Government announces new guidelines for release of surplus Commonwealth land

Lindsay Tanner, Minister for Finance and Deregulation and Tanya Plibersek,  and the Status of Women today released new guidelines for the sale of surplus Commonwealth land to support the construction of new housing.

Under the new policy, surplus Commonwealth land suitable for housing will be disposed of to support the construction of new houses, improve community amenity and support the creation of new jobs.

Those surplus properties not suitable for housing will continue to be disposed of on the open market to the highest bidder.

Mr Tanner said the new guidelines were yet another example of the Government’s commitment to cut red tape.

“The revamped Commonwealth Property Disposals Policy delivers on an election commitment to expedite the sale of surplus Commonwealth land,” Mr Tanner said.

Ms Plibersek said Commonwealth was taking practical action to increase the supply of housing in Australia.

“The new guidelines will mean that surplus Commonwealth land is released in a manner that aids the Government’s objectives to increase housing supply,” Ms Plibersek said.

“This adds to the Rudd Government’s raft of housing affordability measures – which together will boost jobs in the construction sector, increase the number of affordable rental homes being built, help more people save for their first home and lower housing infrastructure costs for some entry level housing.”

Under the new CPDP guidelines, state and local governments will continue to have the opportunity to put forward requests for a priority sale of surplus Commonwealth land, provided it can be demonstrated that such a sale offers the best outcome for delivery of the Government’s objectives.

The recent release of an expression of interest for a 7.2 hectare CSIRO site at Indooroopilly in Brisbane is an example of the Australian Government’s commitment to providing surplus Commonwealth land for housing.

There are a number of other surplus Commonwealth properties around the country that are being considered for disposal. These properties will be brought forward for Government consideration as soon as is practicable.

The new guidelines can be found on the Department of Finance and Deregulation website