Yesterday, a majority of the Legislative Assembly’s Standing Committee on Environment, Planning, Transport and City Services recommended against the passage of the Planning (Territory Priority Project) Amendment Bill 2025.
In considering this bill, the Committee was faced with a question of priorities. What was more important - our city’s ability to house the 3,002 people on the public housing waiting list, or the ability of a handful of residents in our wealthiest suburbs to block or delay public housing that they disagree with?
The Greens, Liberals and Fiona Carrick have decided that the interests of Yarralumla, Ainslie, and Griffith NIMBYs are more important than our society’s most vulnerable.
In the course of the inquiry, the builders of public and community housing came out unanimously to recommend that the Assembly pass this bill, and spoke at length at how NIMBY litigation against such projects presented serious risks to social housing provision. The YWCA spoke in depth about how bad faith appeals posed huge risks to social housing projects, and how such an appeal imposed $350,000 worth of costs on a single project to house vulnerable women. These pleas fell on deaf ears.
Our politicians pay frequent lip service to the housing crisis as an issue. But when presented with this most moderate of reforms - a reform that Victoria implemented over a decade ago without fuss - these members baulked.
This is a bitterly disappointing position that will make public housing more expensive and slower to deliver, and contribute to a lengthening public housing waiting list. We call on all parties to continue negotiating and pass a form of this bill that can take steps to solving this dire problem for public and social housing provision.
The above statement is attributable to Howard Maclean, Convenor, Greater Canberra.
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About Greater Canberra
Greater Canberra is a community advocacy group committed to affordable and high-quality housing in Canberra. We believe in a future where housing is abundant, and where everyone can enjoy a more sustainable and liveable city. For more information, see https://greatercanberra.org.