The NSW Government is today releasing a discussion paper and seeking community input which will inform a comprehensive review of Short-Term Rental Accommodation (STRA) in NSW.

This is an important next step as the NSW Government continues to look at ways to address the housing crisis in NSW.

Led by the Minister for Housing, Minister for Homelessness Rose Jackson, the four-week public consultation opens today with the release of a discussion paper and an online questionnaire.

Through this review the NSW Government will work with all stakeholders to ensure outcomes contribute meaningfully to increasing housing affordability, and stability in NSW. 

Specific feedback which will be sought and considered throughout this process includes:

• The adequacy of the STRA planning and regulatory framework, and options for improvement.
• Potential policy options, including measures to incentivise property investors to make properties available for long-term rental accommodation.

In NSW, housing affordability and availability are at their lowest levels in decades.

Even though NSW has the largest population, it is last on the east coast when it comes to housing completion.

Building approvals and construction activity have slowed while build costs have skyrocketed.

Rental vacancies are low and there are more than 55,000 people on the waitlist for social housing.

This week alone, two independent reports highlighted the magnitude of the housing crisis facing Australia’s most populous state.

The Productivity Commission reported that Sydney was at risk of becoming a city with no grandchildren if we do not meaningfully address the housing crisis.

Whilst an analysis by Homelessness NSW showed that homelessness has risen across 58 of the state’s 128 local government areas in the past year alone.

The NSW Government is taking action to strike the right balance between supporting our local communities, supporting the visitor economy and jobs, whilst addressing the homelessness, housing and rental crisis.

Whilst the review and potential reform of STRA alone is not a silver bullet, it is an important step towards fixing existing structural issues in the housing market.

All options are on the table in this review and the NSW Government looks forward to seeing extensive feedback from industry as well as the community.

Have your say on short and long-term rental accommodation

Minister for Planning and Public Spaces Paul Scully said:

“We’re hoping to better balance housing availability for the people of NSW with the benefits that tourism brings to local communities.

“We’re in a housing crisis, so it’s important we look at every available option to boost housing supply, including a shift from non-hosted short-term rentals to long term rentals.

“We’ve already endorsed the Independent Planning Commission (IPC) recommendation to tighten the cap on some non-hosted short-term rentals in Byron Shire, and other recommendations made by the IPC will be considered as part of this broader STRA review.”

Minister for Housing and Minister for Homelessness Rose Jackson said:

“We’re determined to do everything we can to tackle the housing crisis and put every part of the housing market under the microscope for options to encourage a greater supply of long-term rental accommodation.

“All options are on the table and we are keen to hear from the community on how various aspects of regulatory and revenue measures can be designed to get the best outcome.”

“This review will inform our approach to make better use of all forms of housing, including short term rentals, vacant property and holiday homes.

“This includes looking at ways to move some of this housing to the long-term rental market and to minimise its negative impacts on the housing market as well as what we can do to support homelessness services across NSW.”

More than 3000 jobs at The Star will be protected after Treasurer Daniel Mookhey signed a formal Jobs Guarantee Agreement with the casino overnight.

The agreement is a critical piece of new arrangements at The Star, which see the casino pay more tax while protecting the livelihoods of workers.

The government’s guarantee to protect these jobs was contained in the Casino Control Amendment Act 2023 which passed through the parliament last year.

Under the Jobs Guarantee, The Star is legally bound to maintain more than 3000 jobs through to 2030 and faces stiff penalties for any breaches.

The Star Jobs Guarantee includes:

• More than 3000 jobs at The Star will be protected through to 2030.
• The Star will maintain a minimum headcount for 3 categories of workers.
• The headcount will be reported quarterly.
• If the actual headcount is less than the required number, The Star will be required to pay the NSW Government $25,000 for each headcount shortfall in a quarter.
• The Star will be required to maintain ratios of full-time, part-time and casual staff within certain ranges.
• Where ratios are not maintained within a quarter, an amount of $1 million will be payable to the NSW Government each quarter.
• The United Workers Union will oversee the Jobs Agreement and it will be closely monitored by the government.

Treasurer Daniel Mookhey said:

“Hard working people should not have to pay the price for mismanagement at The Star.

“This agreement not only protects thousands of direct jobs at The Star, it also supports thousands of indirect jobs and the many businesses that provide goods and services to the casino.

“The government listened to workers, unions and management and we’ve delivered an agreement that will protect thousands of workers while also seeing The Star pay more tax.

“We have cleaned up the mess of the previous government’s bungled casino policy with an agreement that increases casino tax while protecting the livelihoods of more than 3000 workers.”

The NSW Labor Government is equipping the next generation of chefs and bakers in the Illawarra with the technology skills to bridge the digital skills gap for hospitality workers.

For the first time, apprentices and students studying Certificate III in Baking and Commercial Cookery at TAFE NSW Wollongong will complete technology units, helping students build the digital literacy skills they need to succeed in their studies and in the workplace.

The pilot program will see first-year students complete a Statement of Attainment in Use Personal Digital Technology.

The rapid pace of digital transformation across industries is driving demand to deliver a workforce with the skills to thrive in a digital economy.

With a 22 per cent increase in demand for chef roles in the last 12 months in the Illawarra, which is triple the national average, TAFE NSW Wollongong is proudly providing hospitality support to the entire region.

TAFE NSW Wollongong campus has a number of hospitality courses including:

• Certificate II in Cooking
• Certificates II and III in Baking
• Certificates II and III in Hospitality
• Certificate III in Commercial Cookery
• Certificate III in Cake and Pastry
• Certificate III in Bread Baking.

Minister for the Illawarra and the South Coast, Ryan Park said:

“Hospitality workers play a critical role right across the Illawarra, for locals and tourists alike.

“We know that digital innovation is changing the landscape of our tourism industry. Digital skills are vital to future-proof the workforce, ensuring the Illawarra remains a premier tourist destination.”

Minister for Planning and Public Spaces, Paul Scully said:

“Getting a great digital education opens up so many opportunities for young people, this training provides a fantastic new way to educate our community.

“It’s great for employers too as access to quality, industry-relevant training creates a pipeline of skilled workers ready, willing and able to support the growth and development of local businesses and economy.” 

Minister for Skills, TAFE and Tertiary Education, Steve Whan said:

“Every worker in every industry now needs digital skills. This includes trade workers having to add digital skills to their toolbox.

“We are committed to rebuilding TAFE NSW after a decade of deliberate neglect by the previous Liberal National government.

“It is wonderful to see TAFE NSW Wollongong supporting the demand for local chefs in the Illawarra.”

The NSW Government is responding to community calls for greater transparency around the Rozelle Interchange, with the release for the first time of travel time data to help motorists plan their trips.

The journey time data tables are designed to assist motorists and public transport commuters to understand trip times based on days of the week and the dual peaks that have been noted since the Rozelle Interchange opened in late November.

Transport for NSW has identified a ‘tradie peak’ around 7am, particularly on the City West Link, and a later commuter peak that is busiest between 8.15am and 8.30am on Victoria Road and City West Link.

Travel times, which will be published weekly on a Friday for about the next three months, will allow motorists and bus users to plan journeys and allow people to avoid the periods of heaviest traffic.

The journey times to be published are:

• Victoria Road from the Gladesville Bridge to Anzac Bridge
• City West Link from Ramsay Street to Anzac Bridge
• Average weekly bus journey times for dedicated routes on Victoria Road
• Average travel times on WestConnex to Anzac Bridge from Parramatta and Beverly Hills

The Transport Management Centre is using travel time monitoring equipment to collect journey times as the performance of roads has fluctuated since the opening of the interchange.

In the first week after Rozelle Interchange opened the average travel time on Victoria Road between Lyons Road at Drummoyne and Anzac Bridge during the morning peak was 62 minutes. Last week, the same trip and time was 30 minutes.

Minister for Roads John Graham said:

“This is a practical intervention to help people plan their trips.

“We are working to bring travel times down on the roads around the interchange.

“While many motorists from Western Sydney are benefiting from large reductions in travel time since the opening of the Rozelle Interchange, the Inner West community has been adversely affected, that is the reality.

“The advice to me from Transport for NSW has been that the road system can take up to six months to settle after the opening of a large new piece of infrastructure like this. As that happens we want people using this available trip time data to inform their journey planning in the AM peak.”

Inner West Mayor Darcy Byrne said:

“We’ve been advocating for the release of this travel time data to give us an evidence base for which mitigations are working around the Rozelle Interchange and so that the community has information to plan their commute.

“It’s a good thing that the NSW Government has listened and this transparency will help give our community confidence that everything possible is being done to fix the congestion we have been dealing with.”

It is alarming to see the unemployment rate rise to 4.1 per cent today, the worst result in two years and an indication the Albanese Government needs to get serious about jobs.

The January Labour Force figures released today show there are 581,000 Australians without a job in the middle of a cost of living crisis. That’s 5200 more unemployed Australians than in the previous month.

Shadow Treasurer Angus Taylor said: “Australians are paying the price for a government that’s been asleep at the wheel when it comes to economic management. 

“Jobs have been all that have kept people afloat during Labor’s cost of living crisis. And now, Labor’s policies to increase to the cost of everything is coming home to roost.

“This is a government that thinks it can spin and spend its way out of a cost of living crisis. But Australians have been left to pay the price. 

“After spending $450 million on their failed referendum and adding $209 billion of extra spending, the government will now spend $40 million to try and justify their broken promise on stage three tax cuts.

“This is a consequence of a government without a proper economic plan.” 

Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations Senator Michaelia Cash said: “The problem we have is that the Albanese Government keeps making decisions that do nothing to help create jobs.”

“Business has been very clear in their view that Labor’s radical industrial relations agenda, the latest of which was rammed through the Parliament last week, will mean fewer jobs and higher costs for all Australians,’’ Senator Cash said.

“The latest industrial relations changes allow union officials to enter any workplace without notice, replace the current clear law on who is a casual with three pages and fifteen factors, and a range of other measures that will be detrimental to the economy, productivity and jobs,’’ she said.

“Labor has put industry and employers in an unworkable position. Rather than respond to stakeholder feedback, Labor has instead chosen to pursue nonsensical changes as part of a union agenda and alliance with the Greens,’’ Senator Cash said. 

Labor’s latest legislation is estimated to see prices for food delivery or rideshare services increase by up to 35%

“This Government just keeps putting the job creators of this nation under pressure with their complex and costly workplace laws and will end up sending some small businesses to breaking point,’’ Senator Cash said.