Reprinted from ABC News online Thu 22 Aug 2013
Western Australia’s peak housing advocacy organisation wants the State Government to scrap its policy of evicting public housing tenants for minor disturbances.
Shelter WA is urging the Housing Minister Bill Marmion to abandon the policy of evicting tenants for minor disturbances such as excessive noise, minor property damage or domestic disputes.
More than 120 tenants have been evicted under the so-called ‘three-strikes’ policy since its introduction in 2011.
Shelter’s executive officer Chantal Roberts says councils can resolve noise disputes, but by threatening people living in public housing with eviction, tenants are being held to an unreasonable standard.
She says many of the complaints do not justify eviction.
“What our report is asking for is those minor criteria – such as children being overly noisy – to be removed, because they don’t exist in the private sector,” she said. Continue reading