Annastacia Palaszczuk: Millionaire property owning premier’s boast of eight tiny houses for homeless tenants backfires

A prime minister’s triumphant announcement that eight ‘tiny houses’ have been given to homeless tenants in a flood-ravaged city was met with scorn from her critics.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk tweeted on Sunday that the portable factory homes, with a floor space of just 27 square metres, have been deployed in the town of Gympie, 180 kilometers northwest of Brisbane.

‘Great news! Tenants have just moved into these eight new factory-built houses in Gympie,” Ms. Palaszczuk, who has a multimillion-dollar property portfolio, wrote on social media.

But her enthusiasm was met with hostility and sarcasm from some who pointed out worrying flaws in the houses, comparing them to “trailer campers.”

‘Enter one! Look how excited you are then!’ someone said.

‘Trailer parks. Small caravan parks,” one wrote. ‘That’s what you delivered. Eight elevated huts in Australia’s only city known for its tornadoes.”

Another said, “These things will fly so well in the next cyclone…”

Ms. Palaszczuk currently lives in a four-bedroom house occupying over 1,000 sq ft in the leafy suburb of Seventeen Mile Rocks in south-east Brisbane, where the average property price is over $800,000.

It also owns two investment units, each over 100 sqm, on Main and Sunrise Beaches in South East Queensland, which recently sold for $705,000 and $370,000 respectively.

Last week, her government announced that eight houses would be built in the Gympie Recovery Accommodation Park, an area for people left homeless after floods devastated the city in early 2022.

Queensland Housing Minister Meaghan Scanlon said 100 modular homes will eventually be up and running, with the project being a partnership between the state government and Gympie Regional Council.

But sharp-eyed social media users quickly pointed out the problem details of the houses, which took Brisbane-based company Alphaline Tiny Homes just six weeks to build.

“Er, what’s going on here?” One person inquired about an apparent drain pipe dangling from the side of the house.

‘I just hope you’re not handicapped. There shouldn’t be railings on either side,” another asked of the four wooden steps leading to the front door, which had only one railing.

A few of the commenters also noticed an unplugged solar panel leaning against the front of the house.

“I see you haven’t fully explained to tenants how a solar panel works,” one wrote.

“Or are they looking for the legs of their gaming table?”

But Ms. Scanlon is convinced that building the tiny houses is a big win for vulnerable people affected by natural disasters.

“Whether it’s tiny houses, modular homes or traditional buildings – it’s the Palaszczuk Government pulling every lever and using innovative housing solutions to provide a safe place to live for Queensland residents in need,” said Ms Scanlon.

The minister’s press release quoted a grateful resident ‘Don’ who was involved in one of the homes.

“I had a high-profile job and businesses, and then I had a nervous breakdown after a heart attack,” said Don.

“I lost the farm, the house, my cars – and everything that goes with it.”

Don said he had been sleeping in his van at a roadside rest area when he was presented with one of the small cottages.

“I thought I won the lottery,” he said.

LNP MP and Shadow Housing Minister Tim Mander said tiny houses were a “temporary solution” at best.

“We need houses that can house families and people in desperate need of a roof over their heads,” he told Channel Nine.