AFFORDABLE HOUSING

Mrs GERAGHTY (Torrens) (15:00): My question is to the Minister for Housing. Can the minister advise the house of the ongoing contribution of the Nation Building—Economic Stimulus Plan to affordable housing in South Australia?

The SPEAKER: Minister for Housing.

The Hon. J.M. RANKINE (Wright—Minister for Families and Communities, Minister for Housing, Minister for Ageing, Minister for Disability) (15:00): Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Torrens, sit down.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. J.M. RANKINE: Thank you, Madam Speaker, and I thank the member for Torrens for her question and ongoing support for new and innovative housing here in South Australia.

The Nation Building—Economic Stimulus Plan is providing $434 million to South Australia to build 1,360 new social housing properties and refurbish hundreds of others. Last year, I advised the house that Housing SA had completed stage 1 of this program under budget and ahead of schedule. We had a target of 273 new properties by 30 June 2010 and we achieved 304. We had a target of 391 upgrades and we achieved 503. I am proud to report that we now have achieved our next milestone of 1,011 new properties. We aimed to achieve this target by 28 February 2011, and I can advise we had achieved 99 per cent of those by this date. The remaining 1 per cent were completed during March 2011.

Despite one of the wettest summers on record, our staff and contractors persevered in their efforts to provide these much-needed houses for vulnerable South Australians, and we are still under budget. We are on track to deliver around 1,378 new houses and apartments instead of 1,360.

Ms Chapman interjecting:

The Hon. J.M. RANKINE: Sorry?

Ms Chapman interjecting:

The Hon. J.M. RANKINE: Lochiel Park? Yes, I am happy to tell you about Lochiel Park.

Ms Chapman interjecting:

The Hon. J.M. RANKINE: No, they're not.

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. J.M. RANKINE: Wrong again. Every time she opens her mouth she gets it wrong, Madam Speaker. Let's reflect back to, when was it, 1988? How many houses did they build? How many houses were built by your government in 1998? 34! I wonder if you came in under budget on those.

The Hon. J.D. Hill: In eight years?

The Hon. J.M. RANKINE: There were 34 in 1998. The total build in 12 months was 34. Did you come in on budget on those? We will be able to construct 1,378 new houses and apartments instead of 1,360, and 25 per cent of construction is targeted at regional areas.

We are not just building acres of new social housing. The program is being strategically targeted to achieve a more sustainable mix of homeowners and renters. The program is not just running under budget: it is using these funds to create a multiplier effect in our economy, and the UNO Apartments building in Waymouth Street is a shining example of this. The commonwealth agreed to South Australia's innovative suggestion to use Nation Building funds to construct this landmark building and sell some of the apartments on the open market and through our Affordable Homes program. The funds from these sales will then be reinvested to build more affordable housing. This system of building, sale and reinvestment stimulates our construction industry beyond the original vision of the stimulus package. It is estimated that the housing stimulus work in South Australia will generate 1,500 jobs.

But it does not stop there. The program is supporting the community housing sector, with 500 properties already in the hands of community housing providers. These properties will have ownership fully transferred in the coming year and will allow these community organisations to leverage these assets and grow. Despite all these other benefits, the most important part of the program is the people—the people who were homeless, the people fleeing violence or the people dealing with major health problems—who now have a home, and we are housing them quickly.

Let's not forget that the Liberals opposed the stimulus package. Let's not forget they sold 11,000 houses in eight years, and let's not forget—

The SPEAKER: Order! There is a point of order.

Mr WILLIAMS: The minister is entering into debate in answering her question.

The Hon. P.F. Conlon: It is factual.

Mr WILLIAMS: It is not factual. It is all argument, you fool.

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. P.F. Conlon interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order, Minister for Transport! Minister, have you finished your answer?

The Hon. J.M. RANKINE: No, I haven't. In 1998, 34 houses were built by the then Liberal government.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. J.M. RANKINE: While I think we have much to celebrate, there is also much more to go. The stimulus package is supporting cutting edge projects like Woodville West, like the UNO Apartments and the Lochiel Park green village. I pay tribute to the federal government for putting the funds on the table, and I commend this government and the department for the vision and hard work to make this money go further and deliver more for the people of South Australia.