Jenny Salesa –
I had the pleasure of attending the Fifth Annual Indian Newslink Sir Anand Satyanand Lecture at Pullman Hotel Auckland on Monday, July 27, 2015.
The Lecture threw a spotlight onto the role of women in governance and the supporting discussions were thought-provoking about harnessing the power of women for the benefit of New Zealand.
Congratulations, Indian Newslink, for your initiative in establishing this Lecture series.
Soaring House Prices
In my electorate, housing continues to be a huge issue, as it is throughout Auckland.
It is getting harder and harder for young couples to buy their first home, with the average price of $855,672 for a house.
Private rentals are increasingly expensive. Recent figures show the median weekly rental for a three-bedroom home in Papatoetoe as $460 and in Otahuhu and Otara it is $435.
State housing is scarce, social housing is around 98% full in South Auckland. Many homes are cold, leaky and damp, and we are informed that such houses are contributing to poor health and winter sickness.
Pathetic conditions
My fellow Labour MPs in South Auckland and I recently hosted a housing meeting in Otara. I was keen to get a handle on what conditions were like for constituents and to offer help where I could. In spite of dreadful weather, many families and constituents came out to bravely share the problems and housing issues that they have experienced.
My Electorate Office saw over 60 cases in the span of two weeks. Many of the families lived in cold, leaking and damp houses causing health problems. Others reported constant mould; mice, rats or cockroaches; or neglected maintenance.
I am pleased to say that Housing New Zealand has worked hard on the cases that my office brought to their attention and has sorted most of them in an efficient manner.
Useful websites
Keep your house warm, dry and healthy and save money on your power bill.
EECA Energywise (http://bit.ly/1M5Vhqv) and the Ministry of Social Development (http://bit.ly/1SyYH8V) have websites with tips and tricks; Housing New Zealand offices have a brochure with good ideas. For example:
Draw your curtains in the evening to keep the daytime heat inside the house
Open the windows to let moisture out after cooking, showering or doing the dishes
Open the windows and doors for a little bit each day, even in winter, to get rid of moisture
Put your heater on a timer rather than have it running all the time
If your house is draughty, use draught stopping tape around windows and doors and put door snakes or even towels along the bottom of doors to retain heat
Do not use portable gas heaters; these increase moisture in your home and can be expensive to run
Free Insulation
If you own your own home or are privately renting in the Counties Manukau District Health Board area, you might qualify for free insulation.
The DHB runs a ‘Warm-Up Manukau’ scheme for low-income, high-health-need families.
Call (09) 262 9583 or email warmup@CMDHB.org.nz for an application form or further information.
Malo ‘aupito
Jenny Salesa is elected Member of Parliament from Manukau East. She is the Labour Party Spokesperson for Employment, Skills and Training. Phone: (09) 2749231 or (09) 2789972 Email: jenny.salesa@parliament.govt.nz
Photo :
Jenny Salesa with her Parliamentary colleagues and other guests at the Fifth Annual Indian Newslink Sir Anand Satyanand Lecture held at Pullman Hotel on July 27, 2015 (Picture by Narendra Bedekar)
