Eamon Waterford, CEO of the Committee for Sydney:

“The reforms announced by the NSW Government are bold – and bold action is what’s required to solve what is the key intergenerational issue facing Sydney.

“Our research shows right now, Sydney is losing more than $10bn a year from lost productivity, lost talent and lost innovation as a result of our unaffordable housing. If we don’t take action, less than half the children born today will ever own a house in this city.

“What’s more, our research shows the community understands the need for increased density, and backs it.

“All levels of government need to work together so young people can afford to stay in Sydney.

“The blanket controls proposed are going to be imperfect and will need fine tuning over time, but in light of Sydney’s housing challenge, they are urgently needed.

“Local governments know their communities and local neighborhoods intimately, in ways state governments can’t, so it’s appropriate to give councils tools to deliver housing their own way – but these must meet or exceed the scale of housing proposed by the state.

Background sources:

1 – Committee for Sydney, Chronically unaffordable housing, September 2023, https://sydney.org.au/policy-library/chronically-unaffordable-housing/

2 – Committee for Sydney, State of the City, February 2024, https://sydney.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Committee-for-Sydney-State-of-the-City-2024-February-2024.pdf

3 – Committee for Sydney, Life in Sydney, February 2024, https://www.sydney.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Committee-for-Sydney-Life-in-Sydney-2024-February-2024.pdf