Councils with slow planning approvals should be named and shamed
Drastic measures are needed, as numerous surveys show the government’s Housing Accord is already lagging.
THE Business Council of Australia says drastic measures are needed as numerous surveys show the government’s initiative to solve the housing crisis is already lagging.
It is calling for a major overhaul of the housing approval processes focusing on improving the assessment and approval of new homes.
For Australia to meet the 1.2 million national housing target, a further 64,000 new homes would need to be built each year, compared to 2023-24.
The BCA is calling for:
State-wide council report cards in every state/territory to transparently monitor the performance of local government approvals, including the time taken to make an assessment (from lodgment to construction approval);
State government intervention powers to remove the planning authority of councils which continually underperform in the assessment of new homes and, conversely, funding to reward councils that are high performers;
Elevating housing projects of significance to state governments for approval, including the approval of adjacent supporting infrastructure;
An accountable new state government concierge service to monitor and speed up decisions and concurrence processes across government agencies;
A new mechanism for housing builders to force a local or state government to make a decision, either to reject or approve, if a decision exceeds statutory timeframes; and
Better approaches to community consultation that respond to legitimate concerns and strike a fairer balance between local voices and broader regional housing needs
BCA chief executive Bran Black said: “We have a housing supply crisis in Australia and we need to turbo-charge the assessment and approval process so we get more homes built faster.
“I hear from members that some councils are highly professional, while others are unresponsive and can take months to make a decision, in some cases running down the clock because they can.
State governments should also be able to assess and approve more residential housing projects deemed to be of state significance, rather than relying solely on council assessments.
“State governments are best able to balance local feedback with the broader economic and policy priorities faced by the community around the need for housing.”