The government has broken its flagship election promise on Kiwibuild and the Housing Minister should resign, National Party leader Simon Bridges says.
A question mark hangs over a core plank of KiwiBuild - with the government refusing to guarantee its promise to build 100,000 houses over 10 years.
Simon Bridges Photo: RNZ / Ana Tovey
Housing Minister Phil Twyford announced a recalibration of the policy in January, after conceding it would miss its short-term targets. So far about 80 houses have been built.
At the time, he said the long-term 100-thousand house target, announced in 2012, would stay.
But questioned in Parliament yesterday, neither Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern nor Mr Twyford would repeat that commitment, saying the public would have to wait for the outcome of the review in June.
"We are working through our KiwiBuild re-set. When we have completed that we will be making announcements in due course" Ms Ardern said.
Mr Twyford was asked yesterday whether he would drop the target. "The target hasn't gone, we're working through the reset," he said, but refused to recommit to the target "because we haven't announced the results of the reset".
"It's a big broken promise" - Simon Bridges
"It was really Labour's number one flagship promise," Mr Bridges told Morning Report
"It was the big bold thing they were delivering.
"I'm absolutely certain it is a broken promise and half way through their term it is gone."
Mr Bridges said if the target did go, Mr Twyford should resign.
"Something will need to happen to show that for their massive promises, that were a huge part of their campaign, just hasn't been met."