Housing Taskforce Accelerates Delivery of Over 13,000 Homes, Including Newcastle Projects

14 November 2024

In a boost to housing development across New South Wales, the Minns Government has established a Housing Taskforce that has already unlocked over 13,000 homes by resolving bureaucratic delays. This initiative, aimed at speeding up the delivery of more homes and creating jobs, has proven especially effective in the Greater Newcastle area.

The Housing Taskforce, which began as a pilot program in September 2024, focuses on tackling post-consent requirements where developments often become stalled within government processes. Drawing staff from multiple NSW Government agencies into a single office in Parramatta, the Taskforce collaborates closely to clear the backlog of delayed projects and bring new housing projects to fruition more quickly and efficiently.

One of the notable successes of the Housing Taskforce is the unblocking of approvals for a housing development in the Greater Newcastle area. This project had been stuck in the system for an unprecedented 865 days before the Taskforce intervened. Through the Taskforce’s coordinated efforts, including working directly with Heritage NSW to address outstanding issues and gather necessary information, the case was resolved within a week. This swift action has allowed construction to commence more quickly, increasing housing supply in Newcastle and supporting local jobs. The Taskforce’s efforts to streamline approvals and ensure efficient communication between agencies have played a central role in making this possible.

Statewide, the Housing Taskforce is addressing issues that have historically slowed development applications (DAs). During 2023 alone, 9,772 development applications worth over $22 billion required advice or approvals from a government agency, and over 1,900 of those applications needed guidance or approvals from more than one agency. Navigating this complexity often resulted in delays, but the Taskforce’s coordinated approach has been instrumental in addressing these bottlenecks. Beyond the Newcastle example, the Taskforce’s work has been critical in accelerating projects elsewhere in NSW. In the Sydney CBD, a residential building project required approval from Sydney Metro before it could proceed to construction. The Taskforce intervened, ensuring swift coordination with Sydney Metro and preventing delays to the project’s commencement. In another instance, a large housing development in the Upper Hunter Region needed timely approval to meet statutory deadlines. By working closely with Heritage NSW and the applicant, the Taskforce secured the required approvals within one day, ensuring the project stayed on schedule and highlighting the effectiveness of this collaborative model.

Given the success of the pilot, the Minns Government plans to continue the Housing Taskforce as a permanent feature of the NSW planning system. The focus will remain on identifying and resolving issues in the planning process that cause delays, ensuring that homes and jobs are delivered faster across the state. The Taskforce’s emphasis on both pre-determination and post-determination approvals means more homes can move from the approved stage to the commencement of construction stage faster, addressing the urgent housing demands facing communities such as Newcastle.

Minister for Planning and Public Spaces, Paul Scully, emphasises the importance of this initiative in improving the planning system and delivering housing:

“Under the former Government, five Ministers oversaw the planning system. It is no wonder that we have ended up with such a cumbersome and complex system. Under the Minns Government, we want every stage of the planning system, pre-lodgement, assessment, and post-consent, to be working as effectively and efficiently as possible to deliver more homes and jobs, faster.”

Minister Scully adds that communities across NSW, including Newcastle, should not be held back by inter-agency disagreements or lack of coordination:

“Communities don’t want to hear that two Government agencies can’t see eye-to-eye on a housing development. They want to see homes being built with the minimum of fuss, and with this taskforce we are one step closer to that. This Taskforce is about having representatives from state agencies, vital to planning approvals, under one roof to make it easier to consider all of the issues for a particular site in a coordinated way.”