Opposition candidate says State does little for Carnarvon social housing, but minister says that’s misleading

The Nationals candidate for the upcoming North West Central by-election has slammed the State Government for doing little to repair social housing properties in Carnarvon, but the housing minister has bit back at those “misleading” claims. Merome Beard said overcrowding was contributing to crime and antisocial behaviour in Carnarvon and she bemoaned a lack of government assistance. She said instead of wanting to go home to a dysfunctional environment, many young people in the town instead walked the streets, causing a spike in antisocial behaviour and an unprecedented crime wave. “Just one example is where the State Government has turned its back on Carnarvon, doing little to repair 43 social housing properties which are vacant and not replacing properties scheduled for demolition,” she said. “Given the State-wide rental vacancy rate is just above 1 per cent, to have nearly 14 per cent of Carnarvon’s public housing stock not available is an absolute disgrace.” Housing Minister John Carey accused the Opposition of using incorrect information to mislead the community. He said they were “not comparing apples to apples”. Mr Carey said only two social housing properties were not to be made available as they had been identified for demolition or redevelopment. “As at July 31, 43 social housing properties in the Shire of Carnarvon are vacant while undergoing, or scheduled for, maintenance repairs or refurbishments, or awaiting acceptance of offers from applicants, and will be returned to social housing stock once complete,” he said. “Vacancy numbers are always a single point in time number that fluctuates for a range of reasons.”