Goff still renting out Wellington apartment

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Thu, 16 Dec 2010 6:00p.m.

The apartment building where the property is located

The apartment building where the property is located

By Duncan Garner / 3news.co.nz staff

National says Labour leader Phil Goff has a lot of explaining to do over his use of the Parliamentary housing allowance.

3 News has discovered Mr Goff has not sold his Wellington apartment, like he said he would 18 months ago during Labour's sustained attack on Finance Minister Bill English's housing rort.

Mr Goff wasn't living in the apartment then. He still doesn't - he rents it out, and claims up to $28,000 a year from the taxpayer to live elsewhere in Wellington.

But he pledged to sell the apartment in 2009 - to get rid of the perception of double dipping.

"The flat is currently tenanted and I plan to sell it," said Mr Goff at the time.

But Mr Goff has not listed it for sale - he's looking for tenants. It's currently being advertised at $380 a week.

3 News asked Mr Goff what's happened to his promise to sell it.

"I'm negotiating with two people… I'm trying," he told us.

The man Mr Goff is using to find tenants is Paul Grant, who works in Mr Goff's office.

3 New went undercover to check out the apartment. Mr Grant never told us it was being sold - in fact, he talks about a six-month lease, at least.

National says Mr Goff shouldn't be using a taxpayer-funded staff member to manage his private business.

"He is the person doing it as a friend, and not in paid time," says Mr Goff.

Mr Goff isn't the only one in Parliament to own an apartment in Wellington and not live it - and it doesn't break the rules.

In a statement Mr Goff says a real estate agent has viewed the property and he intends to sell it at some stage.

"When I ceased to be a minister following the 2008 election, I could not move back into my property because it was tenanted. I instead moved into a rental property," he says.

"I have been exploring the options of renting and selling the property, with the help of a friend, who also works in the Labour leader’s office. He has been helping me in a personal capacity."

But right now it's pretty clear Mr Goff doesn't want to live in it, and he's still looking for tenants.

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Comments

04 May 2011 01:03p.m.

johnmillan wrote:

roge and terry,and Yuri,well done too you all.Those Nat supporters are just like the Nat leader,sour bitter little brats when things dont go his way,Yes Roge Lambton quay has terrible coffe,most suitable for crawling Ba----rds

20 Dec 2010 03:26p.m.

Pete wrote:

The issue isn't the fact they have the apartments and rent them out. Its allowed by the rules of parliment, the fact the rules need to be changed is without question. The issue is he lied, how hard is it to stick an apartment on trademe. $1 reserve, proceeds to charity... As for the rubbish about 'its his retirement fund' good god hes a politician! Hes screwing the taxpayer over as it is! I suppose you people want them to get a payrise to compensate them for the loss of perks when the travel allowance is stripped from them?

19 Dec 2010 10:59a.m.

Brent wrote:

I read national did this 18 mouths ago, Leading to Phils lead by example speech were he said To his supporters and trying to pick up more support I will sell My property Because this is not right. Still cant find the latest on more Nats doing it, Even red alert and the standard have missed this.

18 Dec 2010 08:45p.m.

Ellie wrote:

Simply put, given the real estate market and the current economic climate.. anyone expecting a quick sale of an inner city apartment is just a loon.

I believe from other stories that I have read that there are other Ministers in the same position, both from National and Labour.

Time for some kiddies to grow up and realise that selling an inner city apartment isnt going to happen in the medium or short term.

17 Dec 2010 09:31p.m.

Brent wrote:

Hey Yuri where's this story because I cant find it. But the point is Phil Goff's done nothing wrong legally, Only morally, But we have come to no labour has no morals. Funny thing is hes only crapped on his own voters, he can fix this, In your own words Phil we should be setting the standards, Pay it back morally

17 Dec 2010 06:56p.m.

Yuri wrote:

New news story, it was released today that three national Ministers are in the same position as Goff.

So to summarise, 1 Labour thief... Three National Thieves.

Well done, Hypocrites.

17 Dec 2010 05:37a.m.

Steve wrote:

Phil Goff (Phil Goof) needs to stay on as leader of Labour. Why? With him as leader National will stay running this show and National doing a good job!

17 Dec 2010 01:08a.m.

cyril wrote:

Kim Kim Kim you are blinded by the Labour light. It is not that he owns an apartment in Wellington that is the problem, it is the fact that he uses taxpayers money to rent a property in Wellington when he already has somewhere to live there. That is the problem. Phil has been in politics long enough to know that people who live in glass houses shouldnt throw stones. As for having tennents in the apartment, well that doesnt hold water. I know lots of lower income people who have been thrown out of houses so the owners can move in or sell them. He promised to sell it two years ago, if he couldnt sell it because he was going to lose to much on the deal the least he could have done was stop using taxpayers money to pay for his other flat as its not our fault the property market is down. In fact it is probably more his and Labours fault the housing market is on a down than any other people in this country.

17 Dec 2010 12:33a.m.

The Roge wrote:

Dear Duncan,

You're appearing like a gutter journalist.

There are real stories for real journalists to cover; maybe you'd like to try doing that, rather than following the lead of that other hack, Episinor, who I keep seeing you have coffee with on Lambton Quay.

Good friends, are you?

I'm more than happy to debate this with you, in private or in public, if you dare. Politics, my friend, is a bit more important than what you appear to see. Try placing the economy (the means) in repect to society (the ends) and how government can relates to them both. When I read your journalism i'm left thinking that you are prentending to a level of understanding pf politics that is well beyond your grasp. Perhaps you'd be more useful covering obituraies?

16 Dec 2010 11:13p.m.

Crosis wrote:

@Kim - You ask "Why single him out?" Because he is the leader of the opposition and not only needs to be clean but be seen to be squeaky clean. He gets very well paid, but we are topping up his salary with another $28,000. If I got a job in Wellington my employer would most likely expect me to pay my rent out of the salary they pay me so why not a politician. Also he is the one who said he would sell it and hasnt tried to - he then lied about the fact he had tried AND he is using parliamentary staff in work time to rent it out. This is not a person who is acting honourably and there is no way he should ever be trusted with leading this country.