Social housing shakeup will make a divided City, warns Greens

January 28, 2016 by Kenji Sato

 

 

 

BY CHRISTOPHER HARRIS

City of Sydney Greens Councillor Irene Doutney has called on the state government to significantly increase the amount of social housing stock in the City, following the announcement of the Baird Government’s Future Directions for Social Housing policy on Monday.
Clr Doutney warned that the plan will fall short on its goals if the number of city properties did not increase.
She said that social housing must be in the inner city, not just on the “outskirts” of Sydney.
“This Government’s destruction of the Millers Point community leaves me in doubt of their commitment.”
She welcomed the government’s move to act on the crippled state of public housing in NSW.
The current social housing waiting list has more than 60 000 people on it.
NSW is embarking on a new era of social housing with a large scale building program which will generate $22 billion in construction activity in NSW and produce better social outcomes for the community.
The ‘Future Directions in NSW Social Housing’ is a ten year reform that the government says will increase housing supply and create opportunities for independence.
The program will partner with the private sector to deliver 23,500 new and replacement dwellings.
It will also increase private rental assistance by 60 per cent to help people leave or avoid social housing.
It will also see 35 per cent of social housing to community providers.
“We are looking to the innovation of the private and non-government sectors to redevelop old public housing estates into mixed communities which will put thousands of people in social housing on a better path,” Mr Hazzard said in a statement.
“I am deeply concerned that the sale of public housing assets to the private sector places public housing tenants in a vulnerable position. The job of developers is to maximise their profits. We need strong safeguards in place to ensure that the number of public housing units delivered are not reduced in number or size through the planning process.
Cr Doutney continued, “I want to see a stronger focus from this Government on inner city public and affordable housing. This strategy demonstrates that the Government understands the risks of concentrating disadvantage in one area. If they are really serious about this they must ensure that disadvantaged people are supported to live in the inner city and not just the outskirts on Sydney. This Government’s destruction of the Millers Point community leaves me in doubt of their commitment.
“I am enthusiastic about the commitment to removing disincentives for public housing tenants to work. However, we have seen in the past the Liberal/National Party’s ideological commitment to punishing those who are unable to find work. Their emphasis on supporting tenants to transition out of public housing is clearly focused on single mothers. I sincerely hope these processes are government by evidence based policy and not trumped by ideology.”
“Huge waiting lists, maintenance backlogs and previous public housing sell offs have left tenants with little trust in Government. Many are afraid to speak out in fear of retribution. It is critical we rebuild that trust through policy that puts the wellbeing of tenants at the centre,” concluded Cr Doutney.


RESOURCED: http://www.altmedia.net.au/social-housing-shakeup-will-make-a-divided-city-warns-greens/113450