Page 537 - Week 02 - Wednesday, 19 March 2014
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V2, before and after, valuation assessment. The remission on that has been increased from 25 per cent to 50 per cent for two years.
The fundamental principles of the lease variation charge remain unchanged. The legislative framework remains unchanged. That is fundamentally the case. What we have done is take the opportunity, through a number of elements of the lease variation charge legislation, to provide remissions for certain outcomes—improved environmental performance, universal design outcomes, and V1-V2 assessments for mixed use developments in uncodified areas. The schedules, the taxation arrangements and the remissions are frozen for a two-year period, providing certainty to the industry in relation to codification. There was certainty before on a sliding schedule, and we are being very clear now what is happening for the next two years.
If the shadow treasurer understood the basis of the lease variation charge, he would know that there is an assessment and a valuation, and updating of valuation schedules—a provision for that. What we have said is that we will freeze the current valuations in time for two years. That provides certainty for industry over the coming period.
Why are we doing this? Because the Liberal Party is going to mug this economy and we are going to have to hand back $13 million worth of revenue, the community’s revenue, to the construction sector to help them through. That is what this package does. It is about $13 million worth of forgone revenue out of the community’s benefit into the benefit of the private sector in order to stimulate activity. That is it. It is a $13 million transfer out of the community’s pocket into the pocket of developers to get an economic outcome. That is the nature of the changes—a $13 million transfer. That is what the Chief Minister announced. That is what the government is proceeding with. That ought to allow a number of projects that were marginal, that probably would not have gone ahead in normal economic circumstances, to be pushed ahead.
Some $13 million worth of benefit in profits has been transferred from the community to the private sector as a result of this package—$13 million worth of benefit into the pockets of developers. No wonder they are happy, Madam Assistant Speaker.
MS GALLAGHER (Molonglo—Chief Minister, Minister for Regional Development, Minister for Health and Minister for Higher Education) (4.03): I move:
Omit paragraph (5), substitute:
“(5) calls on the Government to table all documents related to the changes announced by the ACT Government to commence and complete fees and lease variation charge by cob Thursday 20 March 2014.”.
This amendment is an amendment to Mr Smyth’s proposed amendment to Mr Barr’s proposed amendment to Mr Coe’s motion. Have I cleared that up? The government is happy to assist members with information around the changes announced by us around commence and complete fees and the lease variation charge.
In relation to Mr Smyth’s amendment on the tabling of documents produced to inform the government’s review of the commence and complete fees, many of those would
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