The ACT government will introduce developer licensing from October 1, 2026. From that point on if you are building three or more dwellings, you won't be able to lodge a DA, get building approval or sell off-the-plan without it.

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On the face of it, that sounds like action. And to be clear - action is warranted. Too many Canberrans have been burned by poor building quality, particularly in high-density apartments. The political pressure here is real and it is justified.

But this reform misses the mark. It doesn't go to the cause of the problem. It goes around it because the government is materially responsible for it.

The ACT government already license the people who actually design, build and sign off on buildings-builders, engineers, certifiers. The system is not short of licensing. It's short of consequences.

If a builder delivers substandard work, do they lose their licence? If a certifier signs off on defective construction work, do they lose their licence? In theory, yes. In practice, almost never.

Take Kingston Place. A 120-unit development in Kingston that became a case study in how things can go wrong. Structural issues, emergency propping with jacks (ordered by the government) cracking, water ingress and years of disputes. The owner's out of pocket hundreds of thousands of dollars in expert and legal fees just to get basic rectification happening.

The government stepped in. Rectification orders were issued. Works were eventually done.

But here's the key point: not a single licensed professional involved lost their licence.

That's not speculation - that's straight from a ministerial answer to a question on notice.

So the question is obvious: if the people already licensed to do the work are never........

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