More than 50,000 Queensland builders could benefit from a state government initiative to reduce red tape and unnecessary costs.

Minister for Housing and Public Works Sam O’Connor said the initiative, Building Reg Reno, will reduce paperwork for tradies.

“Building Reg Reno removes the financial reporting requirements and will reduce red tape for 50,000 licensees,” Mr O’Connor said.

“We want Queensland to be the building capital of the nation but at the moment our construction sites are the least productive in Australia.”

Changes include: 

• Scrapping unnecessary financial reporting for more than 50,000 individual operators in the self-certifying licensee categories.
• Providing more time to meet new fire protection licensing rules to minimise disruption to important work.
• Scrapping occupational licence fees for plumbers doing fire protection work.
• Fast-tracking the digitising of licensing and administrative processes which are still paper-based. 
• Amending the legislation governing the Queensland Building and Construction Commission to remove duplicate workplace safety notification requirements. 

The rollout of the Project Trust Account laws to projects under $10m will also be halted. 

CEO of Master Builders Paul Bidwell welcomed the initiative. Mr Bidwell said,

“Slashing red tape is crucial to unlocking construction in Queensland.”

“By hitting pause on the looming Project Trust Account expansion, scrapping additional financial reporting, and setting a new direction for the QBCC, the state government is better empowering our industry, particularly thousands of small businesses, to get on with the job.” 

There will be conflicting opinions between trades and builders with the pause in the Project Trust Account rollout. Subbies United has already strongly expressed it’s feeling stating “this will mean only more financial hell unleashed on subbies”.

More insights from The Good Builder to come.

For more information, visit www.housing.qld.gov.au/BuildingRegulationReform

Author: The Good Builder

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