Record investment in housing continues to help vulnerable Tasmanians

12 November 2020

Roger Jaensch MP

2020-21 Budget: Record investment in housing continues to help vulnerable Tasmanians

The Tasmanian Liberal Government is rebuilding a stronger Tasmania with our record investment in new social and affordable housing to continue in the 2020-21 State Budget.

Overall the Budget includes more than $300 million to deliver new housing and homelessness initiatives which will help some of our most vulnerable while creating jobs, growing our economy and strengthening our communities in every region.

This includes locking in the $100 million investment announced as part of our construction blitz, which will build up to 1000 new homes over three years with an EOI currently underway. The new homes will be delivered where Tasmanians need them while supporting local economies in their recovery from COVID-19.

It’s a great outcome and forms part of our record investment into infrastructure across the State that will create jobs and opportunities for Tasmanians.

This Budget also includes $16.8 million to extend the Safe Space program as a 24/7 wrap-around service in Burnie, Launceston and Hobart. This will allow the program to run through to June 2022, with over $6 million of this investment used to continue to deliver general health and mental health supports to people experiencing homelessness.

This comprehensive housing package builds on the exceptional work done to date since we commenced our Affordable Housing Strategy by locking in the operating expenditure for key projects and continuing the rollout of the Government’s Second Affordable Housing Action Plan and other Housing Projects, including;

• More than $10 million for a new Hobart Youth foyer, including operating costs;
• More than $22 million for new supported accommodation facilities around Hobart;
• The delivery of the Huntingfield land release project, a subdivision that will provide around 470 residential lots;
• Almost $5 million for a new Launceston Youth at Risk Centre, including operating costs;
• $4 million to expand the Magnolia House Women’s Shelter;
• More than $5 million to expand Thyne House and transition it into a youth foyer model;
• More than $10 million for a new Burnie Youth foyer including operating costs; and
• $2 million to deliver the North West Men’s Shelter.

Overall, our Affordable Housing Strategy has seen more than 2400 households supported into housing that suits their needs. This includes the delivery of nearly 950 social houses, the release of 325 affordable lots of land, 429 households which have be supported into home ownership for the first time, 76 new places of homelessness accommodation and 88 new places for people to access supported accommodation.

The waiver of the Commonwealth Housing Debt will also assist a further 400 households into suitable accommodation including the construction of 300 new social housing dwellings.

The State Budget also allocates $15 million to public housing heating and energy efficiency initiatives to ease the cost of living pressures for tenants, reduce emissions and create jobs. This will include completing the Government’s program of replacing inefficient direct electric and gas heating in all public housing stock with energy efficient heat pumps, where it is appropriate and viable to do so. We will also begin a program to progressively replace existing standard electric hot water systems with new heat pump hot water cylinders.

This is a Budget that invests in Tasmania and provides the certainty and confidence our community needs, and we will continue doing all we can to recover, reinvigorate our economy and rebuild a stronger Tasmania.