Productivity Commissioner’s report falls short on delivering homes

Productivity Commissioner’s report falls short on delivering homes

UDIA NSW applauds the intent of the ‘Rebooting the NSW Economy’ white paper released this morning by the Productivity Commissioner but warns that it does not go far enough to deliver the homes people desperately need and that the recent changes by the NSW Government mean delivery of land for new homes in NSW is still going backwards.

While incentives and penalties, tipped to be imposed on local governments to ensure they are delivering on housing targets are welcomed, the Report doesn’t go far enough in unblocking the supply of homes for ordinary people. The report does not assist in speeding up land release, re-zonings and enabling infrastructure.

Unfortunately, the NSW Government is currently undermining the economic recovery through its excessive changes to planning regulations including its ultra conservative approach to flooding, its removing of the flexibility to carry out construction on weekends (even where there are no noise implications) and the intended direction of the Design and Place SEPP. These actions have created huge concern and uncertainty across the industry Which will ripple through the community and the State’s economy.

UDIA NSW has long advocated for reform of planning agencies to speed up the delivery of homes and reduce their cost. Today’s announcement is welcome, particularly in terms of the anticipated boost in gross state product of over $3billion by 2029.

– ENDS –