Property Council of Australia hails state election result as pro-growth

Rapid population growth was a big issue in the state election campaign, with the Opposition pushing decentralisation policies. So how did people in high growth areas vote?

State Labor’s emphatic election win showed rapid population growth was politically saleable, the property industry says.

Property Council of Australia national CEO Ken Morrison said that Victorians had not voted against growth, despite Melbourne’s growth rate being among the western world’s highest.

“The only takeout on this type of topic from the state election is that planning, delivering, investing for good growth is not just the right thing to do, but politically is completely saleable, even in our fastest growing city in Australia,” he said.

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Melbourne has one of the highest growth rates in the western world.

Mr Morrison praised Premier Daniel Andrews for avoiding the “we’ve got to cut migration” dialogue that’s been brewing on the national scene for months.

Opposition Leader Matthew Guy campaigned hard on taking the pressure off Melbourne by decentralising growth to the regions and called for the states to have a key say on migration policy.

Property Council analysis of election results showed that six out of 10 of the highest growth areas had swings to the ALP above the 4.7 per cent state average.

These included Yan Yean (13.1 per cent), Cranbourne (8.5 per cent), South Barwon (7.9 per cent) and Bass (6.7 per cent).

Property Council of Victoria state division executive director Cressida Wall.

The council’s state division executive director Cressida Wall said that managing record population growth was a key election battleground.

“Victorians are clearly willing to welcome population growth, but only if they can see genuine progress being made to deliver the infrastructure they need,” she said.

Sustainable Australia Party candidate Clifford Hayes.

However, Sustainable Australia Party candidate Clifford Hayes, who looks set to win an Upper House seat, said he picked up a different message.

“There was a large swell of discontent about overdevelopment and not being able to do anything about it,” he said.

“People were sick of being overridden on planning matters in VCAT, ministers intervening in planning issues and councils being sidelined — it’s all over Melbourne.”

Mr Hayes said that with the city’s population set to double over the next 30 years, state governments would strip more power from councils in order to accommodate people.

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@JMasanauskas