The Liberal government's claim that the latest Short Stay accommodation report shows its legislation is working as intended is disingenuous at best in the current circumstances and misses the point that it must act quickly to regulate the short stay accommodation market.
Shadow Minister for Housing, Alison Standen, said not only is the report overdue but the government is using the figures as a smoke screen to avoid action to relieve housing stress.
"It must be remembered that the period covered - January to March - includes only a few weeks' impact from the closure of the state's borders because of COVID-19," Ms Standen said.
"In the following period from April to June we could expect to see even more vacant properties because of the significant drop in visitors to Tasmania.
"That's nothing to with the government's actions on short stay accommodation and everything to do with the impact of COVID-19 on our economy.
"The government has repeatedly ignored calls from Labor to tighten regulations on short stay accommodation and is now seeking to use figures that do not reflect the current reality to justify its inaction on Tasmania's housing crisis.
"We need to see the figures for the period from April to June to get a true picture of the short stay accommodation market during the border closure and I urge the government to release that quarterly report as well.
"With the state's housing waiting list up by more than 60 per cent since 2014 to a record high of more than 3,500 people, the government cannot claim success with any of its housing measures.
"The Liberals cannot continue to ignore the housing crisis in this state. I urge them to take meaningful action to get all Tasmanians into adequate housing.
Alison Standen MP
Shadow Housing Minister
