Consents for new houses under the Auckland Unitary Plan are the highest in the city's history. Photo / File
Consents for new houses under the Auckland Unitary Plan are the highest in the city's history. Photo / File
National and Labour's radical new housing policy will create division and resentment in the community and risks failure, says Act leader David Seymour.
"People are likely to be disappointed. They will conclude that National and Labour have both fouled up housing by themselves, but now, with their powers combined, they're going to foul it up beyond all recognition," he said.
Seymour has written to Labour and National who have joined forces in a rare act of unity to tackle the housing crisis and come up with a plan consultants believe will see many as 105,500 extra new homes built in less than a decade.
The Government said the Housing Supply Bill will allow up to three homes of up to three storeys built on most sites without the need for a costly and frustrating resource consent.
David Seymour says Act cannot support the housing plan as it stands. Photo / Mark Mitchell
The plan has received a cool response at Auckland Council where the number of new housing consents being issued is high.
Auckland Mayor Phil Goff has credited the Unitary Plan, the planning blueprint for the city since 2016 allowing for 420,000 new homes, with boosting housing supply.
"Building consents issued, around 20,000 in the last year, are the highest in the city's history," said Goff, who wants the plans to be balanced against Aucklanders' desire to retain the city heritage and character.
Seymour, who is the MP for Epsom, agrees there is a major problem with housing affordability and is pleased to see a supply solution promised.
But he said Labour and National are in danger of failing to deliver on their promise, while creating division and resentment in the community.
"They need to focus on infrastructure and pull the zoning changes back to a level supported by their own modelling.
"Labour and National have promised the public that they will deliver homes, and that they'll work together to achieve it. Unfortunately their solution ignores the real problem of infrastructure funding," he said.
Seymour said since the announcement it has become clear that there was no consultation and now the bill will go through under urgency, with only a three-week Select Committee process, meaning there is now little opportunity for developers or councils to give feedback.
Auckland Mayor Phil Goff wants the housing plan to take account of the city's heritage. Photo / File
He said Act has three proposals to improve the legislation.
They are: firstly, paying councils 50 per cent of the GST for ever new house to cover some of the costs that fall on them, changing development from being a source of cost to a source of revenue.
Secondly, tapping into private sector investment for new, public-private partnership for infrastructure, including immediately fast tracking and seeking proposals under the Infrastructure and Financing Act.
And thirdly, abandoning the Government's new rules for the Mixed Housing Zone (MHS) rules in the Auckland Unitary Plan.
"The legislation should simply require that zones with lower intensity than those that currently exist are upzoned to MHS and, in cities where such a zone does not exist, use the MHS zone. The exemption from resource consents could remain, simply using the Auckland MHS rules, and removing the restriction on further quality standards in building consents," said Seymour.
