Page 2269 - Week 07 - Wednesday, 3 August 2016
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This is something I have always said about LVC, and my colleagues in the previous Assembly made the same point at the time we were discussing this. Mr Barr has made the point very well this afternoon, so I will not go into it too much other than to say that the Greens have always said that we believe where there is to be a windfall gain, which is what it is when the lease variation purpose clause is changed, the community deserves to receive some of that benefit.
We also have in place a robust system of exemptions that will ensure that builders and developers do not have to pay the full charge when they build sustainable homes or deliver other positive community outcomes, and we know the building industry in Canberra is capable of building sustainable homes at the forefront of contemporary design. We support appropriate urban infill.
There are opportunities there. People actually want to deliver a positive social outcome. That is another way of the community achieving benefit from that windfall gain. That is where I think an exemption is appropriate in that regard.
But I cannot accept a position that says there should be no LVC. I think the point Mr Barr made earlier about the distortive approach the Liberal Party is taking, where some areas get it and some areas do not, is an additional point that is well worth adding to this conversation.
I would like to speak briefly about the night-time economy. Certainly the debate that has been had over recent weeks about our liquor licensing regime was an interesting facet of this. The Greens do want to see a thriving night-time economy, and we believe that is an area of growth for Canberra, not because people should be out all night drinking but because people do not all have the same habits and patterns. In fact, we actually want to see a more diverse night-time economy so that people can go out or be out late at night and do something other than drink. We have shift workers in our community. We have people who work long hours in the hospitality sector. We have tourists. We have business people from other time zones who travel here. We believe it is part of being a modern economy and no longer just a country town.
This means that there are people in our city who do want to eat dinner after 9 pm without being reliant solely on Chicken Gourmet and there are people who want to find a place to catch up with friends and listen to music after midnight, or perhaps even after 3 am. That does not mean that all of us need to do it. I have certainly seen a few comments in recent times: “Why would you be out at that time?” Some people are, and I think we want to have an economy that caters to that, as long as it is being done safely and under clear, relevant government regulations.
We also believe that one of the very important business sectors in town is in fact the community sector. We believe that business, government and community sectors should work together to achieve mutually beneficial outcomes, and I believe there is a lot of scope for innovation in this space. The community sector makes a huge contribution to our city and it is an important part of our economy. According to KPMG, the ACT health and community services industry injects more than $2.2 billion into our economy each year, accounting for a 6.8 per cent share of our
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