❓ Mr. Tinley questions the Minister for Housing about alleged failures in the public housing maintenance model and investigations by government agencies. The Minister denies the claims of a Consumer Protection investigation and accuses Mr. Tinley of spreading misinformation.
AnsweredQoN 507Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
PUBLIC
HOUSING — MAINTENANCE
507. Mr P.C. TINLEY to the Minister for Housing:
I refer the minister to reports
today that the Consumer Protection Division is investigating the government's
public housing maintenance model for its failure to deliver an acceptable
standard of housing maintenance to the tenants of the state's 36 000
public homes.
(1) Can the
minister confirm that this is the second government agency to initiate an
investigation into the maintenance model following the Auditor General's
decision to investigate as a result of my referral of serious problems of the
failed contractor?
(2) Given the
concerns that both these agencies share in relation to this contract, does the
minister continue to dismiss the serious and ongoing failures as simply, as he
has said, teething problems?
(3) Why will the
minister not concede that there are systemic and ongoing problems with the
failed model?
HOUSING — MAINTENANCE
507. Mr P.C. TINLEY to the Minister for Housing:
I refer the minister to reports
today that the Consumer Protection Division is investigating the government's
public housing maintenance model for its failure to deliver an acceptable
standard of housing maintenance to the tenants of the state's 36 000
public homes.
(1) Can the
minister confirm that this is the second government agency to initiate an
investigation into the maintenance model following the Auditor General's
decision to investigate as a result of my referral of serious problems of the
failed contractor?
(2) Given the
concerns that both these agencies share in relation to this contract, does the
minister continue to dismiss the serious and ongoing failures as simply, as he
has said, teething problems?
(3) Why will the
minister not concede that there are systemic and ongoing problems with the
failed model?
AnswerView source ↗
(1)–(3) I
thank the member for Willagee for the question and for his interest in this
matter on a couple of levels. One is that he has seen fit to make a request of
the Auditor General to investigate matters that the Auditor General thinks are
significant. Secondly, like the person sitting to his left, he has responded in
a media release today about what he claims are serious issues that have come
through the media. The interesting thing is that radio 6PR, I think, reported
some matters to do with housing. As a matter of course, the department of
consumer protection, as it rightly does, looks at matters in the media based on
comments made by people who phone in and make claims and raise concerns, and it
responds to those, as it appropriately should do as a government agency, to see
whether there is anything systemic or anything that needs to be pursued.
Interestingly, the member for
Willagee put out a media statement today that says, ''Consumer
Protection to investigate Homeswest housing maintenance model''. That is
absolutely wrong. There is no investigation by the department of consumer
protection. Interestingly, when the gentleman from consumer protection phoned
6PR to get the transcript, which it does in the course of doing its business,
6PR was told that there was no formal investigation. Like the member for
Warnbro, other opposition members wake up in the morning and see what is
running in the newspapers for the day and that is the sum total of their
research. They then put out a statement claiming that there is a huge
investigation into the Department of Housing over its maintenance issues.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Member for
Mandurah! Member for Willagee, I hope you are going to ask a supplementary
question. I ask you at this point to stop interjecting and seek a supplementary
question.
Mr D.T. REDMAN :
The other claim that was made was that a hotline has been specifically put in
place by the department of consumer protection to respond to concerns from the
community about maintenance in Department of Housing homes. Again, that is
absolute rubbish. There is only one hotline and that is for every complaint
that anyone wants to raise with the department of consumer protection—from
Nigerian bankers to how good a person's toaster is. What has been
claimed is an absolutely short-sighted position by the member for Willagee. He
has got it wrong. He has done this on scant information.
Mr
P.C. Tinley interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Willagee!
Mr D.T. REDMAN : In
the past 12 months, the department of consumer protection has received a total
of 1 194 tenancy complaints. Twelve complaints
related to the Department of Housing; of those 12 complaints, three
related to maintenance. The member for Willagee has the gall to get up in this
place and make up a story based on scant information that he picked up this
morning. He put out a media release that was fundamentally wrong.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Thank
you, members!
Mr
D.T. REDMAN : The member for Willagee is right in the sense that I have
acknowledged, as have other ministers of this portfolio, that there were
challenges in the implementation of the head contractor model. That is
acknowledged. With more than 37 000 contracts being issued in a year, it is
expected that from time to time things will not go as well as expected.
Several members interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Nollamara!
Mr
D.T. REDMAN : This is getting bedded down. It is fundamentally wrong for the
member for Willagee to make these claims on scant information. Opposition
members need to go away and do some research, because right now they are not
stacking up.
thank the member for Willagee for the question and for his interest in this
matter on a couple of levels. One is that he has seen fit to make a request of
the Auditor General to investigate matters that the Auditor General thinks are
significant. Secondly, like the person sitting to his left, he has responded in
a media release today about what he claims are serious issues that have come
through the media. The interesting thing is that radio 6PR, I think, reported
some matters to do with housing. As a matter of course, the department of
consumer protection, as it rightly does, looks at matters in the media based on
comments made by people who phone in and make claims and raise concerns, and it
responds to those, as it appropriately should do as a government agency, to see
whether there is anything systemic or anything that needs to be pursued.
Interestingly, the member for
Willagee put out a media statement today that says, ''Consumer
Protection to investigate Homeswest housing maintenance model''. That is
absolutely wrong. There is no investigation by the department of consumer
protection. Interestingly, when the gentleman from consumer protection phoned
6PR to get the transcript, which it does in the course of doing its business,
6PR was told that there was no formal investigation. Like the member for
Warnbro, other opposition members wake up in the morning and see what is
running in the newspapers for the day and that is the sum total of their
research. They then put out a statement claiming that there is a huge
investigation into the Department of Housing over its maintenance issues.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Member for
Mandurah! Member for Willagee, I hope you are going to ask a supplementary
question. I ask you at this point to stop interjecting and seek a supplementary
question.
Mr D.T. REDMAN :
The other claim that was made was that a hotline has been specifically put in
place by the department of consumer protection to respond to concerns from the
community about maintenance in Department of Housing homes. Again, that is
absolute rubbish. There is only one hotline and that is for every complaint
that anyone wants to raise with the department of consumer protection—from
Nigerian bankers to how good a person's toaster is. What has been
claimed is an absolutely short-sighted position by the member for Willagee. He
has got it wrong. He has done this on scant information.
Mr
P.C. Tinley interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Willagee!
Mr D.T. REDMAN : In
the past 12 months, the department of consumer protection has received a total
of 1 194 tenancy complaints. Twelve complaints
related to the Department of Housing; of those 12 complaints, three
related to maintenance. The member for Willagee has the gall to get up in this
place and make up a story based on scant information that he picked up this
morning. He put out a media release that was fundamentally wrong.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Thank
you, members!
Mr
D.T. REDMAN : The member for Willagee is right in the sense that I have
acknowledged, as have other ministers of this portfolio, that there were
challenges in the implementation of the head contractor model. That is
acknowledged. With more than 37 000 contracts being issued in a year, it is
expected that from time to time things will not go as well as expected.
Several members interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Nollamara!
Mr
D.T. REDMAN : This is getting bedded down. It is fundamentally wrong for the
member for Willagee to make these claims on scant information. Opposition
members need to go away and do some research, because right now they are not
stacking up.
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