Aucklanders are the biggest losers in today’s Budget, with nothing new that will fix transport and housing problems in the city, the Green Party said today. “National is either ignoring Auckland or they’re cynically holding back funding to offer later on as an election bribe,” said Green Party Auckland issues spokesperson Julie Anne Genter. “There is nothing in this Budget for the thousands of Aucklanders this afternoon on crowded buses and trains, sitting in gridlock, on their way home to...

After years of denying there is a housing crisis and refusing to see government building as a solution, National’s U-turn today is too little too late, the Green Party said today. “Auckland is already 40,000 homes short and needs 15,000 more a year just to keep up with population growth. National’s new policy to build an additional 26,000 homes over the next decade just isn’t enough to fix the problem,” Green Party Co-leader James Shaw said. “It’s taken until election...

Increased infrastructure spending must focus on the best ways to fix the housing and transport problems in Auckland, not just a few more expensive and ineffective highways, the Green Party said today. “The most serious infrastructure problems Auckland faces are in transport and housing, and National has spent the last nine years showing that they have no idea how to fix either of them,” Green Party Auckland Issues spokesperson Julie Anne Genter said. “The full trains and overflowing buses every...

Plans to sell the Tāmaki Housing Association, possibly to overseas buyers, create uncertainty for thousands of Auckland families who have already had their lives and homes shaken up by the Government’s social housing fiasco, the Green Party said today. “We have a housing crisis and the number one priority should be increasing the supply of affordable, state, and community housing, not selling off social housing services,” said Green Party social housing spokesperson Marama Davidson. “People living in Tāmaki and Glen...

Extreme flooding in Auckland over the weekend shows the urgent need for central government-led investment into aging infrastructure to prepare for more frequent and extreme weather events, the Green Party said today. It has been forecast that the capacity of Auckland's storm water systems may be exceeded more frequently in future because of climate change-induced heavy rainfall events, according to the Ministry for the Environment. “There is a real risk flooding on this scale will happen more frequently if the...

Unaffordable housing is pushing teachers out of Auckland, with grim consequences for schools and students, the Green Party said today. Information released to the Green Party by the Ministry of Education shows the number of teachers leaving Auckland rose from 255 in 2015 to 390 in 2016, and principals and teachers are seriously concerned about the issue. “Teachers work hard and are so important to their communities, they need to be able to afford a home of their own in...

Green Party MP Julie Anne Genter is grateful for having had the opportunity to talk to thousands of Aucklanders about making their city even better and even greener, during the Mt Albert by-election campaign.

Housing Minister Nick Smith is already backtracking on Bill English’s suggestion he’d provide 69,000 homes in Auckland, as house prices continue to skyrocket across the country, the Green Party said today.  “The Government is fudging the numbers to create headlines they can’t back up. Meanwhile, house prices keep rising and not enough are getting built,” Green Party Co-leader Metiria Turei said. “There’s a huge opportunity for the Government to step up and build thousands of affordable homes for people across...

Simon Bridges needs to commit to fully funding light rail to Auckland’s airport and North Shore to break the city’s traffic gridlock, the Green Party said today. A NZ Transport Agency briefing obtained by the Green Party shows the Government is considering fully funding major public transport projects in Auckland as it currently does with major motorway projects. The briefing identified light rail to the airport and North Shore as projects that could be 100 percent funded by central government....

Incoming Prime Minister Bill English should make a commitment to all New Zealanders that he will do what John Key refused to – build more affordable homes, close tax loopholes for property speculators, and end homelessness, the Green Party said today. The median Auckland house now costs $851,944 and the median house price nationwide is now $520,000, a new record high, according to data released today by the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ). “Bill English needs to make...