Wednesday, 5 June 2019

 Mr T SMITH (Kew) (11:15): My question is to the Minister for Planning. Why won’t the Minister for Planning use section 172 of the Planning and Environment Act, as suggested by Dr Kate Shaw of the University of Melbourne, to compulsorily acquire the site at 156–160 Leicester Street, Carlton, at its present undeveloped value and develop the site into public housing, ensuring the developers who broke the law do not profit from their unlawful activity?

 Mr WYNNE (Richmond—Minister for Housing, Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Minister for Planning) (11:15): Dr Shaw is a very fine academic, and I know her very well, but in this circumstance the proposal that she has suggested, that this site be compulsorily acquired by the government, would ensure that there would be a windfall gain to the developers. That is not in—

Mr Walsh: They have already got it.

Mr WYNNE: Well, they have just—

The SPEAKER: Order! Without the assistance of the Leader of The Nationals. Through the Chair.

Mr WYNNE: The Leader of The Nationals, can I just remind him that the developers have copped more than $2 million in fines so far—more than $2 million in fines. So the simple reality is—and I respect Dr Shaw absolutely, she is a very fine academic—that we act on the advice of the most eminent QCs, the most eminent planning QCs, me and the City of Melbourne. And I remind the member for Kew that this enforcement order was signed off by me, by the City of Melbourne and indeed the University of Melbourne students as well, who were also a party to this matter.

Can I say in relation to the valuations, the process is very clear. The legislation is very clear. If there is any attempt by the state to compulsorily acquire a property, it has to be acquired at highest and best use, which would of course ensure, given the zoning, that it would be a very significant windfall to the developers of that site.

 Mr T SMITH (Kew) (11:17): The Minister for Planning has wideranging powers to ensure these dodgy developers cannot profit from their outrageous behaviour. At the very least, why didn’t the minister place mandatory controls over the site to ensure the developers cannot build more than one storey?

 Mr WYNNE (Richmond—Minister for Housing, Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Minister for Planning) (11:18): Can I thank the member for Kew for his supplementary question. The reality of this is that there are planning controls over the site now. These were incorporated into the South Carlton planning controls for the area. In effect what the member for Kew is seeking to do is basically back-zone—to back-zone this land. And that would—

Members interjecting.

Mr WYNNE: Yes, that’s right. To basically—

The SPEAKER: Order! Without the interjections.

Mr WYNNE: To back-zone the land, which would in effect ensure that the state was open to a massive compensation claim by the owners of the site.

Members interjecting.

Mr WYNNE: Well, that is—

The SPEAKER: Through the Chair!

Mr WYNNE: Well, I will take the advice of the most eminent planning QCs in the state and not the Leader of the Opposition or the member for Kew.