David Hay praises progress on meth-affected homes

Mayoral candidate David Hay is pleased about the progress being made on a NZ Standard for testing and remediation of methamphetamine contaminated housing.

“This initiative came from the Auckland Regional Methamphetamine Working Group (ARMGW), which Len Brown set up as one of 100 projects in his first 100 days in office.” said Mr Hay.

“Credit must go to Yvonne Powley of Auckland North Community and Development, who chaired that group over a period of years, and also the many people who attended ARMWG meetings to have free and frank discussions about the nature of the meth problems in Auckland and possible solutions to them.”

“I attended some of those meetings in 2013 and 2014, and through hearing discussions around the table, identified that a New Zealand Standard for testing and remediation of meth-affected properties would create greater consistency among meth-testing providers, certainty to the real estate industry, and confidence for home-buyers and tenants.” said Mr Hay.

“Credit is due to Local Government New Zealand, who picked up on the idea and drove it forward. They saw this was an issue for local authorities throughout the country, which required a joint effort at a higher level.”

“I think this is a great example of how stakeholders from the public and private sector, central and local government, can work together to solve difficult public policy issues. It’s about getting around a table together, having the difficult conversations in a respectful and constructive environment, then agreeing on a way forward together.”

“This is how we can, and should, address some of the other big issues that face Auckland – particularly around housing and transport. The work that the current council has done with the Housing Accord, and is now doing with a Transport Accord, are models for the future.”

“The challenge is to expand those conversations beyond just Auckland Council talking to the Government. We need to bring more players from the private sector and the community into those discussions, if we are going to make meaningful progress quickly.” said Mr Hay.

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