The Crisis of Housing Delivery: Citizens Deserve More Than Announcements

GOOD Speech delivered during the interpellation debate on the release of land and the lack of progress thereof by Brett Herron, GOOD Secretary-General & Member of the Western Cape Parliament:

Interpellation response 1:

Honourable Speaker,

The reason for this interpellation is two-fold.

Firstly, it is to highlight that repeatedly making the same announcements about social and affordable housing is a ruse to give people the impression that there is progress when there is none.

And secondly, to underscore that even if the province was serious about developing affordable housing, releasing land is the first of many steps required before houses are actually built. At the current rate of progress, citizens in desperate need of shelter will likely remain without proper homes for decades.

The hundreds of thousands of people waiting for dignified housing in this province attest to the cynicism of our MEC’s new T-shirts proclaiming, “FOR YOU”.

If the provincial cabinet were for poorer citizens, too, it would have a strategy and plan to address a critical housing shortage that is the province’s greatest existential crisis.

Let us examine the announcements that the province and its step-sister, the City of Cape Town, keep presenting as progress.

What exactly does the land “identification process” entail?

It appears to be about simply identifying parcels of land previously identified for housing, rebranding, and re-announcing them.

It is also about reading through existing plans, picking out the best parts, and presenting it as something new.

Every site that this government has suddenly started “releasing” for affordable housing is land that was identified in 2011 in the City Centre Regeneration Plan.

The groundwork was done, and then the province did nothing for 15 years.

The same goes for the City.  Every parcel of land announced for affordable housing over the past year was previously announced in 2017.

Roeland Street Fruit and Veg site was announced in 2017, reannounced in 2022, and then reannounced in 2024.

It would be comical if it weren’t so painfully cynical.

Instead of accelerating delivery, what we have are repackaging exercises

So, the question is: where is the progress?

Releasing land is not delivery.

Announcing land is not housing.

Identifying land is not justice.

The real work begins after the announcement, when bulk infrastructure must be installed, when communities must be meaningfully engaged, when planning approvals must be expedited, and when actual homes must be built.

That is the difficult part.

That is the part that changes lives.

And that is precisely where this government is falling short. Housing delivery has declined alarmingly.

If we are serious about being a province that works for all its people, then we must move beyond PR that sells and re-sells rebranded plans. We must focus on implementation, on accountability, and on measurable outcomes.

Because the people of this province do not need more announcements. They need homes.

Interpellation response 2:

Honourable Speaker,

Thank you for the response, though it sadly reinforces the very concerns I raised in my initial statement.

If we turn to page 457 of the 2026 Budget, we are presented with what is described as a “robust” and “exciting” social housing pipeline.

On paper, it is impressive. It suggests movement, ambition, and scale.

But in the same breath it makes it clear that there is no funding to actually implement this pipeline – no funding to build the social housing our residents so desperately need.

So, what exactly are we looking at here?

We are told that land is being released at speed. We are presented with parcels of land that have been identified, repackaged, and announced as progress.

But what is the model underpinning the approach? How does it benefit citizens to hear about land releases devoid of credible funding plans to develop them.

Land without housing is not delivery, it is political manipulation and delay.

What we see is a growing gap between what is announced and what is achievable.

With every announcement of land released for mixed uses – including affordable and social housing – we add to an impressive social housing pipeline that, without funding, is in reality an empty packet.

The 2026-27 Budget tells us that we have 3900 “new social housing rental units” in the Western Cape Government pipeline and 1400 “new social housing rental units” in the City of Cape Town’s Mayoral Land Release Programme.

But as the Infrastructure committee heard none of these are funded by the Consolidated Capital Grant – and until they are they cannot proceed.

A pipeline without funding is not a plan, it is a wish list.

It raises a fundamental question: are we building homes, or are we building headlines?

Because communities cannot live in announcements.

They cannot raise their families on identified parcels of land.

If anything, making the same announcements on repeat risks deepening frustration and eroding public trust. People are told that progress is being made, yet their lived reality remains unchanged.

Our government has a number of realities staring them in the face: growing housing demand and a crisis of affordability.

Releasing land to the market solves neither.

Instead of focusing on the rapid release of more and more land, this government should be investing its time and energy in developing a clear and credible framework that ensures that every parcel of land released is matched with funding, planning, and a realistic timeline for delivery.

Our MEC for Finance announced the establishment of a Provincial Alternative and Blended Finance Reserve.  R518 million has been set aside for this funding source over the MTEF.

Unfortunately, there was no mention of this Reserve being used to fund or finance the development of Housing.

Once again, instead of being innovative, as the Western Cape claims to be, it will blame National Government for not fully funding its housing needs – a concurrent mandate. Yet it will happily spend billions on a failed policing plan – which is not its mandate.

A more honest and intelligent government would understand the links between undignified social environments and anti-social behaviour and get building.

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