Ron Mark MP
New Zealand First Deputy Leader
20 AUGUST 2015
Repair Failure Rate So Bad Brownlee Should Go
Minister for Earthquake Recovery Gerry Brownlee must take full responsibility for a 36 per cent failure rate in
earthquake underfloor repairs and resign, says New Zealand First Deputy Leader Ron Mark.
“He is blaming cowboy builders for botched repairs, but it is a monumental fail by the Minister who gave Fletcher
Construction a $1 billion monopoly on repairs to over 50,000 quake-damaged houses. At the time he claimed by
‘centralising management’ this would ‘help reduce the risk of cowboy builders’.
“The Minister allowed a free for all by not putting the checks and balances in place, despite international experts
warning all types of fraud could occur during the earthquake rebuild.
“Parliament was told today by Minister of Justice, Amy Adams, standing in for Mr Brownlee, that structural repairs on a
‘small’ number of homes were non-compliant and would be put right. The Minister claimed that 83 per cent of homeowners
were satisfied with repair work.
“It is not the responsibility of the homeowners, who just want to get back into their home, to climb under the house and
inspect the work for quality and compliance, and nor are they qualified to do so. That is the responsibility of the
Minister’s billion dollar preferred project manager, Fletcher’s, who have failed in an appalling manner to do their
job,” says Mr Mark.
“Given that the ‘small’ number was in fact a third of the houses surveyed by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and
Employment it is concerning and could indicate, if all repaired properties were surveyed, a huge cost to New Zealand
taxpayers to fix up the substandard work.
“Mr Brownlee must go and the Prime Minister must put a competent minister in charge,” says Mr Mark.
ENDS