Page 1770 - Week 05 - Wednesday, 15 May 2019
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of these were resolved by the new rapid regulatory response team, which is a great initiative by the people in Access Canberra. It has been key to resolving complaints in a timely manner and reducing ongoing cases by 20 per cent. Access Canberra is still working hard to resolve over 150 active building and planning cases.
The ACT government’s focus has meant that there has been increased enforcement activity, especially for multi-unit developments. We are working towards positive change within the industry as a result of the increase in enforcement activities. Access Canberra has issued a total of six notices of intention to issue a rectification order for multi-unit developments. The regulatory actions also include eight notices of intention to issue a rectification order, with three rectification orders being issued; 15 show cause notices, with six controlled activity orders being issued; 178 demerit points to construction occupation licensees; and 28 stop work notices.
In addition to the new exams for class A and B builders, we recently introduced laws to give the construction occupations registrar the power to require exams at the time of renewal. Access Canberra’s plumbing, drainage and gas inspectors continue to enable owners to occupy their buildings as soon as possible, with the time frame for inspections being two to three business days.
In the last four months alone, Access Canberra has conducted almost 5,000 inspections in this space. The electrical inspectorate within Access Canberra continues to undertake inspections in a timely manner, including inspecting 100 per cent of new electrical installations. This means that they have conducted almost 30,000 inspections this financial year.
The progress that has been made to improve building quality so far is impressive and ongoing. A stronger regulatory response requires more time, and there is still much more to do in the building quality space to benefit the community, as it is our commitment and our dedication as a government to do. I have asked the directorate to continue to roll out these reforms as a matter of its highest priority. We have committed to having completed at least 28 reforms by the end of this financial year, and I have asked the directorate to see if there are more that can be brought forward and implemented before then.
I look forward to updating members further as the reforms continue to progress and we see the benefit of these in improving building quality. We are committed to ensuring that we have the highest quality buildings and the highest confidence in the sector, and also a strong regulatory response on those few occasions where it is necessary.
MS LE COUTEUR (Murrumbidgee) (6.02): The Greens support the thrust of Mr Parton’s motion but also support the ALP amendment, which clarifies some facts and, even more positively, reveals some very good news on resourcing. Mr Parton’s motion deals with two issues: a government bungle with the rollout of updates to the National Construction Code, and progress on industry building reforms, which have been disappointingly slow. There is not much I can say about the bungle, lack of consultation et cetera. The ALP amendment clarifies some of the facts and,
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