- Cement Concrete & Aggregates Australia (CCAA) is urging the Victorian Legislative Council to block fee increases averaging 253 per cent on businesses supplying construction materials, with a disallowance motion to be moved by the Hon David Davis MP targeting Statutory Rules 111 and 112.
- CCAA Chief Executive Officer Michael Kilgariff argued the increases are unreasonable and unsustainable, warning that raising costs at the start of the construction supply chain undermines Victoria's housing and infrastructure goals.
- The organisation highlighted that quarrying businesses cannot relocate interstate, meaning higher local production costs will inevitably feed through to broader construction costs, with smaller and regional operators being particularly hard hit.
- Victoria's heavy construction materials industry contributes £3.17 billion to Gross State Product and supports more than 15,600 jobs, underscoring the sector's significance to the state's economy.
- CCAA is calling for the fee increases to be rejected and for the Victorian Government to collaborate with industry on a fair, transparent, and proportionate approach to regulatory cost recovery.
Cement Concrete & Aggregates Australia (CCAA) is calling on the Victorian Legislative Council to stop extraordinary fee increases averaging 253 per cent being imposed on the businesses supplying the materials needed to build Victoria.
A motion to be moved by the Hon David Davis MP will seek to disallow Statutory Rules 111 and 112, which introduce the significant increases to minerals and extractive-industry fees.
CCAA Chief Executive Officer Michael Kilgariff said Parliament now had an opportunity to prevent another major cost increase being imposed on an industry essential to Victoria’s housing and infrastructure ambitions.
“A 253 per cent increase in fees for the quarrying sector is not reasonable, proportionate or sustainable,” Mr Kilgariff said.
“Victoria says it wants to build more homes and deliver major infrastructure, but at the same time it is dramatically increasing the cost of producing the stone, sand and gravel needed to build them.
“You cannot make housing and infrastructure more affordable by continually increasing costs at the very beginning of the construction supply chain.
“These are not optional materials. Every new home, road, rail project, school, hospital and renewable energy project needs the products our industry supplies.
“Quarries cannot simply move interstate. Construction materials need to be sourced close to where they are used, and making local production more expensive ultimately puts greater pressure on construction costs.
“The impact will be particularly significant for smaller and regional operators already dealing with rising energy, labour, transport and regulatory costs.
“Industry accepts the need to pay its fair share for effective regulation. What we cannot accept is an average 234 per cent increase without a corresponding demonstration that Victoria’s regulatory system will become substantially faster, more efficient and more accountable.
“Members of the Legislative Council now have a clear choice.
“They can allow these extraordinary increases to proceed, or they can send a clear message that continually adding costs to the industries responsible for building Victoria is not sustainable.
“CCAA urges members across the Parliament and the crossbench to support the disallowance motion.”
Victoria’s heavy construction materials industry contributes $3.17 billion to Gross State Product and supports more than 15,600 jobs.
CCAA is calling for the fee increases to be stopped and for the Victorian Government to work with industry on a fair, transparent and proportionate approach to regulatory cost recovery.
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About CCAA
CCAA is the voice of Australia’s heavy construction materials industry, an industry that contributes $20.7 billion to GDP and supports 112,970 jobs nationwide. CCAA members produce most of Australia's cement, concrete and aggregates, which are essential to the nation’s building and construction sectors.
Contact details:
Contact: Mitch Itter, Manager Communications | 0431 542 660 | [email protected]