Jenny Leong MP, Member for Newtown and NSW Greens spokesperson on Housing and Homelessness has slammed the NSW Liberal/National Government’s 2021 budget which demonstrates they have no plan to end the housing and homelessness crisis for people across NSW even though they have the money and the solutions to do so.

“Today the NSW Liberal Treasurer said it was his job to imagine a ‘better future for everyone’, and yet there is no vision in this budget for a better future for those suffering housing stress, languishing on the public housing waiting list or seeking to find affordable places to live. 

“Yet again, the NSW Liberal National Coalition has made a choice to ignore the massive, and ever-growing, housing inequality in this state by instead choosing to announce some small scale measures and spin them as a good news story.

The decision by Housing Minister Melinda Pavey to commit to 100% social housing in the redevelopment at Cowper St and Wentworth Park Road in Glebe is a huge win by the community and a welcome change but there’s far more to be done, say NSW Greens MPs, Jamie Parker and Jenny Leong.

The NSW Liberal National government is planning to demolish and privatise the public housing estate in South Eveleigh on Explorer St and Aurora Place. 

Residents will be forced to relocate while high density housing is built on this site that will contain up to 70% private housing.

Currently there are 46 town houses on the site housing families and larger households. The plan is to increase the number of dwellings to 430 and make 70% of these private housing with only 30% public housing. This may also end up reducing the actual amount of public housing on the site as 3 and 4 bedroom homes are being replaced by 1 and 2 bedroom units.

Public land should not be given to private developers. We are facing an acute affordable housing crisis with some 50,000 eligible applications for public housing on the NSW waiting list with delays of up to 10 years for housing.

Communities in Glebe are facing a similar situation with the public housing estate in Franklin Street up for demolition and 70% privitisation as well. 

Join the gathering and BBQ to keep public housing in public hands! 

Save South Eveleigh Public Housing BBQ
Saturday February 13 from 12-2pm
South Sydney Rotary Park 

Share this Facebook event 

Co hosted by Jenny Leong MP and the Friends of Erskineville (FOE)

More Information: 

Read our media statement on this and the proposal in Glebe

Read the Resolution from the South Eveleigh Community meeting of Dec 2020

Sign the Friends of Erskineville and Hands Off Glebe petition to the Housing Minister 

Read Jenny Leong MP's Notice of Motion in the NSW Parliament 

Local residents and community members in Eveleigh unanimously rejected the NSW Government's plan to redevelop the Explorer Street public housing estate at a community online meeting led by Jenny Leong MP, Member for Newtown and Greens NSW spokesperson on Housing. The meeting opposed the plan to use this site to create a large number of high density private dwellings with a small increase in public housing and affordable dwellings.

The following resolution was passed on Dec 8, 2020: 

This meeting of residents expresses its opposition to the proposed demolition and rebuilding of the social housing units at Explorer Street in Eveleigh.

We believe public land should be used exclusively for social and affordable housing. These projects won’t address the social housing shortage in the inner city, they are out of keeping with the low-rise character of Eveleigh and they will displace residents for years.

We call on the NSW Government to:

1. Abandon their proposal to knock-down and rebuild this estate.
2. Develop a comprehensive plan to fund a significant increase in social housing construction in NSW and significant maintenance works to ensure every home is in good, liveable condition.

Jenny Leong MP gave a Notice of Motion raising questions about the redevelopment of public housing in Eveleigh and calling for improved and increased public, social and affordable housing on public land. 

This year’s budget was an opportunity for the NSW government to deliver major investment in social and affordable housing to address the urgent need for homes that people can afford especially at this time as we face the social and economic impacts of Covid in the coming year. 

Unfortunately the Treasurer has not delivered any significant funds, plans or strategies to deal with the growing crisis in housing in NSW. This is in stark contrast to the $5.2b that the Victorian government committed to spend on the development of some 12,000 public housing dwellings in the next 4 years.

There is $110m this year to provide upgrades and maintenance to social housing properties, including properties managed by Community Housing Providers and this figure includes funds to provide jobs for this work.

This is important funding as it’s vital to address the chronic neglect of maintenance in the government’s social housing stock. However this funding does not address the urgent need to build and develop many more dwellings that people can afford to live in during 2020-2021.

The allocation of $182.9 million for the construction and acceleration of new social housing properties across NSW by the Land and Housing Corporation and the claim that this will result in an addition 1300 new social housing dwellings, is not adequate. 

This will not produce homes for the more than 100,000 people on the social housing waiting list now or the many more who will need social housing as the economic situation worsens in the next 12 months as a result of Covid.

Just $17.3m has been allocated to funding Aboriginal housing for only 53 new homes in regional and metro locations. Included in this allocation is support for Aboriginal employment in the construction and trade industry.

The lack of social and affordable Aboriginal housing is severe and will not be solved by this small funding package.  

$14.4 million has been allocated to support the Aboriginal Community Housing (ACHP) sector to undertake maintenance, roof restoration/replacements, air conditioning and solar power installation, and construct granny flats and extensions to improve living conditions for Aboriginal people in NSW.

Compared to the $100m allocation for sports infrastructure in NSW, these budget allocations are shamefully inadequate in addressing the urgent housing needs of Aboriginal people in NSW.

The support for homelessness services in this budget is welcome. The $291.8 million to deliver a range of specialist homelessness services across New South Wales is crucially important given the predicted rise in those experiencing homelessness as a result of the impacts of the pandemic and is testament to the positive work done by peak homelessness and housing bodies throughout the pandemic. 

For those hoping to buy a home, the Treasurer’s statements on a potential transition away from the current transfer duty and land tax system should mean that purchasing a home is more affordable for first home buyers into the future. 

The NSW Government has announced plans to redevelop and expand the social housing dwellings on Explorer Street and Aurora Place in South Eveleigh.

Jenny Leong MP issued a media release regarding this announcement and commented, 

"As the impact of the pandemic is growing daily, we need to ask why the NSW Liberal National government is still selling us all short by planning to privatise 70% of these redevelopments which are on valuable public land.

We are holding a community meeting on Tuesday 8th December from 6pm - 7pm

We are keen to hear your thoughts on this proposal and to share our concerns about the planned redevelopment.

Register here to attend this Zoom community meeting. 

Details of this proposal and links to the Land and Housing Corporation information webinars as well as feedback options can be found here.

We have been informed by the Land and Housing Corporation that:

• the planning process will take some two years, after which residents will be given at least 6 months notice of any requirements to relocate temporarily.
• that all current residents will have the right to return to live on this site in the proposed redeveloped dwellings.
  
  

Our post Covid economic recovery should include large scale investment in social and affordable housing.  NSW can fast track building infrastructure that will provide a buffer to the most disadvantaged in the post Covid economic and social downturn by building and renovating homes that people can afford.

A state led affordable housing boost will support the construction industry by building urgently needed social and affordable housing, not fast-tracking private developer projects with no positive community outcomes.

Social and affordable housing should be funded as urgent infrastructure with government investment providing a safeguard against increasing social disadvantage.

We believe that the following initiatives will ensure that housing is affordable, sustainable and available to those who need it and are most impacted by the economic downturn facing us all. 

• Large scale investment in building social and affordable housing including 30,000 social homes per year for 10 years

• 100% social and affordable housing on public land - reject Communities Plus   housing formula and audit all available state land and properties

• No sell off of public land or public housing

• Councils to be funded to fast track Local Housing Strategies and Affordable Housing Policies to prioritise and maximise affordable housing

• Mandate 30% affordable housing on private housing developments

• End no grounds evictions and provide post Covid rent relief funding and continued moratorium on evictions with no arrears debt. 

• Housing First approach to homelessness with no limit on temporary accommodation and increase in funding for specialist services and support.

• Zero emissions housing and retrofitting of existing housing 
• Reform private student accommodation and build-to-rent planning instruments 

NSW has a large social and affordable housing deficit with a 10 year waiting list for social housing. 

The recent Equity Economics report commissioned by NCOSS,  “A Wave of Disadvantage across NSW: Impact of the Covid-19 Recession” offers some extremely concerning statistics including a 24% increase in families experiencing housing stress and the same increase statewide in individuals experiencing homelessness with some regions in the state experiencing a 40% increase. 

The Anglicare Rental Affordability Update from August this year indicated that ‘renters are on the frontline of the Coronavirus pandemic.’ The findings show that a person who is unemployed can only afford 1% percent of rentals – and that’s with the increased Job Seeker payments. With Job Seeker reduced, affordable rental availability will plummet with only 13 rental listings out of 77,000 being affordable. 

Everybody’s Home is calling for 500,000 social and affordable homes nationally by 2026 and 5,000 social homes per year for 10 years in NSW. 

The government’s announcement of two social housing redevelopments in Glebe and Eveleigh are designed to open up valuable public land to private development rather than to maximize the development of new social and affordable housing says NSW Greens MPs, Jenny Leong and Jamie Parker.

The NSW government released a discussion paper in May 2020 on a Housing Strategy for NSW. Jenny Leong MP, NSW Greens spokesperson on Housing and Jamie Parker MP, NSW Greens spokesperson on Planning made a submission on behalf of the NSW Greens. The following is an extract from this submission. 

As a matter of protocol and a mark of respect, we acknowledge it always was and always will be Aboriginal land and pay our respects to Aboriginal elders past, present and emerging.

We also submit that ‘A Housing Strategy for NSW’ must prioritise ensuring Aboriginal housing needs are met along the housing continuum. This means resourcing Aboriginal-led homelessness services, supporting Aboriginal-led community housing providers, pro-actively involving Aboriginal-led organisations in the development and implementation of this strategy and recognising through reparation that the land that is the focus of this strategy is stolen land that was never ceded.

Our Recommendations:

• Incorporate plans for genuine consultation and input from Aboriginal-led organisations both in the development and implementation of the NSW Housing Strategy
  
  
• Recognise the need for reparations given that the land all of this housing will be delivered on is stolen land
  
  
• Ensure adequate resourcing and support for Aboriginal-led homelessness and housing services as well as community housing providers
  
  
• Identify housing as a key component of the State’s infrastructure priorities
  
  
• Establish an integrated Housing portfolio in NSW with a single Minister who has responsibility across private, public, community and rental housing areas, combined with the establishment of a Housing Ombudsman
  
  
• Incorporate specific actions to progress protections for renters and advance rental reforms which enable security of tenure, affordability and habitability for renters in to the NSW Housing Strategy
  
  
• Commit to large scale government development and provision of public, social and affordable housing as housing options for a range of tenants with varying incomes
  
  
• Mandate 30% affordable housing in new private rental housing developments
  
  
• Commit to ending homelessness and ensure there are no exits to homelessness from state institutions or as a result of family violence or economic disadvantage
  
  
• Recognise the climate crisis as a key driver for strong action in the housing strategy and include actions to progress zero emissions sustainable housing and large scale retrofitting of existing homes.