It previously promised 16,000 homes over three years
The Labour Party has decided to drop its flagship policy KiwiBuild – and quietly at that, according to ACT Leader David Seymour.
Seymour pointed out that the Labour Party has finally released its policy manifesto only a few days out from the election. However, it failed to mention anything about the KiwiBuild programme despite its vow to persevere.
“Last election, Labour promised 16,000 houses over three years. It's delivered just 602. That's not even 4% of what they promised. It's simply pathetic,” Seymour said.
“This Government was elected to fix housing. It should be deposed for failing to fix housing. This is one of the worst public policy failures New Zealand has seen. It's no wonder Labour wants to erase all reference to it.”
ACT calls for reform to the Resource Management Act (RMA) as it claims to be the “single biggest barrier to development and housing affordability in New Zealand.”
“The price of a median section in Auckland has increased by 1,000% since 1993, while inflation has risen by just 70%. Housing costs as a proportion of income have increased massively. It's time for real change on housing,” Seymour said.
“ACT has consistently advocated for overhauling the RMA. National and ACT had the numbers to do reform between 2008 and 2011 and then again between 2014 and the Northland by-election, but National failed to act.”
“Labour was elected to solve the housing crisis, but with even more red tape has made it worse. The next government must confront the housing crisis head-on. Only a government with a strong ACT can deliver real change,” Seymour concluded.
