UDIA Victoria is committed to working with new and existing ministers, and all Members of Parliament, to implement policy to boost the supply of new homes in Victoria. We urge the new Cabinet to adopt UDIA Victoria’s election platform recommendations, including guaranteeing land supply, streamlining planning, reforming our tax system, prioritising infrastructure investment in our fastest growing communities, and supporting a skilled, productive and resilient home-building workforce.
UDIA Victoria recognises that Minister Sonya Kilkenny continuing in her role as Minister for Planning brings continuity to our industry. However, her workload has significantly increased with the addition of the Finance portfolio and a new focus on Violence Reduction. Despite significant planning reforms in recent years, the work is not over, and Government must complete the reform agenda. We also note the allocation of Development Victoria and Precincts to Treasurer Jaclyn Symes and will continue to work constructively with her. As the state budget approaches, industry is looking for genuine support and leadership from the Treasurer by way of property tax reform.
With Victoria falling behind on housing targets at a critical time where our long-term prosperity depends heavily on new homes and support to communities, the new cabinet’s success will be measured by its ability to deliver urgently needed policy reforms that boost the supply of homes for Victorians, while ensuring ministers listen to industry.
UDIA Victoria looks forward to working collaboratively with Minister Nick Staikos as Minister for Housing and Building and Minister Harriet Shing as Minister for Water. With Victoria’s construction industry currently facing acute challenges as a result of the Middle East conflict and escalating supply chain shocks, we urge Minister Staikos to act quickly in this new role to implement short-term relief initiatives that will assist the residential development sector to navigate and recover from these challenges. This should include temporarily pausing implementation of National Construction Code regulations taking effect on 1 May and new building reforms taking effect on 1 July. As always, water and drainage issues remain a high priority for UDIA Victoria and its members, and we will continue to push our reform agenda, particularly the progression on reforms for third party access for drainage in new developments.