Speakman says Libs are ’ADIMBYs’ – backing ‘appropriate development’

Mark Speakman has his own acronym for the housing crises. The Libs aren’t NIMBYs or YIMBYs, but “ADIMBYs” – backing “appropriate development in my backyard”, he says.

NSW Opposition Leader Mark Speakman. Picture: NewsWire / Nikki Short

The Liberals need to be a party of “ADIMBYs” – championing “appropriate development in my backyard,” Opposition Leader Mark Speakman says.

In an interview with The Daily Telegraph ahead of delivering his budget in reply speech on Thursday, Mr Speakman said the Minns government had delivered “almost nothing” to fix the housing crisis in Tuesday’s fiscal blueprint.

After the defeat of the Premier’s plan for 25,000 homes on Rosehill Racecourse, Mr Speakman said the government should revive a shelved plan to build 10,000 new dwellings at Rosehill and Camellia.

He accused the government of being caught “like a deer in the headlights” when Australian Turf Club members voted down the Rosehill housing proposal, and said it should have had alternatives “ready to go”.

When asked whether the Liberal Party stood for more housing or opposed higher density, Mr Speakman said his Opposition is a party of “ADIMBYs” – supporting higher density where it is “appropriate”.

“There has to be more density. There also has to be greenfield (development),” he said.

“Sometimes we might say: ‘well, we think that’s the wrong location (for housing),’ but when we do that, I want us to be offering up alternative locations, not just saying, no, no, no, no,” he said.

It comes after Vaucluse MP Kellie Sloane labelled a plan to build townhouses and apartments in Rose Bay “confronting,” because the community was “a high density community already” and was doing the “heavy lifting” on new housing.

Shadow Minister for Health Kellie Sloane and NSW Leader of the Opposition Mark Speakman, address the media in a press conference at Parliament House in Sydney to comment on the Workers Compensation Legislation. Photo: NewsWire/ Gaye Gerard

Mr Speakman downplayed those comments on Wednesday.

“She thinks there are better places to put (apartment developments) than Rose Bay, she’s not saying the eastern suburbs are closed for more density,” he said.

“It’s not a matter of exempting these suburbs,” he said.

“(The Eastern Suburbs), like every part of Sydney, must play its fair share, but there are probably better areas out that way, where you can have the density.”

Originally published as Speakman says Libs are ’ADIMBYs’ – backing ‘appropriate development’