John Minto is National Convenor of SHAN – the State Housing Action Network – www.shan.org.nz

Following the 2014 election the National government embarked on what it intends will be the largest privatisation of State assets in New Zealand history – dwarfing any of the sales successive Labour and National governments have posted in the last 30 years. National is beginning the sale of New Zealand’s estimated $15 billion in State housing stock. No less than three National government ministers are now directly involved – Housing Minister Nick Smith, State Housing Minister Bill English and Social Housing Minister Paula Bennett.

The first stage of privatisation involves the sale of 6,000 to 8,000 houses over the next few years with up to 2,000 being sold in the first year. It’s clear that if unchecked National will sell every last State home. The latest proposal for mass privatisation of State housing comes close on the heels of National Party attacks on Housing New Zealand (HNZ) and its tenants from its first two terms. Early in its first term National forced HNZ to slash State house waiting lists, close most local offices and strip tenure (the right to stay in your home) from existing tenants.  It drove staff morale to rock-bottom and HNZ has been stripped of its role in assessing tenants for housing needs. Work and Income NZ (WINZ) has taken over this function and will allocate eligible tenants and families to HNZ or private “social housing providers”.

The State Of State Houses

Blood On Its Hands

Such is the appalling condition of many of them that two recent deaths were attributed by doctors to cold, damp State houses. 37-year-old Soesa Tovo and two-year-old Emma-Lita Bourne died in August 2014 leaving National with blood on its hands. All Nick Smith could say was: “People dying in winter of pneumonia and other illnesses is not new". He may as well have spelt it out: “Just more good-for-nothing poor people dying – nothing to worry about here – move along – this Government is busy. We are working hard to squeeze every dollar we can from State house tenants to increase the dividend Housing New Zealand pays the Government. If that means our houses stay cold and damp and people die – too bad. If we insulate these houses it will cost money and reduce our dividend. If people call us the biggest slum landlord in the country – so what?” How many more children and vulnerable adults will die because the biggest slum landlord in the country – the National government – demands hundreds of millions in dividends from HNZ tenants while refusing to upgrade their homes to a decent standard?

State Subsidies For Private Landlords

In reducing State housing stock the Government is now extending the IRRS (Income Related Rental Subsidy, which has only been available to HNZ tenants) to tenants in social housing. However the IRRS will be capped (on Treasury advice to protect the Government from “fiscal risk”) This means tenants who gain a place in a HNZ house, for example, will also have to wait for what the Government calls a “financial vacancy” to become available. In other words they will go on a second waiting list - waiting till another tenant leaves or is evicted before the subsidy will be available to them. This extension of Government subsidies is not for the benefit of tenants but for the benefit of landlords. Already over $1 billion is paid out each year in rental subsidies which lines the pockets of property speculators and property investors.

Shortcut To Selloff

In the first step to expedite the sale of State houses the Government earlier in 2015 transferred 2,800 houses in Tamaki (Glen Innes, Point England and Panmure) to the Tamaki Redevelopment Company. It’s jointly owned by the Government and Auckland City Council but has a corporate agenda unlike the public service model of Housing New Zealand. To take HNZ right out of the picture the Government has since passed legislation enabling two housing ministers to bypass the normal process of Housing New Zealand selling houses. The Social Housing Reform (Transaction Mandate) Bill allows designated ministers to sell Housing NZ properties without the approval of the board of the corporation. Even Treasury raised its eyebrows at what it described as giving ministers a "private law power of attorney". It’s clear the Government is “clearing the decks” for the State house selloff with fire-sale deals to be done with property investors and speculators using a social housing prodder as the public face of corporate greed.

Foreign Buyers

The major problem faced by the Government has been the lack of local interest from social housing providers to buy into its policy. In a major blow to the credibility of the privatisation programme the largest legitimate social housing provider – the Salvation Army – announced it would not buy any State houses. The Methodist Mission followed suit and what is left is a group of smaller providers without the capacity to take on the delivery of housing services for hundreds of families. No problem to Bill English. Recently he has announced the Government is proposing the sale of hundreds of State houses to an Australian company called Horizon Housing.

Any self-respecting minister would be embarrassed to sell State housing assets – the most critical, socially strategic asset we have – to an Australian company but the ideological adrenalin pumps so strongly through his veins that better an Australian company than the New Zealand State keep them. This is music to the ears of National’s property developer and speculator mates as, over time, more tenants are forced into the private sector to drive up rents and untaxed capital values. More unearned income for the landlord elite who fund the National Party. Of course Bill English says the sale of State houses is to improve things for State house tenants because the Government isn’t doing a good job and the private sector can do better. Not even the most intellectually challenged New Zealander would believe such crap.

SHAN Letter To Horizon

I’m involved with SHAN – the State Housing Action Network – and we wrote to Horizon warning them off from meddling in New Zealand housing. If they proceed they can expect to be the subject of on-going protest from New Zealanders.

The Way Forward

Across the world only governments have the resources and capacity to provide quality affordable housing for families and tenants on low incomes. That’s the experience at all times in all countries. We have a housing crisis in New Zealand for low-income families living three families to a house, in cars or cockroach infested caravans. National, however, wants to turn the clock back to Victorian England where there was no State assistance in housing – just charities and churches to provide food and housing for the needy.

Organising against National Party housing policies is critically important – if you can help SHAN in this fight then see how you can contribute at our Website www.shan.org.nz