Population Policy

There appears to be a complete disconnect between

• the population increases that are driving the need for more housing, on the one hand; and
• on the other hand,
  • the exisiting evidence that our road, rail, power, water, stormwater, sewerage, hospital etc infrastructures are unable to cope with the existing population, let alone an increased one; and
  • the increasing concerns relating to Climate Change  that suggest that energy-hungry medium- or high-rise apartments will be part of the problem , not part of its solution.

All this points to the need for a serious national debate on immigration levels and the larger number of temporary visas issued. A debate in which the views of Federal, State and Local governments are all reflected as well as those of all our residents and citizens, not just those of the developers and their lobby groups whose interests lie in profit before environment and amenity of existing and new residents.

Otherwise, State housing strategies will increasingly be seen to serve the symbiotic relationship between major political parties and the developers of apartment buildings.  

Current strategies and policies, unjustified or arrogantly imposed, threaten the democratic process, and democracy itself. See Dick Smith’s AGM presentation on Population Policy video.