Page 1720 - Week 05 - Wednesday, 15 May 2019
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We are also addressing housing affordability and cost of living by abolishing once and for all stamp duty for eligible first home buyers from 1 July 2019 and extending the concession across the housing market for first home buyers. This is part of a long-term program to remove stamp duty, one of the worst taxes levied by state and territory governments across this nation.
We are establishing an affordable home purchase scheme which sets aside dwellings built as part of the land release program to be able to be sold to eligible Canberrans at affordable prices. We are continuing to provide a 50 per cent rates rebate for eligible pension card holders up to a maximum of $700. We are increasing the utilities concession by $50, again up to $700 annually for eligible applicants on 1 July this year, providing greater flexibility for ratepayers in how rates bills can be paid.
In addition to these important policies, we will continue to release new land for housing supply and we will continue to focus on policy reforms like the ones that we will return to tomorrow, to improve people’s cost of living in Canberra, namely CTP reform from which over 280,000 motorists in this city will benefit, not only from extended CTP coverage but from lower premiums—one-third—a practical example of important policy reform that delivers a cost of living benefit to Canberra households.
In relation to further reforms in the housing market, there is no doubt that an emphasis on supply, an emphasis on innovation and reform within the territory’s planning system—work that is being led by Minister Gentleman—and a focus on providing choice in the housing market will be important as we move into the city’s next phase of development.
I note that the city of Canberra is growing faster than the Canberra region. Our rate of population growth is outstripping that of the immediate region. But as Canberra grows, the region grows too. And that is a good thing. It is a good thing that Canberra and the region continue to grow. But we need to grow sustainably and we need to grow in a way that respects our unique urban bushland.
The areas that immediately surround the city of Canberra are valuable and should be protected. That is why we have ruled out development in the Kowen Forest precinct while we are focusing future greenfield development in Canberra in the balance of Gungahlin, those west Belconnen suburbs associated with the Ginninderry development, and in the Molonglo Valley. And there are some further areas identified for further planning studies around future greenfield.
We do, as a city, face a choice as we continue to grow. As our population heads towards half a million people, we will need to make choices about where new greenfield development occurs and what is the balance between urban sprawl and urban consolidation. Canberra is one of the least densely populated cities in Australia and in the world.
We have an active program of encouraging greater density in our city centre, in our town centres, in our group centres, around our local centres and along transport corridors. That supports small business activity and it creates different, vibrant
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