Canberra Liberals Leader Elizabeth Lee says the ACT Government cannot blame the former Federal Government for the lack of ACT land released as the responsibility falls entirely within the local government’s jurisdiction, but a spokesperson for Minister for Housing Yvette Berry says Ms Lee “is completely wrong on the facts once again”.
According to Ms Lee, “release of land in the ACT is within the sole responsibility of the local Labor Greens Government and, in fact, it was the Coalition Government in the lead up to the last Federal Election that promised the release of the CSIRO Ginninderra site – land that’s owned by the Commonwealth to be released for the benefit of the ACT community, so it could be used for housing”.
“For this ACT Labor Greens Government to put the blame on the former Federal Coalition Government is absolutely once again showing that they have no accountability for policy levers that are within their sole control,” she said.
However, a spokesperson for Minister Yvette Berry said that “land release by the ACT Government represents 2 per cent of the annual home sales in the ACT”.
“The ACT Government has outlined a plan to release 16,417 dwellings sites over the next five years, augmented by significant development and construction of new dwellings on private land and releases,” they said.
In response to the ACT Government’s Budget housing package, Ms Lee has today announced she will be fronting a shadow ministry of housing, targeting affordability and choice.
She said she will be completely absorbing the role herself and will be narrowing in on five key priorities: sustained and measured land release; supporting the skilled workforce; reviewing the current rates regime; boosting community and public housing; and evaluating Canberra’s planning system.
This announcement comes in the wake of criticism from the Canberra Liberals that the ACT Government’s housing package will do little to address Canberra’s housing crisis.
Particularly, the Liberals have raised concerns that Canberrans are lacking housing choice and supply.
When the ACT Government revealed its Budget plan to build 30,000 new homes over the next five years, Ms Lee said the Canberra Liberals were at first optimistic, but were later disappointed by the lack of inclusion of stand-alone houses.
“Over the last couple of months, when the Canberra Liberals have raised repeatedly concerns about housing affordability and the lack of choice that is being given to Canberrans by this Labor Greens Government, the Chief Minister and the responsible minister spent months telling us that there was nothing else they could do.
“And, in a stunning backflip only a couple of days ago, the Chief Minister conceded, finally conceded, that there was more the ACT Government could do – that it did have a role to play in increasing housing supply.”
The Minister for Planning and Land Management’s office has been contacted for comment.
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