James Atkins

A new Plan for Victoria must ensure ‘efficient building heights’ can be achieved across Melbourne’s Activity Centres to ensure project viability and housing affordability. We recommend having no height limits in activity centre zones. Why? Existing height controls in activity centres mean most multi-unit developments aren’t commercially viable at today’s construction costs. When height controls are relaxed to allow taller buildings, this leads to construction cost savings on a per dwelling basis, which in-turn reduces marginal dwelling prices and therefore loan servicing costs. This reduces the total disposable income required to purchase a home, making dwelling ownership a reality for a larger percentage of the population. For example, at current variable interest rates, to meet mortgage repayments (principal and interest) the following household disposable incomes are required: - $750,000 dwelling | $160,000 p.a. income. - $850,000 dwelling | $190,000 p.a. income. - $950,000 dwelling | $235,000 p.a. income. This compares with the prevailing average apartment sale price in Melbourne of around $11,500/sqm. This would equate to about $863,000 for a 2-bedroom apartment (75 sqm). For an individual or family this translates into a disposable income of more than $190,000 p.a. For those unable to purchase a dwelling, the rental market is the only alternative. With very low rental vacancies, rental prices remain elevated across most capital cities and may increase further. An obvious solution is to extend building heights for multi-unit developments, which will support efficiencies of scale and reduce the marginal cost of delivering dwellings. This will increase affordable housing supply, take pressure off the rental sector and give people more affordable living alternatives. Glenn Lamont Declan Haratsis #anewplanforvictoria, #housingsupply, #planningreform, #housingcrisis, #macroplan

6

Wonderful to see a local government leading on the need for a new PDA to help unlock huge potential for new housing supply as it seeks to deal with population growth and other challenges. We met with Cairns Mayor, Amy Eden, and the Director of Planning, Ed Johnson, this week to discuss the council's push for a Priority Development Area (PDA) in the Mt Peter Southern Growth Corridor. We were discussing the opportunities presented by the new Economic Development Queensland remit that recently passed through the Queensland Parliament, including the role of community housing providers (CHPs). We expressed our sector’s keen interest, which is also one of our key state election asks, to identify more PDA’s across Queensland to assist manage growth. We know conservatively there is an under supply of about 5,300 social homes in Cairns and by mid 2030, that under supply will jump to 11,500, subject to housing commencements. Cairns is also in the top 10 cities in the country for unmet housing need. By working closely with the Cairns Regional Council, and our local housing networks, we are confident that every lever is being pulled and explored locally, so it is time to lean into these options to unlock even more potential in the north. We look forward continuing the discussions about the PDA opportunity for Cairns and playing a partnership-role with the rest of the system to support this direction. #PriorityDevelopmentAreas #Cairns #HousingSupply #Planning #Development #Growth #CommunityHousing

87

2 Comments

Some information was released overnight about the LNP Housing Plan, ahead of today's State Budget reply speech. While there are still many details to come, it's encouraging to see some of the proposed measures in scope, including shared equity programs and major infrastructure partnerships with local government to increase housing supply. New and innovative concepts for maximising church-owned land and utiliising vacant bedrooms make for interesting reading. And if the reports are accurate, there is a strong commitment to achieving housing targets leading up to 2046. Q Shelter is looking forward to unpacking all the details and providing useful budget analysis for the sector. This will include areas of convergence with the major parties on housing policy and differences in approaches. https://lnkd.in/g6FcR_Qh Stay tuned. #StateBudget #Housing #Homelessness #HomeMatters #BetterTogether #Queensland

18

3 Comments

If an all-male panel is called a 'Manel', what do you call an all-female panel? KIND OF AMAZING? It was such a dynamic panel session discussing 'Building a Skilled, Inclusive Workforce for the Transition and Beyond' at yesterday's Day 1 of the Power + Utilities Australia Leadership Summit. The conversation ranged from... the need to promote the energy industry as an industry of choice; the need to promote trade skills as a preferred post-high school career; the need to make sure organisations' culture both supports diversity through targets/collaboration/initiatives, but also just by having people in diversity represented across an organisation ('you can be it if you can see it'), the need to 'share the care' across families; the need to support/invest in/fund your employees to be part of training throughout their careers. It was great to get questions from the audience about how to familiarise students with the energy sector from high school (Cert II Career Starts!) and whether we can transition people into the sector (microcredentials for everyone!). There's a lot to be done, but as someone passionate about my industry, about teaching (I didn't lecture for a decade for nothing!) and about life-long learning, I think we've got this! Thanks so much to Anthea Middleton from Powering Skills Organisation, Ruth Groom from Hydro Tasmania, Stephanie Somerville from The Australian Power Institute, and our wonderful moderator Bronwyn See for an amazing session. #energyjobs #powerandutilities #energyisajobforlife

116

10 Comments

Today, we announced that we are seeking to strengthen South Australia’s building laws and increase protections for people undertaking building work with the most significant review of the state’s building regulations in nearly 20 years.  We want to make sure South Australians are protected when undertaking what is likely the biggest investment they’ll make in their lives. We’re looking at a range of reforms including: ✅ Developing an easier dispute resolution process for consumers and reducing the costs of dispute resolution for all parties. ✅ The introduction of a permit system for owner-builders to prevent unlicensed builders posing as owner-builders. ✅ Requiring building inspectors to be registered due to concerns about unqualified inspectors providing shoddy reports. Will Frogley Stephen Knight Housing Industry Association (HIA)

130

9 Comments

The ACT Government welcomes the wide range of initiatives in the 2024-25 Commonwealth Budget that will benefit Canberrans and our city. We know that Canberra households have faced significantly rising costs over the past two years. The $300 Energy Bill Relief for every household in the ACT will provide much needed relief for nearly two hundred thousand Canberra households. Across the five jurisdictions in the National Electricity Market the ACT will continue to have the lowest standing offers in 2024-25 after other jurisdictions increased by up to 29% last financial year. The ACT Government will assess further energy bill relief for Canberra households in the June Territory Budget once the ICRC final price determination is known. The redesigned Stage 3 Tax Cuts will provide income tax relief to every worker in the ACT from 1 July 2024. Collectively, ACT residents will benefit the most from these tax cuts as we have a high proportion of pay-as-you-earn taxpayers in the relevant income tax brackets. We welcome the changes to the tax cuts that were designed to support lower and middle income workers to manage cost of living pressures. While rising cost of living pressures have been broad based, households’ ability to deal with these pressures is unevenly distributed, impacting employees substantially more than others. Almost four in every five taxpayers in the ACT will receive a larger tax cut compared to the previous Liberal Government’s plan. We also welcome the HECS debt relief for 57,000 people in the ACT, predominantly providing support to younger Canberrans who have recently graduated. The changes, particularly the fact they have been backdated, are a necessary intervention to avoid unfair outcomes for young workers now and into the future. The ACT has the highest proportion of university level educational attainment in the country so, collectively, Canberrans will be the greatest beneficiaries from these changes. The deeming rates freeze will also provide additional cost of living relief to an estimated 14,500 income support recipients in Canberra. Additionally, the Federal Government’s investment through the Strengthening Medicare fund in partnership with the ACT Government will take the pressure off our hospital system and continue to ensure Canberrans get the care they need when they need it. This investment will strengthen our partnership to make our nurse-led walk-in centres even better, delivering more healthcare workers and more services and ensure we can better support older Canberrans can stay out of hospital and get home sooner. We also support the decision in the Budget to freeze the cost of medicines on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. The increase of Commonwealth Rent Assistance by a further 10 per cent, building on the 15 per cent increase in last year’s Budget will benefit approximately 7,300 Canberra households.

37

The demand for engineers is rapidly growing across sectors like infrastructure, energy, and technology. Specialised skills in areas such as renewable energy, digital transformation, and sustainable design are particularly sought after. With global mobility increasing, engineers are embracing flexible work models, creating both opportunities and challenges with regional skill shortages. As a result, competitive salaries and aggressive recruitment are on the rise. To stay ahead, professionals need to focus on upskilling and lifelong learning as industries adopt emerging technologies and sustainability practices. A good time to reflect on investing in a pipeline of talent development and continuous learning crucial for meeting future demands. Unpack and read more here thanks to Engineers Australia ⬇️⬇️⬇️

4

Here’s the latest snapshot of the Australian engineering labour market. Read more:

27

The recent closure of the single entity in NZ dedicated to electricity and small consumers is disappointing for consumers. There is an opportunity though.... taxpayers face a cost of living crisis, while many in the electricity sector reap substantial profits. I'm thinking the Consumer Advocacy Council's legislation permits funding through levies of the electricity sector. Read more in Emma Hatton's article in Newsroom NZ today. #ConsumerAdvocacy #ElectricitySector #Budgets #consumers #electricity #Energy

18

2 Comments

Is your association in a position to Secure Government Grants in 2025? The Australian Government allocates over $800 million annually in business grants, with state governments adding millions more each year. Is your association prepared to access some of this funding? Join our webinar this Thursday, October 31st at 12 noon AEDT, where expert Angela Krepcik, Association Executive Services Consultant, will guide you through the grant application journey. With extensive experience as an association CEO, grant writer, and former Victorian Government grant assessor, Angela provides invaluable insights on: 😎 Understanding the grant application process and assessment criteria 😎 Evaluating your association’s readiness for grant success 😎 Best practices for submitting a winning proposal 😎 Navigating approval, compliance, and contractual obligations 😎 Demonstrating the impact of grants on your association’s growth Don’t miss this chance to enhance your association’s funding potential. To gain insider tips and strategies that could make a real difference for your association register in the link in the comments below #grantwriting #association #associations

21

13 Comments

South Australian households and businesses are bracing for more cost of living pain from July 1 with SA Water bills likely to be hiked after the Malinauskas Government failed to make an investment in last week’s State Budget to support previously announced land releases. The final SA Water determination for the next regulatory period 2024-28 is due in the coming days and will reveal how much water bills are set to increase from July 1. The former Liberal Government saved South Australian households an average of $200 per year on water bills during the last regulatory period, while small businesses received deductions of approximately $1,350. This is in direct contrast to the former Labor Government, with an independent inquiry finding they deliberately inflated the value of SA Water’s regulated asset base, driving up the cost of water bills for all South Australians. Last week’s State Budget didn’t include any new funding for supporting infrastructure, raising concerns water bills will be hiked to support the development of land releases announced more than 12 months ago. Labor’s much-hyped land releases have hardly been the “fast track” to housing as promised, with not a single house built yet and Renewal SA recently dubbing the Dry Creek site “incredibly complex” adding “there are a range of issues associated with it”.

16

South Australian households and businesses are bracing for more cost of living pain from July 1 with SA Water bills likely to be hiked after the Malinauskas Government failed to make an investment in last week’s State Budget to support previously announced land releases. The final SA Water determination for the next regulatory period 2024-28 is due in the coming days and will reveal how much water bills are set to increase from July 1. The former Liberal Government saved South Australian households an average of $200 per year on water bills during the last regulatory period, while small businesses received deductions of approximately $1,350. This is in direct contrast to the former Labor Government, with an independent inquiry finding they deliberately inflated the value of SA Water’s regulated asset base, driving up the cost of water bills for all South Australians. Last week’s State Budget didn’t include any new funding for supporting infrastructure, raising concerns water bills will be hiked to support the development of land releases announced more than 12 months ago. Labor’s much-hyped land releases have hardly been the “fast track” to housing as promised, with not a single house built yet and Renewal SA recently dubbing the Dry Creek site “incredibly complex” adding “there are a range of issues associated with it”.

9

To be a more persuasive communicator, copy the three features in the opening lines of this recent press release.* Firstly, it hits its key message in the first line: "New data shows inflation has now almost halved since the Albanese Labor Government came to office". ➡️ Whether you're speaking or writing an email, know your key message and state it clearly as early as possible. Then, it acknowledges where its audience is right now. Rather than ignoring what's on their minds, it recognises it by saying, inflation's "still too high". ➡️ Understand your audience and what they're thinking. Don't ignore the negative; acknowledge it. Thirdly, it moves from the past and present towards the future by outlining the focus of next month's budget: "easing cost of living pressures". ➡️ Be positive by looking towards the future and action. Counter the negative with concrete steps you'll take to improve the situation. How could you use one of these practices to make your communication better today? *I know this is a political release. I'm focusing on the way the message is communicated, not on the validity of the statements. #communication #leadership #persuasion #clarity #influence

22

7 Comments

As Victorians navigate the aftermath of the latest budget release, the looming specter of tough times ahead is palpable. Despite commendable efforts such as the $400 one-off payment for families and initiatives aiding farmers in drought readiness, the delay in essential services like free kinder and mental health hubs due to workforce shortages is disheartening. These setbacks underscore the broader cost of living crisis gripping not just Victoria, but the entire nation, intensifying the urgency for robust and timely solutions to alleviate financial strain on businesses and households across Australia. https://lnkd.in/gu3Uprtb

1

These community engagement guidelines for transmission projects were released on 19 July by the Australian Government's "energy & climate" ministers. Essential reading for those in the sector & it's a document that has consolidated a lot of helpful advice in one place, including around community benefits programs - which can tend towards simplistic (and sometimes inappropriate) buying of community support & inequitable outcomes if not designed properly. It was especially good to see the inclusion of #evaluation expectations too. I would have liked there to be less emphasis though on #sociallicence as the primary objective for projects and for the recommended primary evaluation focus. Especially for projects that are a publicly funded, there's an argument for framing to be ultimately around social performance and public value /in the public interest (with social licence as a sub-component or second tier goal). There's an inherent assumption with using social licence as the main social objective for projects that the project is deserving of community acceptance (not always true) and also that if a project doesn't have social licence it shouldn't proceed (which also is not always true in the public interest). Having said that, it is quite interesting (and a positive development IMO) to see the evolution over the past few years of the social licence models being used in Australia, reflected in these guidelines. The social licence model used (see p. 9) puts in its first box of factors underpinning social licence: "Whether the community thinks the project will bring benefits to the broader society". That's a notable & welcome shift towards prioritizing public value compared to past SLO models. #socialvalue #communityengagement #energy #socialimpact

98

13 Comments

📣 GRANT ALERT: Regional Futures – Collaborative Projects: Funding Innovation Across Queensland Applications are now open for the Regional Futures – Collaborative Projects program, providing up to $200,000 to foster innovation and collaboration across regional Queensland. This initiative supports impactful projects aimed at economic enhancement, community resilience and regional prosperity. Eligibility: Applicants must be Queensland-based organisations outside the Brisbane City Council area, with projects demonstrating a matched funding model. Past Projects Highlight: 1. Accelerating Innovation in Place: Supported the Food & Agribusiness Network to drive regional innovation ecosystems across the Sunshine Coast. 2. Gladstone Connects Supplier Platform: Created a virtual platform to connect SMEs with large enterprises in Central Queensland. 3. Strait Approach to Business: Fostered a network to support business innovation in the Torres Strait. Application Deadline: 27 June 2024.

3

The NSW Budget is saving on bills, moving towards net zero and protecting our environment. $3.5 billion on Climate Change and Energy $3.1 billion to deliver Renewable Energy Zones Plus $2.4 billion for Environment and Heritage Our investment includes: ⚡️$238 million for the upcoming Consumer Energy Strategy 🏡$87 million for energy saving upgrades to social housing 💵$435 million for energy bill rebates 💡$128 million to upgrade roads and infrastructure between Port of Newcastle and Renewable Energy Zones 🦎$75 million to look after our national parks ⚡️$39 million for more workers to conduct biodiversity assessments for renewable energy projects ♻️$43 million to transform the waste and recycling industry 🌳$87 million for environmental grants 🐨And our funding for wildlife continues, including the creation of a Great Koala National Park

144

7 Comments

Succinct summary by Faith Housing Alliance of Nathan Dal Bon’s (Housing Australia) remarks on the HAFF in the Senate Economic Legislation Committee this week. These numbers are eye watering 😮 A couple of myths I think have been busted here too, including: “The market wont respond to the program” “Off budget programs won’t work” “The government can’t say how many houses the program will build” “The HAFF won’t work” I could go on. But of course the next step here is for these projects to be contracted, commenced, and delivered, and there inlies a real challenge that the entire resi- market is facing. With that said, this ‘government backed’ housing is likely to get prioritised by the construction industry. What remains to be seen is how the government will treat the over subscription in HAFF Year 1. The program has to deliver at least $500m in funding and circa 8,000 homes. But that could be increased with a lever that is built into the legislated program. The key questions for me include: Can they support more homes than the 8,000, do they want to support more, can they bring forward funds to support this pipeline at this particular time of need. If we don’t support more that the minimum, what is the risk these well advanced projects fall over ? I suggest that given planned confirmation has been pushed out to August 2024 these questions are been actively considered, as they should be. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Housing Minister Julie Collins could step change this project, double the HAFF, and leave the naysayers in their wake. Here’s hoping the other major parties can get behind the program too. 🏗️ 🏠 👪 National Shelter Community Housing Industry Association #Housing #Australia #FutureFund #Social #Affordable #HousingSupply #HomeMatters #BetterTogether

45

4 Comments