❓ Dr. Honey questions the Minister for Housing on the increasing public housing waitlist despite the government's claims of boosting social housing. The Minister responds by citing COVID-19, WA's attractiveness, and historical data.
AnsweredQoN 240Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
PUBLIC AND SOCIAL HOUSING — AVAILABILITY
240. Dr D.J. HONEY to the Minister for Housing:
I refer to the minister's
comment in this place yesterday —
Across the board, we are driving
large numbers of measures to boost social and affordable housing and to boost
housing supply.
(1) If the
government is doing such a sterling job boosting social housing, why has the
number of people on the public housing waitlist now reached 35 924, a 21 per
cent increase on the number of people waiting in 2017?
(2) Does the
minister honestly believe that a net increase of 114 social dwellings in seven
years is addressing the issues plaguing WA?
240. Dr D.J. HONEY to the Minister for Housing:
I refer to the minister's
comment in this place yesterday —
Across the board, we are driving
large numbers of measures to boost social and affordable housing and to boost
housing supply.
(1) If the
government is doing such a sterling job boosting social housing, why has the
number of people on the public housing waitlist now reached 35 924, a 21 per
cent increase on the number of people waiting in 2017?
(2) Does the
minister honestly believe that a net increase of 114 social dwellings in seven
years is addressing the issues plaguing WA?
AnswerView source ↗
(1)–(2) I
thank the member for his question. As we know, COVID radically reshaped our
housing market. There are enormous pressures on both housing and rent. I say
this: every Western Australian knows that we are not alone and that every state in this country is facing the same
critical issues relating to housing and rental markets. Let me be very
clear about that: we are not alone in this scenario.
We
also face another significant pressure; that is, Western Australia is a preferred
place to be for Australians and people from around the world. We have a very
strong economy, as the Premier talked about, with 300 000 new jobs and an
incredible lifestyle. Also, of course, in comparison with Sydney and Melbourne,
our housing prices are still affordable—they are half that of Sydney's.
We are seeing 220 people coming to Western Australia each day. These
extraordinary circumstances mean that there is more pressure on our rental
market and more pressure on our housing market.
I
do multiple media conferences. I go on radio constantly and talk about the
challenges that we are presented with. I know that the opposition works
by being black and white, but we know that the pressures will continue. There is no silver bullet or magical
solution. These pressures will continue over the next few years . I want
to assure Western Australians that this government is doing everything it can
to boost the social housing supply, to boost affordable housing and to boost
the wider supply in Western Australia through our infrastructure fund, through
our planning reforms that the Liberals oppose and through our record investment
in social housing and homelessness measures.
We know that when there are tight
rental markets, people seek assurance in the public housing system. Even the opposition and the shadow housing minister
have recognised that the majority of people on the public housing
waitlist are actually housed or have accommodation. It is natural that when
people are uncertain about the rental
market, they register for the waiting list. I was asked today whether it was a record number. No, it is not a record. The record rests with the previous
Barnett government. Back in 2010, when the population was of course far lower,
there were 24 000 people on the waiting list. I again say to Western Australians
that we take this very seriously. We are throwing everything at it through a range
of measures in both housing and homelessness.
thank the member for his question. As we know, COVID radically reshaped our
housing market. There are enormous pressures on both housing and rent. I say
this: every Western Australian knows that we are not alone and that every state in this country is facing the same
critical issues relating to housing and rental markets. Let me be very
clear about that: we are not alone in this scenario.
We
also face another significant pressure; that is, Western Australia is a preferred
place to be for Australians and people from around the world. We have a very
strong economy, as the Premier talked about, with 300 000 new jobs and an
incredible lifestyle. Also, of course, in comparison with Sydney and Melbourne,
our housing prices are still affordable—they are half that of Sydney's.
We are seeing 220 people coming to Western Australia each day. These
extraordinary circumstances mean that there is more pressure on our rental
market and more pressure on our housing market.
I
do multiple media conferences. I go on radio constantly and talk about the
challenges that we are presented with. I know that the opposition works
by being black and white, but we know that the pressures will continue. There is no silver bullet or magical
solution. These pressures will continue over the next few years . I want
to assure Western Australians that this government is doing everything it can
to boost the social housing supply, to boost affordable housing and to boost
the wider supply in Western Australia through our infrastructure fund, through
our planning reforms that the Liberals oppose and through our record investment
in social housing and homelessness measures.
We know that when there are tight
rental markets, people seek assurance in the public housing system. Even the opposition and the shadow housing minister
have recognised that the majority of people on the public housing
waitlist are actually housed or have accommodation. It is natural that when
people are uncertain about the rental
market, they register for the waiting list. I was asked today whether it was a record number. No, it is not a record. The record rests with the previous
Barnett government. Back in 2010, when the population was of course far lower,
there were 24 000 people on the waiting list. I again say to Western Australians
that we take this very seriously. We are throwing everything at it through a range
of measures in both housing and homelessness.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.