Mr PALLAS (Tarneit) — I rise to commend the H3 Wyndham  Alliance and the work it does to address the issues of housing, health and homelessness in the Wyndham community.  The  H3  Wyndham   Alliance  is  a   formal  partnership  of   local organisations committed to health,  housing  and  homelessness  in  the  Wyndham municipality.

At a time  when  there are already  over  14  370 people on  the  public housing waiting list  in the north-west region  alone, investment in public  housing and crisis  accommodation is critical. I know there are people in my  community  who have been waiting for over a decade for the housing support they are entitled to and who are only able to have roofs over their heads because of the tireless and generous efforts  of  member organisations of the H3 alliance. This is a problem that will only get worse as communities continue to grow.

The population of the city of Wyndham alone is growing at a rate of 8.8 per cent a year.

While many groups within my community and across Victoria are working to support vulnerable Victorians,  the state government  is not. The  government  must take action to help vulnerable Victorians find a place  to live by increasing funding for public housing,  crisis accommodation and support programs. The government’s failure to invest in public housing stock at a time  when  Victoria’s population is increasing is short sighted and the decision needs to be reviewed.

See Tim’s speech in Hansard here.