Mrs HICKEY - 1994-08-25
Is the minister aware that Tennant Creek is losing professional workers, such as teachers, radiographers and nurses, as a result of the acute shortage of private housing in Tennant Creek and the inability of such people to access private housing? Given that land has been provided free of charge to Masonic Homes to build a private retirement village in Darwin, will the minister consider the possibility of releasing low-cost or land free of cost for building development in Tennant Creek which would allow the town to capitalise on current demand and develop?
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ANSWER
Mr Speaker, I am happy to provide details for the member but, as I understand the situation in Tennant Creek, there are particularly low waiting lists for public housing. Because of the quite significant numbers of public houses, quite a number of employers have applied for industry housing for key personnel which is provided for under the Housing Commission's arrangements. I cannot think of any situation since I have been minister when such an application has been refused.
In respect of land availability in Tennant Creek, I will have the figures confirmed, but I understand that there is no problem with land availability for land development. In the private rental market, the major difficulty is that the rents are so low that no one is prepared to invest in building private rental accommodation in the town.
Mrs Hickey: That is true. There is no return on the investment.
Mr HATTON: If the member for Barkly wants us to stimulate the private rental market to push up rents, I will have a talk to her Tennant Creek constituents about that matter ...
Mrs Hickey: You do it for industrial housing.
Mr HATTON: ... because that is the only way that she will generate private rental investment. There are opportunities to buy homes in Tennant Creek at quite good prices, and I wonder whether her own house is on the market at the moment.
Mrs Hickey: No, it is not.
Mr HATTON: I would be interested to know whether it has been sold already.
Mrs Hickey: I have spent a great deal of money on it lately.
Mr HATTON: Yes, we know about the tiles from South Australia.
Mrs Hickey: Absolutely. They were from Victoria actually.
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr HATTON: Mr Speaker, I understand that there is quite an active market. I received a couple of queries from people in Tennant Creek asking whether we would be prepared to release land on to the market. We have been actively discouraged from doing that by the real estate sector in the town because it believes that it would kill off the land market and the housing market in Tennant Creek completely. Tennant Creek is trying to get itself together at the moment and it has been doing so, but we have to be fairly careful about how we go about dealing with these matters. If we try to use a sledgehammer when what is needed is a
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tack hammer, we will destroy the entire market for everybody, including the value of the member's house.
I will obtain the details for the member, but I am saying to her that she should not push too hard on it. If she is aware of cases where people have particular difficulties in obtaining accommodation in the town, then I ask her to refer those to me and I will address them for her.
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Page 91
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, I am happy to provide details for the member but, as I understand the situation in Tennant Creek, there are particularly low waiting lists for public housing. Because of the quite significant numbers of public houses, quite a number of employers have applied for industry housing for key personnel which is provided for under the Housing Commission's arrangements. I cannot think of any situation since I have been minister when such an application has been refused.
In respect of land availability in Tennant Creek, I will have the figures confirmed, but I understand that there is no problem with land availability for land development. In the private rental market, the major difficulty is that the rents are so low that no one is prepared to invest in building private rental accommodation in the town.
Mrs Hickey: That is true. There is no return on the investment.
Mr HATTON: If the member for Barkly wants us to stimulate the private rental market to push up rents, I will have a talk to her Tennant Creek constituents about that matter ...
Mrs Hickey: You do it for industrial housing.
Mr HATTON: ... because that is the only way that she will generate private rental investment. There are opportunities to buy homes in Tennant Creek at quite good prices, and I wonder whether her own house is on the market at the moment.
Mrs Hickey: No, it is not.
Mr HATTON: I would be interested to know whether it has been sold already.
Mrs Hickey: I have spent a great deal of money on it lately.
Mr HATTON: Yes, we know about the tiles from South Australia.
Mrs Hickey: Absolutely. They were from Victoria actually.
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr HATTON: Mr Speaker, I understand that there is quite an active market. I received a couple of queries from people in Tennant Creek asking whether we would be prepared to release land on to the market. We have been actively discouraged from doing that by the real estate sector in the town because it believes that it would kill off the land market and the housing market in Tennant Creek completely. Tennant Creek is trying to get itself together at the moment and it has been doing so, but we have to be fairly careful about how we go about dealing with these matters. If we try to use a sledgehammer when what is needed is a
Page 92
tack hammer, we will destroy the entire market for everybody, including the value of the member's house.
I will obtain the details for the member, but I am saying to her that she should not push too hard on it. If she is aware of cases where people have particular difficulties in obtaining accommodation in the town, then I ask her to refer those to me and I will address them for her.
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Last updated: 09 Aug 2016