KiwiBuild - Labour's latest spectacularly stupid idea.

[Perry]

Any old Joe can buy property at full retail.

Especially when financed from the hapless taxpayers' bottomless pockets.

[Perry]

Budget 2020

The Government is also promising to double its state house building efforts, with 8000 new homes.

10,000 'affordable' houses a year?

Seems they've learned nothing.

[jimO]

Budget 2020



10,000 'affordable' houses a year?

Seems they've learned nothing.

it appeals to the typical labour voter, they have already forgotten about kiwiflop

[flyernzl]

Once again, where are they going to source the necessary manpower and materials?

[Don't believe the Hype]

Manpower will probably be plentiful ... materials might be in short supply.

While they seem to have a short memory on their Kiwibuild disaster 8000 houses over 5 years is far more achievable - even for this bunch of bumbling fools... it's close to 42k houses fewer than their last promised house build over 5 years.

[Perry]

Man/people-power is one thing.
Experience, skills and aptitude are quite another.

[flyernzl]

No doubt they consider that they can hand a redundant AirNZ cabin crew stewardess a nail gun and she can go and competently build a new house.

[donna]

I recall hearing we have a surplus of houses now. Not that we shouldn't be building more but isn't it better for the Gov't to not build and buy the surplus if a lot of it meets their requirements?

Plus is building the right career move for tourism workers? E.g. why does NZTA have to hire hundreds of offshore workers - why not attract more kiwis into infrastructure projects? Also jobs in agriculture, etc but less in primary goods - what about new businesses in high value products made with our primary goods.

cheers,

Donna

[flyernzl]

So many of the proposed jobs - eg possum hunting, weed removal, track building - are not actually viable options for a 45+ year old sedentary office worker.

[Nick G]

I think they have already built 46. It's a start.

[donna]

So many of the proposed jobs - eg possum hunting, weed removal, track building - are not actually viable options for a 45+ year old sedentary office worker.

Agree so they should be innovating, teaming up with people keen to take their products to market - i.e. products from manuka honey, kiwifruit, wools, epicurean products, diary etc. Many have banged on about why we send our primary goods to be turned into products that are then imported back into NZ. Who the hell wants to kill possums or remove weeds! Depressing. It time to reach out to everyone and inspire our no. 8 wire creativity. The Gov't needs to show they are creating think-tanks etc and working with the Chambers of Commerce to really understand what's already in incubation that just needs a nudge etc.

I've never understood why we import so much building material - esp. when it's a product of our primary goods e.g. why do we send our wood to China and Canada to treat and then pay to have it send back to us! I get we need to buy from China in order for them to buy from us etc. but we do so with electronics, clothing and so much more and we need to create sustainable jobs with the raw materials we produce.

cheers,

Donna

[flyernzl]

No Government has a good track record of 'Picking Winners'.

[artemis]

Agree so they should be innovating, teaming up with people keen to take their products to market - i.e. products from manuka honey, kiwifruit, wools, epicurean products, diary etc. ...........

Donna

Paul Henry's telly show Rebuilding Paradise ran a competition for the best 30 second business idea vid. One that made the final 3 (of many) but didn't win was the government using wool insulation in all its buildings, including social housing, to give that industry an immediate boost. We do wool rather well and the government is going to insulate anyway.

Incidentally, the idea that won was a $2000 Air NZ local only travel voucher for each household, expiring in 6 months. The other finalist was for organic skincare. The judge, being a chap though not Mr Henry, might not have realised there are several of these companies here already.

[Wayne]

Budget 2020



10,000 'affordable' houses a year?

Seems they've learned nothing.

Did they say 'affordable houses'?
I thought it was Kainga Ora building them?
They have been quite successful - in the Dec 2019 quarter they added around 400 houses.
Kainga Ora seem to do better than KiwiBuild (which, let's be honest, isn't hard to do).

[Perry]

Did they say 'affordable houses'?

No. State houses. Social [welfare] houses.
They'll be affordable because people will be renting them.
And the gummint will be owning them.
For a while, at least.