PUBLIC HOUSING — CITY OF GREATER GERALDTON
386. Dr D.J. HONEY to the Minister for Housing:
Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. I will definitely ask a supplementary
question.
Is it the minister's position that all 130 homes that
are boarded up in Geraldton are not wanted; or is it also the case that the
minister's maintenance budget for those homes is simply inadequate?
Mr J.N. CAREY
replied:
No. Did I make that claim
just then? I do not think I did. I find that extraordinary. The reality is that
we have made significant investments. In fact, as part of our economic recovery
program, we are investing $319 million specifically for the social
refurbishment of ageing stock. I have to say, the other challenge we faced was
the collapse of Pindan Group. It was this government's prudent
approach, despite the reckless calls for termination by the Nationals WA in
opposition, that saw the continuation of maintenance of priority one and two
jobs. Because we stayed the course and because we were not reckless, we were
able to maintain that maintenance contract, which will now ensure that further
refurbishment works can be undertaken.
I am very confident about the future of Spalding. I am going
to work with the City of Greater Geraldton on this matter. I want to make it an
attractive place to live, but again, there is no point refurbishing homes if
they are not in an attractive place to live. That is the difficulty we face
with Spalding. We have to face some misconceptions about that suburb, but I am
confident that we, along with the City of Greater Geraldton, can deliver good
outcomes.