Pensioners9 Flats Govt. Wants Local Body Co-operation

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29853, 20 June 1962, Page 16

Pensioners 9 Flats Govt. Wants Local Body Co-operation

lKrom Our Parliamentary Reporter) WELLINGTON, June 19. Criticism of some local bodies who failed to do their part in providing housing for pensioners, single persons and other “special problem” tenants was made by the Minister of Housing (Mr Rae) during the Address-in-Reply debate in Parliament this afternoon.

Mr Rae said that while some local bodies, notably in the Christchurch area, had the matter well in hand, there were some bodies representing communities of city status which had failed to produce a single pensioner's flat. “Our housing programme for the current year will be no less than for last year, which was within a handsbreadth of the year before,” said Mr Rae. “We shall continue with 3 per cent, loans and with the capitalisation of family benefit, and if anyone comes up with an idea concerning co-operation between Government and local bodies in housing matters, we shall be glad to listen to him.”

Mr Rae admitted that there had been a fall in Government building. This had followed the trend shown in the fall in employment on Government building projects in 1960. Over the last few years it had seen “a hard slogging match” to keep State housing going. If the applications for housing permits in recent months were any guide, the demand for houses had fallen, he said. At the end of last February, applications for State houses had fallen to 10,120, of which 3367 were urgent. Twelve months previously there were 12.434 applications, including 4358 in the urgent category. In 1950 there were 44.000 applications. Mr W. A. Fox (Opposition,

Miramar): They gave up hope in 1960-61.

Mr Rae said there were some places where a qualified person would get a house the week after application. Mr R. MacDonald (Opposition, Ponsonby): Where?

Mr Rae: In the South* Island. There are other places which have the position well in hand. Mr MacDonald: Where are they ?

Mr Rae: In Auckland for one. Mr MacDonald is on a housing allocation committee, he should know.

Mr Rae said the great problem was accommodation for single persons. Opposition voice: Why not do as we did in 1938, and build your own ? Mr Rae: During the years 1938 to 1949 the Labour Government built fewer than a thousand of this type of accommodation.

The problem, was to get some local bodies to co-oper-ate, he said. In Wellington recently there was the germ of an idea—a housing foundation. Some local bodies, however, were prepared to become “partners' *• with the Government, only if the Government put up all the money.

Police Recruits.— About 350 men would have to be recruited for the Police Force this year, the Minister of Police (Mr Eyre) said in Napier yesterday. He was opening the new Napier police station.—(P.A.)