Southern Metropolitan Region
Ryan BATCHELOR (Southern Metropolitan) (12:48): (142) I rise to ask the Minister for Housing whether he can provide an outline of plans to increase the supply of social and affordable housing in the Southern Metropolitan Region. Building more social housing is one of the most important things governments can do to support those who do not have a home of their own. Social housing provides a vital safety net for thousands of Victorians and is essential to a fair and inclusive Victoria. Some of our public housing stock is old and no longer fit for purpose; it needs to be rebuilt. That is exactly what the government is doing in places like Brighton, Prahran, Hampton East and Port Melbourne. Social housing residents should not be denied access to the benefits of new, energy-efficient homes and their cheaper energy bills and homes built to modern accessibility standards, and opposing social housing redevelopment means denying them these rights. Rebuilding social housing also increases the supply of new social housing dwellings. I am a strong supporter of building more social housing right across the Southern Metropolitan Region.