General Purpose Standing Committee No. 2

Debate resumed from 26 February 2008.

The Hon. ROBYN PARKER [3.33 p.m.]: The General Purpose Standing Committee No. 2 report on the Office of Fair Trading Home Building Service makes 21 recommendations to improve the regulation of home building in New South Wales. The inquiry was unusual in that it was commenced by General Purpose Standing Committee No. 4 and was completed by General Purpose Standing Committee No. 2. General Purpose Standing Committee No. 4 established the original inquiry into the operations of the Home Building Service of the Office of Fair Trading on 27 September 2006. Following the re-establishment of the general purpose standing committees in the fifty-fourth Parliament responsibility for the Fair Trading portfolio was transferred from General Purpose Standing Committee No. 4 to General Purpose Standing Committee No. 2. The inquiry was re-established effectively with the same terms of reference on 27 July 2007.

I extend my thanks to the members of General Purpose Standing Committee No. 4, and in particular the chairperson, the Hon. Jenny Gardiner, for the work they undertook in hearing evidence and dealing with a large number of submissions and for the ground work they did. It was difficult for members of General Purpose Standing Committee No. 2 to pick up an inquiry about which they had very little knowledge. Committee members almost arrived at consensus with regard to this report and they worked very hard to achieve outcomes that would lead to real improvements. A dissenting report was presented, and I will deal with that later.

The New South Wales home building industry generates in excess of $19 billion a year and employs approximately 250,000 people. In 2005-06 the industry built 32,000 new homes and undertook 21,500 major renovations and 1.6 million minor building works. The committee has concluded that consumer protection for homebuilders and renovators in this State should be improved. Although some consensus was achieved, one should never assume that this report is a lightweight report. It is not; it certainly makes strong recommendations. I will enjoy telling the House about those recommendations.

Pursuant to standing orders business interrupted and set down as an order of the day for a future day.