Bipartisan housing accord blame game

Some suburban residents in cities like Christchurch have fiercely opposed housing density rules. (Image: Christchurch city council)

Oliver Lewis

Fri, 07 Jul 2023

After the National party backed out of a bipartisan housing accord, the opposition and the government are blaming each other for failing to reach a new compromise.When it was announced in October 2021, National’s current deputy leader, Nicola Willis, said the Medium-Density Residential Standards (MDRS) would make it easier to build new housing.“Labour and National are standing together to say an emphatic 'yes to housing in our backyards',” she said, riffing on the Nimby (not in my backyard) tag commonly applied to oppo...

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