Wednesday, 21 September 2022

Brunswick electorate

Dr READ (Brunswick) (18:28): (6544) My constituency question is for the Minister for Planning. The residents of an eight-unit building in Brunswick are removing flammable cladding to meet the deadline set by a council-issued building order and face bills of up to $100 000 each. One resident, a single mother with an autistic daughter, owns less than half of her unit, having bought it with a 10 per cent deposit four years ago. She is not confident of getting a loan to meet this bill nor of being able to meet the repayments on top of her existing mortgage, given rising interest rates.

Cladding Safety Victoria has still not assessed this building despite an application in March last year. My constituent feels abandoned by the government, and she has been, along with many others in similar situations. Will the minister ensure that all buildings are assessed within a reasonable time frame and that support is provided for cladding replacement, particularly for people in difficult financial circumstances?