Four new Special Housing Areas (SHAs) approved by the Government under the Queenstown-Lakes Housing Accord will enable much needed housing for the district, Building and Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith says.

“These four new SHAs fast-track the zoning of 40 hectares of land to residential and provide the potential for 490 homes. This additional capacity is essential for Queenstown’s thriving tourism industry, which needs more housing for its growing workforce,” Dr Smith says.

Building activity in Auckland has topped an all-time high of $6 billion per year, Building and Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith and Auckland Mayor Len Brown said today in releasing the latest Auckland Housing Accord monitoring report.

Claims by the Green Party on contaminated sites expenditure expose how poorly they understand economics, Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith says.

“Their claim the Government has underspent on contaminated sites clean-up by $32.6 million involves basic accounting errors that raise serious questions about their economic competence.

A 196-home development on surplus Crown land in Massey East with Fletcher Residential has been signed today by Building and Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith.

“This agreement will enable this 9.2 hectare block of former Ministry of Education land in Moire Road to be developed into a mix of 196 detached, terraced and duplex homes. A 30 per cent portion, or 59 homes, will be made available for social housing.

A $300 million, 600-home development on 40 hectares of Riccarton Racecourse land can proceed following today’s passage of special legislation through its third reading, Building and Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith says.

“Increasing supply is the most important component of the Government’s programme to address New Zealand’s housing issues. We need to take every opportunity to facilitate new housing, particularly those developments that offer more affordable housing close to our city centres.

Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith is welcoming the addition of real-time air quality data to the Land Air Water Aotearoa (LAWA) website.

“Air quality in New Zealand has improved significantly due to tighter regulation of home heating, vehicle fuels, car exhaust systems and industrial discharges. However, we still have areas where particulate pollution exceeds World Health Organisation standards, particularly on still nights in winter.

The importation of asbestos-containing products is to be banned, Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith announced today.

“Exposure to asbestos poses a risk of respiratory disease and is the single biggest cause of work-related fatalities, at 170 per year. The importation of raw asbestos is already banned but we are now extending this prohibition to items which contain asbestos, with a few exceptions,” Dr Smith says.

The need for reform of the Resource Management Act (RMA) is highlighted by today’s release of the National Monitoring System data, Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith says.

Te Whangai Trust from Waikato has today been announced as the Supreme Winner of the 2016 Green Ribbon Awards.

Now in their 26th year, the Green Ribbon Awards recognise exceptional environmental achievements by individuals and organisations around New Zealand. 

The Awards were presented at a Parliamentary function today, co-hosted by Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith and Conservation Minister Maggie Barry.

The Government welcomes the Green Party’s interest in cleaning up New Zealand’s lakes and rivers and the goal of ensuring all New Zealanders have access to swimmable water, Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith says.

The Government will contribute $4.2 million to meet half the costs of the remedial works required to clean-up the Calwell Slipway site at Port Nelson, Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith announced today.

The Government’s proposed National Policy Statement on Urban Development Capacity will require councils to ensure land supply for housing and business keeps pace with growth, Environment, Building and Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith says.

The Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill passed unanimously by Parliament today requiring smoke alarms and insulation in rental properties will save 1000 lives during the next decade, Building and Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith says.

“This important bill will make homes warmer, drier and safer for tens of thousands of tenants without imposing unreasonable costs. It will also help housing supply by enabling quicker turnaround of abandoned tenancies and enable the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) to enforce housing standards against slum landlords.

Building activity has hit an 11-year high, with consents issued for more than 28,000 new dwellings in the year to April, Building and Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith says.

Statistics New Zealand data released today shows 28,038 consents were issued, up 12 per cent from 25,068 in the previous year and more than double the 13,236 five years ago.

Thousands of tonnes of food which is wasted every year could be greatly reduced under a national education campaign with the help of $460,000 of Government funding, Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith announced today.

A report on reform of the Unit Titles Act by a group of professionals involved with bodies corporate has been welcomed by Building and Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith.

“This is a thoughtful report and proposes changes to make our property law around higher density housing work better. It is particularly important as apartments and townhouses become a more popular choice and an increasing share of the housing market in cities such as Auckland.

A new fund of $100 million of operating funding over 10 years will support initiatives to clean up New Zealand’s rivers, lakes and aquifers, Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith says.

“There are significant costs for councils and landowners in meeting the Government’s new national standards for freshwater. This new contestable fund of $100 million will help communities improve water quality standards.”

Housing development on surplus Crown land in Auckland is receiving a $100 million boost in Budget 2016, Building and Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith says.

“This capital funding will add momentum to the programme of using public land for increasing the supply of housing. The programme’s goal is to increase the pace of housing development and to put a greater focus on bringing more affordable housing to the market.

The Government’s building programme remains on track and there will be a smooth transition from Special Housing Areas (SHAs) to Auckland’s Unitary Plan, Building and Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith says.

“There has been concern from some developers in SHAs that the fast-track processes for plan variations will not be available after 16 September, and there are calls for a legislative extension.

Changes to New Zealand’s tenancy laws requiring all tenanted properties to have smoke alarms and to be insulated passed unanimously through the committee stages of Parliament today.

Building and Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith said the Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill will require all rental properties to have smoke alarms by 1 July 2016 and be insulated by 1 July 2019.

Negotiations have concluded on three sites in Auckland, paving the way for the development of an estimated 740 new homes, Building and Housing Minister Nick Smith announced today.

The agreements are part of a programme announced in last year’s Budget which aims to free up surplus Crown land to boost the supply of houses in Auckland.

“The successful conclusions of negotiations on purchasing these three sites, with a capacity for 740 homes, is a significant step forward for the programme,” Dr Smith says.

A Colmar Brunton poll showing 89 per cent of New Zealanders support the proposed new sanctuary around the Kermadec Islands reinforces the wide mandate for progressing this ocean protection initiative, Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith says.

“This 89 per cent level of support for the Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary, which was announced by Prime Minister John Key last year, is phenomenal and the highest I can recall for any political issue in a Colmar Brunton poll. It shows this initiative connects with New Zealand’s core values.

The new position by the Labour opposition calling for an abolition of city limits has been welcomed by Building and Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith.

“This is a welcome repositioning by Labour. Tight city limits and not allowing intensification is at the core of Auckland’s housing problems. It is limiting new housing developments, driving up section and house prices and encouraging land banking.

Progress is being made in tackling Queenstown’s housing shortage, with the second monitoring report showing the local council has more than met its first-year consents target, Building and Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith says.

Dr Smith and Queenstown Mayor Vanessa van Uden today released the second Queenstown-Lakes District Housing Accord monitoring report, which showed 557 dwelling and section consents were issued between October 2014 and September 2015 – 60 percent more than the target of 350.