Local governments have warned Australia will be unable to solve its housing crisis because of severe shortages of engineers, town planners and building inspectors.
The Australian Local Government Association (ALGA) says nine in 10 councils are facing labour shortages in roles essential to land-use planning, development assessment, infrastructure delivery, asset management and climate adaptation.
“Objectives such as increasing housing supply and accelerating infrastructure delivery cannot be achieved without a capable and adequately resourced local government workforce,” the ALGA said in a submission to a joint parliamentary committee inquiry into productivity led by Liberal senator Andrew Bragg.
As Education Minister Jason Clare told Capital Brief the government was increasing university funding, the Housing Industry Association (HIA) echoed the ALGA’s warning in its own submission, saying council bureaucracies were “buckling under the weight” of current demand for housing approvals.
