Nick Smith keeps head pulled in on Unitary Plan

Housing Minister Nick Smith is declining to comment on the specifics of the independent hearings panel’s recommendations on Auckland’s long-awaited Unitary Plan, which were released today.

He does, however, confirm the government believes the panel “has done a good job of dealing with very complex issues and balancing the competing interests.”

Dr Smith is at pains to point out the recommendations are “very complex” and it will require time for him, fellow ministers and government agencies to “comprehend the full detail.”

However at first blush, he says,” the new plan does appear to meet many of the housing objectives for Auckland,” including the panel’s recommendations regarding both brownfield and greenfield developments, which officials have advised him “seem to align with the level of need that Auckland has for housing.”

But to make more detailed observations, Dr Smith insists, “could be wrongly interpreted as trying to influence the decision of the council” during the statutory process it’s now following.

“I’ve got confidence in Mayor Len Brown and the council understanding how important the plan is to Auckland’s future,” he says.

“We want to give the Auckland Council the clear air to work through the recommendations from the panel.”

That’s a significant change of tone from just last month when Dr Smith made it abundantly clear he will deploy a national policy statement “in the event Auckland Council loses its nerve and tries to undo the increased capacity for housing in the unitary plan.”

If the plan isn’t passed, Dr Smith has previously noted the statement – which “makes it plain ... councils need to do a far better job of matching housing demand with housing supply “– would act as “an important buttress for ensuring that new capacity stays within the plan.”

Asked about the discrepancy between the National Construction Pipeline Report he released yesterday – which estimated the construction sector has the capacity to build slightly less than 80,000 homes over the next seven years – and the panel’s recommendations – which allow for 131,000 to be built in Auckland during that period – Dr Smith says the plan enables “a bit more” in order to ensure competition and delivery.

“The growth pressures on Auckland are going to put pressure on the construction sector but I am confident that with the extra investments the government has made in training, the extra investments being made in infrastructure, we can bring those pieces of the puzzle together.”

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