National policy statement ‘only part of solution’ to Auckland’s housing ‘challenge’ – Smith
"There's no single magic bullet," Housing Minister NIck Smith says.
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Hawke’s Bay
Ahead of today’s announcement of the government’s national policy statement on urban development, Housing Minister Nick Smith has been hosing down expectations it will be a quick fix for Auckland’s housing shortage – which he continues to refuse to describe as “a crisis.”
The statement will “only be part of what the solution will be – there’s no single magic bullet,” he said on the Paul Henry Show this morning, during an interview in which he preferred to frame the problem as “a challenge.”
The appointment of a commissioner for Auckland won’t be part of the announcement, Dr Smith said – instead the statement will require Auckland council to free up more land and provide the housing minister with “very clear powers to direct [the council] in the event they do not get on and address the issues in this national policy statement.”
Although all local bodies will be affected by the statement, it will focus on Auckland, where the government has identified the price of land as the primary problem.
Prime Minister John Key suggested last week the statement will include a price-to-income ratio that could be used to force local authorities to release land for new housing if house prices climb too far out of people's reach.
That idea has been roundly criticised by economist Shamubeel Eaqub as "moronic" because it doesn't answer how the required infrastructure will be built.
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Nick Grant
Thu, 02 Jun 2016
Thu, 02 Jun 2016
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