The latest Census data is out, with numbers for all sorts of data points from ethnicity, home ownership and income to gender and sexual identity. But the number that most interested me today is buried in the housing stats.

In 2018, when we last did the numbers, about one in every six New Zealand homes recorded mould bigger than an A4 piece of paper. More than 21 percent of households recorded dampness at home.

But despite our famously crappy housing stock, the numbers have meaningfully improved. Today, 18 percent of houses have dampness: a 3.4 percent improvement. And from one-in-six homes previously, one-in-seven households now records mould at home.

In real numbers, that's roughly 70,000 fewer damp homes and 50,000 fewer mouldy homes than we would have had if our housing was at the same standard as it was in 2018. That's a real success. 

So what's changed in that time? Obviously newer homes are more likely to be built to a better, warmer standard. But I also think you can credit some of that improvement to the healthy homes standards. And while, of course, bringing rental stock up to standard has come at an expense, it's surely nothing compared to the cost of healthcare for those who'd otherwise be getting sick in cold, damp homes. 

There's isn't all that much the previous Government can hang its hat on in terms of enduring change - but I reckon that policy is a winner.

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