Wednesday, 22 March 2023

 Roma BRITNELL (South-West Coast) (14:39): (90) My constituency question is to the Minister for Housing, and the information I seek is details of South-West Coast’s public housing maintenance backlog and the steps that are being taken to employ local tradespersons to complete the maintenance. I am alarmed at the number of frustrated public housing residents contacting my office to raise their concerns about delayed maintenance of their homes and the limited communication they receive from the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing advising them when the tradespeople will be coming. It is not acceptable for public housing residents to have to wait two years for mould to be removed or heaters repaired. It is not acceptable for a public housing resident to have to wait months for a leaking tap to be fixed. It is not acceptable for a Geelong-based tradesperson to be servicing public housing properties in Portland and to be dispatched only when a week full of work is scheduled, with no notice provided to the resident – and if the resident is not home when the tradesperson arrives they miss out until the next scheduled visit. This is the reality for people in public housing from a non-caring government – a government that says one thing and then does another.