Dr DAVID SALIBA (Fairfield) (11:56): My question is addressed to the Minister for Better Regulation and Fair Trading. Will the Minister update the House on how renters in New South Wales are benefitting from stronger protections under the Minns Labor Government?
Mr ANOULACK CHANTHIVONG (Macquarie Fields—Minister for Better Regulation and Fair Trading, Minister for Industry and Trade, Minister for Innovation, Science and Technology, Minister for Building, and Minister for Corrections) (11:56): I thank the member for Fairfield for his question. I know that nearly 41 per cent of households in his electorate will be really keen to hear about how the Government's rental reforms are making a real and practical difference. The Minns Labor Government was elected on a mandate to make renting fairer for the people of New South Wales. The Government has delivered on that promise. The numbers are clear: The new laws are working. The reforms give renters greater security, certainty and protection than ever before because the Government has delivered the most significant rental reforms in decades to make renting better and fairer for the people of New South Wales.
Let me go through the list. We banned no-grounds evictions so that renters cannot be kicked out of their homes without a genuine reason. We limited rent increases to one per year for all lease types, meaning that renters can plan their finances and build a life in their local communities. We have ensured that renters have fee-free ways to pay their rent. We have also banned fees for background checks, which means that renters no longer fork out their hard-earned cash and waste their valuable time. And we have made it easier to have pets in rental homes. Renters are not forced to give up their furry friends, who, of course, are members of their families.
We are now seeing the great results of those reforms. Before our reforms, 45 per cent of leases were ended for no reason, but now renters have greater security in their homes. Compliance with the new laws is at 95 per cent, which is further proof that the new laws are working. The Rental Taskforce is using innovative data‑matching technology to ensure that landlords are following the new laws on re-letting exclusion periods, and we are taking strong enforcement action to ensure that people are caught if they do the wrong thing. Let me give members one example of how our strong enforcement has worked. An agency in Campsie was fined more than $35,000 after re-letting a property during an exclusion period without seeking an exemption. The Government is also saving renters significant amounts of money. It has returned almost $180,000 to renters stung by illegal rent payment and background fees. On one online rental platform, nearly 2,400 renters were illegally charged $20 each for their own background checks. [Extension of time]
The Rental Taskforce made sure they got their money back. Those results show that our changes are having direct and tangible benefits for the renters of New South Wales. Renters are better informed of their rights and more likely to escalate matters to the regulator. They are also increasingly seeking more information about their rights, with visits to the Government's website increasing tenfold.
The SPEAKER: There is too much audible conversation in the Chamber.
Mr ANOULACK CHANTHIVONG: Backed by $8.4 million, the taskforce has investigated almost 8,000 rental issues in its first year. Those landmark changes could not be farther from the Opposition's inaction and flip-flopping. Do not listen to what the Coalition says; look at what it does. The Coalition says it supports a ban on no-grounds evictions but blocked Labor when it tried to introduce one in 2018. I am looking at the member for Oatley, the member for Manly and every single Opposition member who was present in 2018. They all voted against Labor's ban on no-grounds evictions in 2018.
The Coalition then tried to water down our rental reforms just two years ago. It voted for the Government's bill in this House, then tried to amend it in the other place down the corridor. They had one position here and another position there. Talk about being wishy-washy. Let us go down memory lane. In 2018 the Coalition passed its own legislation about a portable bonds scheme but never delivered it. In five years, it did nothing. In fact, it had over a decade to help renters but chose to do nothing. When it comes to making tough decisions and delivering difficult reforms, the Coalition has the political spine of a jellyfish. That is why only a Labor government can deliver for renters in New South Wales.
