Page 4095 - Week 13 - Thursday, 6 December 2007
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The government can expect to bear the brunt of opposition and public cynicism, given that the undersupply of land is part of the equation that pushes up land prices. And it is more complicated than supply of land. You need to read what some of the critics like Ross Gittins and Julian Disney say about the reasons why land is so expensive; it is not just a matter of demand and supply.
Let us not forget that the government is heavily reliant on land sales for its revenue; so we can expect this issue to stick around. However, I do not see the conspiracy in such stark terms as the opposition does. I acknowledge that it has been difficult to estimate future demand elasticities for land and housing when the federal government’s recruitment policies play such a large role in generating demand. The Howard government’s record in coordinating and cooperating with the ACT government was abysmal. If ever there was a case for territory/federal cooperation in developing a strategy, this is it.
From anecdotal representations and personal observations, I have some misgivings about the process by which land valuations are determined in the territory, particularly in relation to land tax and betterment taxes. Blocks which would appear to be of similar value and are being used for similar purposes have been to known to receive widely variable valuations. I urge the government to keep a close eye on the valuation process and to be as transparent as possible, publishing valuation reports and making all pricing assumptions publicly available and open to scrutiny and criticism.
In saying this, I am not pre-empting the public accounts committee’s report; this is purely my own opinion. The public accounts committee will be reporting on this issue in the early weeks of next year. I am not saying this, by the way, as a criticism of government; it is not the point to just say these things to criticise government. It is important that we protect public revenue. In brief, there is a lot more to be done to increase affordability and sustainability of housing than releasing more land.
MR BARR (Molonglo—Minister for Education and Training, Minister for Planning, Minister for Tourism, Sport and Recreation, Minister for Industrial Relations) (4.40): I thank the dark horse of the Liberal Party for raising this issue today.
Mr Seselja: On a point of order, Mr Speaker: I ask the planning minister to refer to me by my proper title.
MR SPEAKER: That is a fair point.
MR BARR: I am sorry. I thank the shadow planning minister for raising the matter today.
Upon my appointment as minister for planning, I issued a new statement of planning intent for the ACT Planning and Land Authority that outlined the government’s key policy principles for future planning in the ACT. These principles inform our land release strategy. The statement identified the planning challenges faced by the Canberra community over the coming years. These include access to safe, secure and affordable housing and the provision of more services in Gungahlin. I think we would
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