Page 3691 - Week 12 - Thursday, 25 November 2021
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The government will be introducing a licensing scheme for property developers, establishing a team of building certifiers within the ACT public service and introducing a registration scheme for engineers in the building sector in this term of government. We are well involved in this work and will continue it over the next year.
We will continue to collaborate with other jurisdictions, through the Building Ministers Meeting and the Australian Building Codes Board, on national building regulation matters, including work to progress the recommendations of the Building confidence report and accessibility standards for new houses, townhouses and apartments in the National Construction Code. Introducing minimum accessibility standards for new homes will increase the availability of homes able to be adapted for and accessible to all members of the community, regardless of age, disability and other factors.
Another important focus of the National Construction Code is the proposed increase in energy efficiency standards for residential buildings. The ACT government has commitments within the parliamentary and governing agreement to increase the sustainability and efficiency of buildings in the ACT. This work at the national level is an important step to progress these ambitions.
I would like to touch on the Asbestos Response Taskforce as it continues its work to deliver the Loose-fill Asbestos Insulation Eradication Scheme. Significant progress has been made to realise the goal of eradicating loose-fill asbestos insulation from Canberra homes, with 97 per cent of the 1,028 known affected properties now demolished.
I would like to thank the many staff within the Environment, Planning and Sustainable Development Directorate who work incredibly hard to progress a range of very diverse priorities and who, particularly over this COVID-19 period, have done this in the context of increasing demands.
These are just a few of the exciting initiatives that my portfolios will be delivering over this financial year to enhance the environment, maintain the ACT’s heritage assets, create a sustainable and high-quality built environment and, most importantly, support the Canberra community. I am really proud of these programs and the outcomes that they will deliver for the city, the community and the environment.
MR RATTENBURY (Kurrajong—Attorney-General, Minister for Consumer Affairs, Minister for Gaming and Minister for Water, Energy and Emissions Reduction) (11.37): I rise to support the appropriation bill, including a range of new measures the government is pursuing to meet the territory’s world-leading climate change targets and improve water quality. Firstly, let me speak about emissions reduction and climate change measures. These will help to ensure that we continue to build on our achievements to date as we strive together to reach net zero emissions by 2045, bearing in mind that we have already reduced our emissions by more than 40 per cent.
The measures I will speak about today are about how the government is leading by example through establishing a social cost of carbon; our efforts to reduce emissions
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