to hear the answer.
MR SPEAKER: Chief Minister, can you answer the question? I am sure you have it.
MR STANHOPE: I am glad you are interested, Ms Le Couteur. The answer is that the Real Estate Institute of Australia has again reported that the ACT has the most affordable housing in the nation. Indeed, it reports that the average Canberra household spends 17.7 per cent on average of its weekly income on loan repayments on a median three-bedroom home. That is 30 percentage points below the national average. It is 16 percentage points lower than the rate across the border in New South Wales. That is what the Real Estate Institute reports. The Real Estate Institute in its report reflects again on the ACT remaining the most affordable housing jurisdiction in Australia.
But that is not all, of course. It does then also report on affordability in the ACT for rental property. It shows that in relation to rental payments in the ACT, Canberra households pay an average of 16.7 per cent of their income on rent payments, unchanged over the year. But this is by far the lowest in the country, eight per cent lower than the national average. (Time expired.)
MR SPEAKER: Ms Porter, a supplementary question?
MS PORTER: Minister, what effect has the government’s policy on mandating 15 per cent of all blocks in new estates to be dedicated to affordable housing had on the availability of moderately priced housing in the ACT?
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