Page 1012 - Week 04 - Tuesday, 24 March 2015
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
Again, I know this will be confronting for many home owners, but there needs to be a register in place to assist in the full administration and processes of the buyback program. It will also facilitate longer term management of properties where owners choose not to participate in the buyback program.
The bill strengthened the information for prospective buyers so that they are notified on the title of the presence of loose-fill asbestos in a property or at a site. This administrative interest will only exist until a house is demolished and the land is remediated.
The bill introduced special provisions to enable tenants and landlords to terminate a tenancy in order to move to new accommodation or surrender an affected property whilst continuing to provide significant safeguards and relocation assistance for tenants. The bill removed the need for owners of affected units to provide building and pest inspection and energy efficiency rating reports as part of the contract of sale as these would create an additional burden on the seller and cost to the territory and were unnecessary in these circumstances. Several guides and policies have been developed for home owners and industry around working in Mr Fluffy homes, removing contents, fixtures and fittings, and issues such as stamp duty concession provisions.
Finally, in the next few months the task force will continue to be busy as the buyback program draws to a close and the next phase of the task force’s activity, being the demolition of affected houses, begins. This will see the focus shift from directly engaging with home owners to engaging with the broader community as we work to educate Canberrans that the demolition works can and will be done safely and efficiently. WorkSafe ACT and ACT Health will continue to be key partners in this work and I thank them very much for their support to date.
Prior to this work commencing, home owners will begin receiving greater detail from the task force around what medium term asbestos management plan requirements will entail for those wanting to stay in their homes post 30 June 2015 to assist them in their decision making. I encourage home owners to continue to work with the task force around their individual circumstances and requirements. The Environment and Planning Directorate will also be undertaking community consultation on the minor proposed amendments to the territory plan which will affect blocks in the RZ1 zones surrendered through the buyback program, to assist in alleviating some of the cost pressure to the territory through the scheme.
The government will be seeking support of members around seeing this important variation through the Assembly. Whilst the work of the task force is far from complete, I would like to thank the officers of the task force for their ongoing commitment and the professionalism they have shown in their work and in their support to home owners and the community. The role they are undertaking is difficult, not only in a policy sense but also socially, with very high levels of emotion present due to the nature of the issue. I am sure all members in this place will support me in their appreciation of the efforts of the task force. I look forward to continuing to update the Assembly on the ACT government’s response to this important issue. I present the following paper:
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video