Act Party’s deputy leader, speaking in Queenstown recently, says councils need to be incentivised to issue more building consents to encourage more affordable housing.
Brooke van Velden (pictured) — also Act’s housing spokesperson — says that’s the reasoning behind a private member’s Bill she recently introduced to Parliament.
Under the Bill, 50% of the GST cost of a new-build would go to the council that issued the building consent.
Presently, she says councils have no incentive to issue consents as new-builds require more spending on infrastructure.
In Queenstown, Van Velden says more housing’s needed for long-term rentals, short-term rentals, and for owner-occupiers.
Under her GST-sharing scheme, she maintains councils would be delivered $1 billion-plus a year for more infrastructure.
“The only time council is efficient is when they’re issuing a parking ticket, because they know they get money for it.”
Despite support from other parties the Bill didn’t advance as MPs from the majority Labour Party opposed it.
