Home Property Australia Submission Update Land Tax Relief Planning Regulation and NDIS

Submission Update Land Tax Relief Planning Regulation and NDIS

  • August 21, 2020

SUBMISSION UPDATE

The Property Council has provided the following correspondences to government, including a joint industry letter asking for Queensland’s land tax relief to be extended, a submission on proposed changes to Queensland’s Planning Regulation, and a submission on QPC’s inquiry into Queensland’s implementation of NDIS.

Land Tax Relief Extension

The Property Council in conjunction with the NRA, QHA, AI Group, CCIQ, and the QTIC have written to Queensland’s Treasurer urging for an extension to the State’s land tax relief package.

The Government’s land tax relief is set to expire at the end of September, and in October, landowners will be issued with their land tax bill for 2020-21. This bill will include their deferred land tax for the July-September quarter, a period during which the Retail Shop Leases and Other Commercial Leases (COVID-19 Emergency Response) Regulation 2020 was in effect.

Despite Government acknowledging via the commercial leasing regulation that these are extraordinary and financially challenging times for landlords and tenants, once these land tax bills are issued, it will still be expecting its full share of land tax revenue.

Furthermore, by levying land tax in October, the Government will place an additional tax imposition on businesses at a time when landlords and tenants are still struggling to get back on their feet and are adjusting to new commercial realities following a highly challenging period. This could severely hamper Queensland’s economic rebound.

As such the Government should:

  • Waive currently deferred land tax for the July September Quarter to match Queensland’s commercial leasing regulation.
  • Defer land tax assessments until January 2021 to allow Queensland businesses to get back on their feet.

To view the Property Council’s full submission, please click here.

Queensland Planning Regulation

The Property Council has provided feedback to the Government on proposed changes to Queensland’s planning regulation.

The proposal to amend the Planning Regulation 2017 to enable low risk, economic value-adding uses to operate in certain zones is supported, however, notes the risk of unintended consequences.

The Property Council also supports the proposal to provide the community with a greater understanding of development applications, however, the Property Council noted concerns with the potentially problematic wording of some of these amendments.

Overall, the Property Council is supportive of the Government’s intent to streamline the planning process and make the necessary amendments to ensure it can respond to market conditions.

To view the Property Council’s full submission, please click here.

Queensland Productivity Commission’s inquiry into the NDIS market

The Property Council has provided a submission to the Queensland Productivity Commision on its ongoing inquiry into the NDIS market in Queensland.

The Property Council’s submission focuses on the supply of Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) in Queensland.

In order to provide recipients of Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) funding with the level of choice, flexibility and autonomy that the NDIS intends, it is important to ensure that investing in and developing SDA is viewed as a viable option by the private sector.

To view the Property Council’s full submission, please click here.