CORONAVIRUS — SOCIAL HOUSING ECONOMIC RECOVERY
PACKAGE
839. Hon STEVE MARTIN to the Leader of the House
representing the Minister for Housing:
I refer to the recently released
Auditor General's report, Roll-out of state COVID-19 stimulus
initiatives.
(1) As of September 30, how much of
the allocated budget had been spent on the following initiatives —
(a) construction of up to 250 social housing dwellings
and purchase of off-the-plan units for supported housing programs;
(b) maintenance programs for 3 800
regional social housing properties;
(c) refurbishment of 1 500 social
housing dwellings; and
(d) deferment of payments and waiving
of interest costs for Keystart customers?
(2) If the full allocated amount has
not been spent for (a) to (d), what is the reason for this?
Hon SUE ELLERY replied:
I thank the honourable member for
some notice of the question.
(1) (a)–(c)
Information contained within the Office of
the Auditor General report is now at least eight months out of date and
the package was never designed to be fully spent or allocated by March 2021.
Maintenance and refurbishment programs require significant planning and in most
cases require relocation of tenants, vacation of the property or significant
disruption to the tenant. The social housing economic recovery package is a targeted
economic and social stimulus measure that is primarily
focused on refurbishment and maintenance of social housing. The program was
designed to support jobs in the WA construction industry over a number
of years, while improving the life span and quality of homes available for
social housing.
As at 30 September 2021, a total of
$68.6 million has been awarded, supporting an estimated 365 jobs and generating approximately $141.8 million in economic
activity, including construction of 62 new homes, worth $18.1 million;
refurbishments of 398 homes, valued at $30 million; and maintenance works on 4 134
regional homes, worth $20.5 million.
A $92.8 million SHERP grants program
is currently open to the community housing sector to deliver new social
housing, refurbish existing ageing social housing, and provide maintenance to remote Aboriginal communities. This grants
program comprises $33 million for approximately 100 community housing
sector new builds, up to $5 million per development; $46.5 million for
approximately 500 community housing sector refurbishments, up to $500 000 per
property; and $13.3 million for remote
Aboriginal community maintenance works, up to $100 000 per property.
(d) From the
onset of the COVID-19 pandemic until September 2021, Keystart waived interest
on 12 loan accounts for a total value of $75
053. Deferral of payments—principal—is not recognised as
a cost, as these amounts are capitalised into the loan balance and repaid over
the remaining term of the loan.
(2) The 2021–22
budget allocated a record $875 million spend in social housing, with a total
investment of $2.1 billion over the next
four years. This includes innovative approaches to delivering more social housing,
including the delivery of modular and pre-fabrication housing, and repurposing
affordable housing in the short term.
As part of the 2021–22 budget
process, the SHERP budget has been re-profiled to provide a sustained pipeline
of work for industry over the next four years. Recent economic stimulus
measures to keep the Western Australian economy strong during the global
pandemic have been highly effective, with around 27 000 homes approved for
construction last financial year, including 4 000 in regional areas. This has supported thousands of additional jobs and is
expected to increase housing supply over the coming months.