Te Pāti Māori, Greens denounce Healthy Homes extension for Kāinga Ora and landlords

Author: Adam Pearse, NZ Herald,
Publish Date: Thu, 24 Nov 2022, 11:48AM

Te Pāti Māori and the Green Party have opposed the extension for state landlord Kāinga Ora and private landlords to meet the Healthy Homes Standards, saying the move prioritised homeowners over those living in poor housing.

Earlier this week, Housing Minister Dr Megan Woods announced the 12-month extension to the current deadlines of July next year for Kāinga Ora and July 2024 for the private sector, in light of extra building pressures due to supply chain disruptions caused by Covid-19.

The initiative was housed in the Residential Tenancies (Healthy Homes Standards) Amendment Bill, which was rushed through Parliament under urgency alongside 23 other pieces of legislation after the Government approved the House move to extended sitting hours to make up for a week’s worth of time lost when the Queen died in September.

Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi confirmed his party did not support the bill, which he deemed “terrible”.

“It is being passed only to let landlords off the hook by giving them an extra year to comply with the healthy homes standards,” Waititi said.

“These changes speak to the double standards that the state applies to those with power and wealth who don’t comply with law, and those without, as our people know too well. These double standards are racist, classist, and born out of a colonial mindset.”

Housing Minister Dr Megan Woods. Photo / Mark Mitchell

He said Māori would be unfairly impacted, claiming 50 per cent of Māori were renters and 30,000 children were hospitalised annually due to poor housing conditions.

“Cold, damp, and rundown houses are literally killing our people. Māori are often having to deal with supposedly third-world conditions like rheumatic fever due to the disgusting state of the rental market in this country.”

Speaking in the House late last night, Green Party MP Chlöe Swarbrick said her party questioned who the extension would benefit.

“It’s not the one and a half million New Zealanders who rent in this country that Statistics NZ show are more likely to spend more of their income on inadequate, mouldy housing, it is only the landlords and Kāinga Ora and the property managers who the Government chose to consult with throughout this process.”

The Greens did not support the bill, partly because extending the time whānau spent in homes that didn’t meet the standards contravened human rights.

The Residential Tenancies (Healthy Homes Standards) Amendment Bill was one of four pieces of legislation that would be pushed through the House this week to completion, going through first, second and third readings, select committee and committee of the whole House.

The urgency meant the public would not be able to have their say on those bills, which had drawn strong criticism from Opposition parties.

As of Thursday morning, the House was currently discussing the third bill on its 24-strong list - the Land Transport (Clean Vehicles) Amendment Bill, which delayed the implementation of the Clean Car Standard, an emissions standard for imported vehicles, to give importers more time.