Clifford Hayes MP | Politician
Clifford Hayes MP
Phone: +61 3 9530 8399
Reviews
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22.01.2022 When the State Government's "Big Housing Build" was first announced, I was very supportive. Investing in public housing is a promising step towards accommodating those who are sleeping rough and it is a responsible investment in Victoria's future; unlike these environmentally irresponsible mega-road projects. However; as with many of the things the Government puts up - the devil is in the detail! ... And the devil here, is rather alarming. The Government last week removed the need to apply for planning permits for 12,000 houses it plans to build in the next four years as part of Victoria's $5.3 billion social housing program. This is basically a concession that these properties would not pass the proper planning processes. This is not the sort of housing we need. If it is so hard to get a permit or at least Council cooperation on housing projects then they are unacceptable because they are high density and lack amenity. Public and Social housing should be medium density or even single houses, shared houses, scattered through the suburbs. When fronted with these concerns, the Premier said: "The time for endless discussion is over." Quite a concerning show of disrespect for the planning system.
19.01.2022 Hotel quarantine strikes again. So because of another hotel quarantine failure, South Australia is in the strictest lockdown Australia has ever seen, hopefully only for six days. This should serve as a very timely caution of what could lie ahead if Australia opens its international borders before a vaccine is in distribution. ... It could result in a merry-go round of lockdowns. The captains of big business are jumping up and down for it, but they don't seem to realize that lives that will be lost as a result. We've already got a full flight of international students set to descend upon Charles Darwin University on November 30. The evidence is clear; we can't get hotel quarantine right - so why would we even fathom opening our international borders?
17.01.2022 I must say I'm a tad jealous of the people of Queensland; an excellent decision made by the Premier and one that prioritises health and wellbeing over profit. The Victorian Government could learn something from this.
16.01.2022 Some tremendous news in that the Government has committed $5.3 billion to build 12,000 social housing properties in Melbourne and regional Victoria. This is a massive leap forward and a responsible investment in Victoria's future; unlike these environmentally irresponsible mega-road projects. I'm sceptical that this will completely alleviate Victoria's homelessness crisis, but again, it is a very welcome step forward. ... Both I and the Sustainable Australia Party have been advocating for the Government to invest in social housing and I'm very pleased that those pleas have been heard. But this is only the beginning. The Government needs to build on this commitment further to ensure that no Victorian sleeps rough. The only figure we have to go on is from the Census in 2018, which estimated there is roughly 25,000 homeless people in Victoria. I can only imagine this number has grown exponentially since the pandemic. I will endeavour to find out from the Government how many people are sleeping rough now, and how far this commitment will go in solving this crisis. https://www.theguardian.com//its-a-game-changer-victoria-c
14.01.2022 Public health must trump economic considerations. That's why I voted to revoke the planning approval for the dumping of toxic soil at Bacchus Marsh. We’ve said this about climate change, we’ve said this about the coronavirus pandemic, and we believe the same thing here. ... The Government says the public health risk is low, but to be candid we’ve heard that a lot, and it doesn’t always work out that way. I’d like a dollar for every time in the last few years I’ve heard a Prime Minister, or a Premier, or a Minister, announcing an Inquiry which they solemnly assure us will prevent whatever they’re inquiring into from ever happening again. The risk, it seems, is always low - until it happens. And now, stunningly, we've seen the EPA admitting it was wrong to approve the plan to send the soil to the Bacchus Marsh site, just days before Moorabool Environment Group and the Bacchus Marsh Grammar School were due to have their appeal against the decision considered in the Supreme Court. You absolutely have to wonder whether the EPA would have withdrawn its approval had the residents not taken the matter to the Supreme Court. This decision is extraordinary, and both the fact that the EPA gave the approval without proper legal grounds to do so, and then withdrew the approval when facing a legal challenge, have diminished my confidence in the EPA, and will diminish public confidence in the EPA. Sadly, the disapproval was defeated by one vote, with Fiona Patten, and the Liberal Democrats, siding with the Government.
14.01.2022 We are getting a very clear picture now of cosy relationships between developers and the highest levels of Governments. Here is yet another important demonstration of the pivotal work that our IBAC does to maintain transparency in Government and the Public Service. It is essential that in the interest of fairness, transparency and public trust, the Government increases funding for IBAC in next week's state budget. ... We've already heard that IBAC's resources are stretched to capacity. They haven't received a funding increase since being established in 2011. Imagine the wide net of issues IBAC could flesh out if it were a fully resourced unit. This should be at the top of the Government's priorities next week.
13.01.2022 Proposed laws by the Government forcing families of dead sexual assault victims to seek court orders to tell their loved ones' stories were rejected by the Legislative Council yesterday. After passionate debate in Parliament, the Opposition and Crossbench passed an amendment removing the requirement for the family of a dead victim to obtain a court order. It was a great win for democracy and just goes to show the importance of the Upper House - the house of review. ... Victims, and the families of deceased victims, will be free to share their stories. I spoke on the Bill yesterday and highlighted the importance of allowing victims and families to speak out, and the implications of this for freedom of speech.
12.01.2022 Such a shame to see the platypus officially listed as vulnerable in Victoria. It's a beloved species and it is so important that we protect them. It's good to see the Victorian Government is taking action to address its protection; but I can't help but feel it is a half-hearted attempt. ... The article sums up the major issue in the second paragraph: "Many platypus populations in Victoria intersect with Melbourne’s peri-urban areas where population growth and urban sprawl has impacted on the waterways they rely on for habitat." So the Victorian Government can grandstand and put money towards research, but if it is fair-dinkum about platypus survival it will go back to the drawing board and substantially cut down on the amount of development taking place on the urban fringes. This is clearly yet to happen.
12.01.2022 Another case of the developer tail wagging the planning dog. The Victorian government’s approval of a development on the south-east edge of the CBD which could mean rules against overshadowing being waived has heightened fears Birrarung Marr could be left in the dark. Planning Minister Richard Wynne this week approved a planning permit for a $2 billion parcel of land on a publicly-owned railway lot just off the corner of Flinders and Spring streets.... But he has signed off on planning controls that include overshadowing protections for Birrarung Marr that can be overturned at his discretion. We know that there's hundreds of empty office towers in the city, yet the Government is happy to build more and cast a shadow on a beautiful part of our city. Truly awful.
12.01.2022 It would be great to see Geelong become the renewable energy powerhouse of Victoria! We've learnt this morning that Victoria will build one of the world's biggest lithium-ion batteries , at 300-megawatts, near the Moorabool Terminal Station, just outside Geelong. This will drive down power costs and provide an added safeguard during power outages. ... This comes just weeks after a proposal was flagged to transform Geelong's old Ford factory into a hydrogen production plant. It's great to see renewable energy at the forefront of public discussion and I am all for seeing Geelong become a renewable powerhouse hub.
12.01.2022 It is very alarming to see that the New South Wales Premier wants to prioritise international students and migrant workers over our own citizens, pushing to fast-track them into a third of the state's hotel quarantine slots. How could her priorities be so misplaced? Surely we have more to worry about right now than filling our universities with international students. We need to prioritise our health and wellbeing. ... Maybe the Government could even step in with some sort of funding stimulus to boost the number of Aussies in our university system. In any case, returning Australians need to be a priority here.
11.01.2022 This isn't something you see everyday... Thankfully! It's hard enough for residents to object to a development in this day and age; let alone doing so and being sued by the Council. That's right, this is an action being taken by Stonnington City Council against its own ratepayers. Truly disgraceful. ... The residents seek to preserve the covenants on their properties from being either removed or varied so that work can begin on "the stadium in a park." The previous Stonnington City Council voted in favour of this deplorable action, 5-to-4. The trial is taking place this week and fingers crossed the residents prevail. I wonder if the Councillors will have to pay the court costs if they are unsuccessful?
11.01.2022 So as of December 7, Victoria will resume receiving international arrivals through hotel quarantine. There are two points I would like to make in relation to this decision. The first, is that we all know what a disaster the first hotel quarantine was. It drove Victoria into this economically-devastating lockdown and claimed hundreds and hundreds of lives. ... What assurances do we have that the Victorian Government has got it right now, without any practice? Further to that, we know there's a lot of unfortunate Aussies who are stranded abroad. This border reopening should be purely a pilot, a test run, for Australians returning home. That way, the Government can tinker with the hotel quarantine arrangements and get it right while the volume is much, much less. And of course, we get our citizens home. The second, is that the Government should show some patience and restraint and wait until the full findings of the Hotel Quarantine Inquiry are handed down by December 21. It's literally only a couple of extra weeks and it would give us a much greater picture of what needs to be done to keep Victorians safe. As it stands, this could be dangerous.
10.01.2022 Today we've discovered that a Metro Trains manager asked the head of a contracted cleaning company for "a little bit of honey" in exchange for information about upcoming COVID-19 cleaning work. This is a disgraceful example of corruption that has been uncovered by the pivotal work at IBAC Victoria's Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission. This Commission needs more funding if anything, but the State Government is happy to let it sit in a deficit of more than $90 m...illion. In Parliament last week, I raised comments by Robert Redlich, QC, Commissioner for the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission. He says that since IBAC was created in 2012 it has not received any increase to its budget and it means IBAC cannot investigate a significant number of complaints of serious misconduct which may warrant investigation. As the core integrity institution of Victoria, it is essential that this Commission is given more funding. For all the money that the Government splashes out on these mega infrastructure projects, it is appalling that they snub funding for IBAC. This must be a priority for the Treasurer in the upcoming State Budget.
09.01.2022 A lot of us love to watch a bit of tennis. It's a great sport. But what isn't great is this ill-conceived arrangement to squeeze the Australian Open into Melbourne in the middle of a pandemic. ... There's a few reasons why I'm against this plan. Firstly, we are chauffeuring rich tennis players into the country - even if they test positive for COVID-19 - while leaving our own residents stranded abroad. This player in question was allowed to hop on the plane after getting a special exception from the Health Department, which apparently determined him to be viral shedding from a previous infection, so he was given the all clear to fly. I have to wonder, would a resident in these circumstances be given this thorough review, or would they simply be turned away? Secondly, The New Daily has today reported of players in quarantine breaching infection control rules and acting in ways that could threaten the health of other participants and the event itself. The thing here is that it isn't just tennis players in these hotels. There are also staff and security that are at risk, and if they're infected; it could lead to an outbreak. I have to ask, why are we pushing forward with the Australian Open in a few weeks while, at the same time, delaying the Grand Prix until November? Further, I am thoroughly against the State Government making taxpayers fork up for wealthy tennis players to quarantine. A disgraceful arrangement. The Australian Open shouldn't be going ahead in a few weeks. In this instance, public health should have been prioritised over lining the Government's coffers. Returning Australians should have taken precedence over international tennis stars and even then they should be subject to even more effective and safe quarantine standards.
09.01.2022 Planning Minister Richard Wynne has given an 11th hour approval for a concrete crushing facility to remain in Kingston’s Green Wedge for a further 10 years. This is yet another broken promise by this Government. In 2015, Mr Wynne grandstanded about his decision to rezone this 366-hectare parcel of land for family-friendly, community use. ... He himself noted that landfill, waste transfer and recycling facilities would not be suitable for this site. Yet he has now completely undermined this 2015 announcement and the tireless advocacy by the Defenders of the Green Wedge, extending Alex Fraser's lease to continue crushing concrete and glass at the site. It is hard to imagine a more inappropriate activity in an area that is supposed to be clean and green. The Planning Minister has set an appalling precedent and has undermined the whole principle of zoning to protect Green Wedge land.
09.01.2022 I was astonished to be one of only TWO MPs, along with independent Catherine Cumming MP, who voted against the Victorian Government’s Parks and Crown Land Legislation Amendment Bill, which will open up Crown Land along waterways for general camping. I am a keen camper myself, and know the value of outdoor recreational experiences, but I think the camping needs to take place where there is a measure of public control and accountability, such as in our great National Parks and ...other public settings. While many people do the right thing, others do not, and it is not fair to expect farmers to clean up after them. Farms are dangerous places, with heavy machinery, sometimes unfriendly livestock, and the use of poisonous sprays. Camping brings with it the prospect of rubbish, damage to fences, and even bushfire from campsite fires. It is not reasonable to expect farmers to accept responsibility for this. I received many representations from farmers opposing the Bill for these legitimate reasons. I also believed the Bill was bad for the environment. There is a risk of riverbank damage, erosion, water pollution and the illegal removal of vegetation and trees for campfires. What about the risk of bushfires? Once again, some people do the right thing but others do not. How will this be monitored in remote areas? The same goes for unrestrained pets. Their potential damage to fauna and flora is policed in Parks, but will not be on these frontages. Once again, environmental groups made representations to me opposing the plan. I thought the Government’s Bill so flawed that I thought it had little prospect of succeeding. So I was both surprised and disappointed to find the Liberal Opposition, the Greens and other Crossbenchers finally supporting it! Both the Liberals and the Greens flagged issues with the Bill, and then supported it anyway. And some crossbench MP's didn't even turn up to vote on the Bill. The claim that the Bill warranted support because it had some good provisions (eg extending National Parks) does not stand up to scrutiny. The potential for damage in the poorly thought out changes, far outweighs the good in the bill, nor should we be blackmailed into support by the Government mixing good and bad provisions in an omnibus mixture of legislation. Farmers and environmental groups can be assured that I will closely monitor the implementation and effect of this legislation. We need to get better at looking after our rivers and waterways, and we can certainly not allow them to be further degraded by poorly thought through legislation.
08.01.2022 The Sustainable Australia Party is very concerned about the extent of the corruption in Victoria being revealed at IBAC. We must have additional funding for the both the Ombudsman and for IBAC. Sadly, it isn't happening. ... Here's some stunning quotes from the Ombudsman today. "My ongoing funding has fallen substantially short of what is needed to respond to public expectations of my office". "The apparent reluctance to fund my office could risk looking like an attempt to undermine it." Given some of the work that the Ombudsman undertakes, like the one attached, this development is very alarming.
07.01.2022 It seems house prices are bouncing back in Melbourne. But one thing that is rather nonchalantly dismissed by rapid growth advocates is that a resurgence in house sales has been driven by an exodus from apartments. As the AFR reported just months earlier, more than two in three apartments in the Melbourne CBD were sold for a loss.... Many of those selling went on to secure homes in the outer suburbs. Most people don't want to live in high rise apartments, particularly after COVID. People don't want to have to share communal areas and go without their own space. Hopefully developers take some note of this. And Government planners rethink forcing high density on health-conscious communities.
06.01.2022 An interesting point made in the Australian Financial Review. As a result of the COVID lockdown and the closure of international borders, first home buyers have finally had a decent crack at the property market. Unfortunately, however, it seems that won't last much longer. ... Very soon we'll likely be going back to the status quo, where the foreign purchaser rules the Australian property market and first home buyers are outbid at most opportunities. It is truly a sad state of affairs that this is so clear that it's printed in black and white, but both State and Federal Governments couldn't care less. As part of my Inquiry into Planning and Heritage, which will hopefully commence this year, I will direct the Committee to explore the impacts of foreign ownership on housing availability and make appropriate recommendations to fix the system.
05.01.2022 There’s been a lot of talk about the Government’s commitment to build more social housing; and while we’d prefer public housing; it’s still a step in the right direction. However, the Government has to be mindful that many of the current social and public housing facilities are simply not up to scratch. Many have been neglected and forgotten and continue to deteriorate in liveability. ... Perhaps a byproduct of the Government putting all of its focus on fast tracking new, inappropriate developments. One of the facilities that has been forgotten is St Kilda’s Community Housing. Ron took me on a tour of the building and it simply isn’t adequate for residents. Leaking ceilings, flooding, moulding foundations and no natural lighting are just some of the issues we saw. The Government needs to step up and make these accomodation facilities liveable, at the very least.
04.01.2022 It has been highlighted today that the State Government's three biggest projects have blown out AT LEAST $11 billion in taxpayer funds, compared to the price tag originally promised. Eleven billion. What else could we have done with $11 billion dollars?... Some quick research reveals the State Government could have completely eradicated homelessness in Victoria with that $11 billion; and had cash left over. The Census in 2018 estimates there is roughly 25,000 rough sleepers in Victoria. Even if we allow for a tremendous increase of 15,000 since then; this money would have covered it. Based on the average cost of building a social housing dwelling, the Government could have housed these rough sleepers and had money to spare. And the construction of these properties could have been undertaken by local builders! Instead, that $11 billion is lining the pockets of, for the most part, foreign construction companies. It's time for the State Government to rethink their priorities.
04.01.2022 It is fascinating to see this article rebuke the accusation that Aussies are too lazy to undertake farm work. Amid the pandemic, 1500 Australians registered for farm work not one of them got a job. According to a source for the job agency, they had tried to find Aussies jobs at farms across Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland, but as soon as employers heard the job seekers were Australian citizens, all interest died.... "We did a bit of digging around why, and farmers said ‘one, they’re lazy’, and ‘two, we have to pay them," the source said. This is a very dire situation that has arisen from years of ruthless exploitation of temporary migrants. The Federal Government has to crack down on this, immediately, to drive up conditions and level the playing field between migrants and Australian citizens.
03.01.2022 I cannot express my sheer disgust in reading this. Our two crooked developers, who are currently facing jail time, have proposed an apartment tower up to 20 levels the HIGHEST POSSIBLE building that could be constructed under planning rules for the site. No shame whatsoever. ... To make matters even worse, one of their proposed designs shows a black box with a selection of memories of the pub and Carlton as a whole etched into the tower’s facade. We wouldn't need a black box to remember the pub if it weren't for these crooks. The Planning Minister shouldn't even humour these hideous and brazen proposals, and if he does; there is something seriously wrong.
03.01.2022 After months and months of delay, we now have a date locked in for the State Budget - November 24. One thing is certainly obvious. We're going to need a lot of economic stimulation to help businesses pull through this recession. But I do hope that the Government is taking some of the other lessons we've learnt from this pandemic into account. ... We've seen the sheer importance of having housing; it is vital for survival. The Government was very quick to secure short-term accommodation for those who needed it during COVID, but normally they're left to fend for themselves. That is why the Government MUST move away from big infrastructure spends, and instead prioritise social housing. According to The Guardian, The Victorian Government has built only 57 of the 1,000 new public housing units it pledged by 2022. That is an embarrassing statistic. The paper also suggests there are nearly 30,000 children among the 100,000 people on the state’s ballooning housing waiting list. This will only grow amid the recession. The Government must shift its focus to social housing for this highly important budget.
02.01.2022 There's a battle brewing at Service St, Hampton. Residents are fighting to save four Bayside heritage houses from a proposed three storey, 36 apartment block towering over Port Phillip Bay. As one local so eloquently said, these houses tell us who we are, and where we’ve been, along with trees and gardens that have been there as long as the houses they protect.... I rose in Parliament yesterday asking the Planning Minister to provide interim heritage protection for 28, 30, 32 and 34 Service Street Hampton while a permanent Heritage Overlay is considered. This morning, we've learned that these beautiful Edwardian homes have since been trashed. Bayside City Council must investigate this, and determine if any of Bayside’s planning and heritage rules have been breached.
01.01.2022 While the Government’s Big Housing Build announcement is welcome, it isn't the silver bullet fix that they're letting on. The budget will deliver 12,000 new homes over the next 4 years, in Melbourne and regional Victoria. Given that the current public housing waiting list is already over 45,000 households, and Victoria’s share of Australia’s Population Ponzi scheme will see an estimated half a million, extra Victorians over the next four years; it doesn't seem like the publ...ic housing wait list will even be scratched by this commitment. A further issue here is the Government's preference of "social" housing over public housing. The Government’s model of handing over public housing estates to private developers hasn't been very successful in keeping waiting lists short and reasonable. Perhaps it is time the Government reassumed direct responsibility, for the provision and maintenance, of enough public housing to bring about the elimination of homelessness and sleeping rough.
