TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — New Power Party Chair Wang Wan-yu (王婉諭) renewed criticism Friday of the government’s housing policy, accusing it of effectively abandoning social housing construction.
Interior Minister Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) had previously acknowledged that the government plans to build fewer social housing units, citing a lack of prime land, per ETtoday. She said authorities would instead rely on alternatives such as rental subsidies and incentives for property owners to participate in the social housing sublease and management program.
In response, Wang said Liu’s ministry had earlier identified more than 200 publicly owned parcels suitable for social housing, questioning what had happened to those sites. She asserted that since President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) took office, the government has failed to approve a single new social housing development project.
Wang called on the government to explain the challenges it faces in implementing social housing policy.
Lai’s social housing agenda has been under close scrutiny since his election. The Taiwan People’s Party said in October that the government had failed to provide concrete figures showing progress on Lai’s campaign pledge to deliver 130,000 social housing units.
The Kuomintang weighed in Monday, noting that of the 250,000 units promised during the campaign, about 120,000 were approved under former President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and are scheduled for completion by 2032, per CNA. The party urged the government to deliver the remaining 130,000 units as promised rather than relying on alternative policies to meet the target.
The Interior Ministry responded Monday, saying it has approved construction of 20,000 social housing units at 60 sites since Lai took office. The ministry emphasized that social housing policy should not rely solely on construction projects but instead adopt a multifaceted approach.
The government’s shift from earlier pledges has also drawn criticism from the Social Housing Promotion League, per Liberty Times. The group argued that the government’s two main justifications — a lack of prime land and a high number of vacant housing units — stem from years of inaction.
On vacant housing, the league said the government has long opposed raising costs for investors who hold empty properties. Without policies to force vacant units back onto the market, the league said, authorities should not count potential rental supply from those units toward figures for the social housing sublease and management program.
Regarding land shortages, the league said the government failed to reserve land for social housing when selling public land for private development or when acquiring buildable land through expropriation or rezoning. It also criticized the Interior Ministry’s claim that demand for social housing is insufficient.
The league added that while the National Land Management Agency has long opposed creating a national registry to track social housing needs, it has simultaneously insisted that demand does not exist.
