A newly released report by the Auckland Housing Summit reveals the scale of National’s housing crisis, the Green Party said today. New data from Statistics New Zealand has also confirmed the second consecutive quarter that building activity has fallen, with a 0.4 percent fall in residential house-building across New Zealand. “This report reads like a laundry list of things National has done wrong or failed to do,” said Green Party building and housing spokesperson Julie Anne Genter. “The results come...

The Green Party today announced a game-changing plan for public transport in New Zealand, with free fares on buses, trains and commuter ferries for all young people around the country, as well as a commitment to fund and build a congestion-free network in Auckland. The Green Card will provide universal, 24/7, free public transport for everyone under the age of 19, and free off-peak public transport for tertiary students at university, polytechnic, wānanga, private training establishments, and people training through...

The Green Party today announced that it will trial a passenger rail service between Auckland, Hamilton and Tauranga starting in 2019, when it is in government. The passenger rail service will be based on the concept released today by Greater Auckland. It would run five times a day between Hamilton and Auckland, with one return service to Tauranga daily. “National has let regional rail services rust away but the Greens in government will restore rail as the backbone of New...

The Green Party is calling for the West Auckland community to be involved in Watercare’s decision over where a new treatment plant should be located, and an independent ecological assessment of the proposed new site in Titirangi. This follows a decision last week by Watercare to not build the plant in Oratia and to instead look into a plot of land in Titirangi, in the Waitakere Ranges. “Design and placement for new infrastructure like this should involve the community from...

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...