Mrs SALLY QUINNELL (Camden) (11:12): My question is addressed to the Premier. Will the Premier update the House on the steps being taken to address the housing supply crisis in New South Wales?

Mr CHRIS MINNS (Kogarah—Premier) (11:12): It is a tough question but a necessary one in addressing what is undeniably a critical housing shortage in New South Wales. To put this in perspective, we now have a situation where 30,000 people leave New South Wales and go to other States every single year. It used to be the case, about 10 to 15 years ago, that young people would say, "Will I ever be able to afford to buy a house in New South Wales?" Now the mantra for many young people is, "Will I even be able to rent a house in New South Wales?" That is one of the reasons the Government has decided to have more density closer to where jobs and opportunities are in New South Wales. It is one of the reasons we have commissioned the Greater Cities Commission to rebalance urban growth along public transport corridors, particularly in Parramatta and the CBD.

We have recently announced changes to affordable housing so that, if a private developer with private capital has at least 15 per cent of its housing as affordable housing, we will give the developer a State-significant development pathway as well as a 30 per cent increase in floor space ratio and a 30 per cent increase in the allowed building heights. I am pleased to say to the House that this was met with support from large segments of the housing groups in New South Wales. In fact, Michele Adair, who is the CEO of the Housing Trust, said on ABC Radio, "I think this is actually some of the most positive developments that we've heard in relation to affordable rent, frankly, in a number of years." The Business Council of Australia said:

This is a win-win that enables more affordable housing for those who need it as well as more housing supply overall.

The Property Council of Australia put out a media release that stated:

Prioritising measures which enable industry to deliver more density is exactly the approach we need from this new government.

We are seeing a wellspring of political parties come across to this way of thinking—density done well in Australia's largest city. Even the New South Wales Greens are coming on board. I have noticed even from the Inner West Council there was a wellspring of support for density in New South Wales. The National Party does not particularly care about what happens in Sydney. We have seen the crossbench saying, "We need more density in Sydney." There is one hold-out, and that is the Liberal Party of New South Wales. [Extension of time]

The SPEAKER: Government members will come to order.

Mr CHRIS MINNS: There is a reason for that. Its members are conditioned from an early age to be nimbys. A fantastic article from Alexandra Smith from 2019 is about everybody's favourite former Treasurer of New South Wales, the member for Hornsby. It states:

The Hornsby MP developed a taste for politics as a teenage activist involved in a residents' group fighting overdevelopment in his northern Sydney suburb.

The then 18-year-old and his father Noel were trying to stop units springing up in Wahroonga …

Some people get involved in politics because of human rights. Some people get involved because of the environment. It might be John Locke. It might be Edmund Burke. The member for Hornsby got involved in politics to stop a unit block in Wahroonga. But it does not stop there. We have been searching and we have found one MP who had the courage to back urban consolidation. That is the self-described champion of multicultural communities, the member for Oatley. He said in 2016 that he supported a new development in Riverwood that would see a new lease of life with a big increase in new social and affordable housing. The problem was, a couple of years later he put out a media release, saying, "The Riverwood housing plan would have seen thousands of residents come into our local community, clogging up local roads. I'm proud to say that I stopped it." What happened? The suburb of Riverwood was redistributed into the electorate of Oatley. It is not nimby, it is "now in my backyard". It is time we backed urban consolidation in New South Wales.

The SPEAKER: I take it that the Premier is okay with Government members interjecting during his answers.

Mr CHRIS MINNS: Yes.