By Cimara Pearce
ANGRY landowners protesting against the Growth Area Infrastructure Contribution (GAIC) were met with a smiling Planning Minister Justin Madden last week.
More than 150 protesters from across Melbourne gathered out at the front of Melton’s Tabcorp Park to dispute the GAIC, which will be implemented if proposed changes to the Urban Growth Boundary are passed.
They donned placards and chanted “Madden must go” and “Axe the tax” as the embattled minister walked, surrounded by police officers, to the pack.
Mr Madden listened to the plight of those who will be affected by the tax and was bombarded with questions from angry landowners set to face tax bills of millions if the changes are implemented.
Protesters called for the government to charge the GAIC at the point of development on sites and said it wasn’t fair to punish landowners.
Mr Madden sympathised with landowners but said he couldn’t guarantee to fix all of their problems.
“I know how hard you have worked…I can’t give you any guarantees but I will do my best to make you all happy.
“I’ll take away the points you’ve made to me today. I’ll get advice…I’m also happy to talk to you about the valuations of your land if you think you have been over valued or undervalued, whatever it is,” Mr Madden said.
“I’m happy to speak to a couple more people here today and take your issues and then relay back to you some answers.”
Taxed Out chairperson Nola Dunn said the proposed GAIC was having distressing effects on families and farmers. “The fact is that the vast majority of landowners in the UGB are still adversely affected by the tax. They are not developers or land speculators but families and farmers,” Ms Dunn said.
“The only way the government can fix the problem with the GAIC is to levy the charge at the point of development,” she said.
“This means that landowners will not be stranded on their properties waiting for development to reach them and struggling to pay council rates, or be forced into an early sale and walk away with nothing after paying the tax.”
The State Government’s proposed GAIC applies to all land brought into the UGB in or after 2005.
A flat rate of $80,000 per hectare would be applied to land brought between 2005 and 2008 while $95,000 per hectare would be charged for land brought in during or after 2009 if the changes go through Parliament.
The GAIC would see $2 billion in revenue for the State Government over the next 20 years which the government says will go towards building vital infrastructure and services for the areas set to be included in the UGB.
The draft legislation is expected to be introduced in Parliament towards the end of the year.
