Temporary campervan rent affordable, says Brownlee

Labour's Canterbury earthquake recovery spokesman Clayton Cosgrove says having people pay hundreds of dollars upfront to stay in campervans is 'bizarre'. Photo / Thinkstock

The minimum $190 per week rent for a Government-supplied campervan in earthquake-hit Christchurch is affordable, Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee says.

The Department of Building and Housing has made more than 350 campervans available at the Canterbury A&P showgrounds today.

Residents whose homes have been significantly damaged by the earthquake are eligible for the temporary accommodation.

But they need to pay rent: $190 per week for two people, $271 for four, and $337 for six, plus power expenses.

A refundable bond of two weeks rent was also required to cover for any damage to the campervans.

Labour's Canterbury earthquake recovery spokesman Clayton Cosgrove said having people pay hundreds upfront to stay in campervans was "bizarre".

"The rent has been settled on by government ministers on what they claim is a market rental basis. But this is not a situation where markets rentals apply.

"It is not business as usual for Cantabrians who have lost their homes, many thousands of whom will soon lose their jobs and livelihoods."

However, Mr Brownlee said people using the campervans for a short period of time would be paying rent somewhere else anyway.

"There is a cost to providing these things and I think the sort of facility that they are, the rent is not out of the way."

He said the campervans are short-term accommodation and would be returned to the providers in late August.

The Government hoped to have the first of the "better quality" temporary housing up by the middle of May.

He said a decision on who will get a multimillion-dollar contract to build temporary homes for up to 10,000 displaced people would be made soon.

The Government was looking for different types of housing as some people might need a house for 18 months while others only for a short time.

"I would also say that inside the accommodation bank at the moment there are a large number of houses available, many thousands, and my understanding is that only 709 have been taken up so far, so we are staying ahead of the curb."

Housing Minister Phil Heatley said if people are struggling to pay for rent they could access the accommodation supplement or the emergency relief package.

- NZPA