In 2020, Queensland’s Parliamentary Transport and Public Works Committee recommended there be further consideration of the role of developers in the Queensland building and construction industry. As a result, the Queensland Building and Construction Act 1991 was amended to require the review.
In late 2021, the Developer Review Panel (the panel) was appointed to conduct the review. The Panel’s terms of reference encompass advancing the security of payment by addressing the developer behaviours that contribute to non-payment and insolvency. Further, the panel was asked to consider the impact developers have on the quality and safety of building work and work practices.
The Panel embarked on an extensive program of consultation, starting with targeted stakeholder meetings, and culminating in the release of a discussion paper for approximately three months of public consultation.
Based on feedback received, the Panel concluded that developers are a key influence on the building and construction industry and that their behaviours help set the tone of a project and have flow-on effects for the security of payment solvency for a better standard for developers in Queensland.
The recommendations are founded on an accreditation system (Recommendation 1), which seeks to ensure accredited developers meet minimum standards, including ‘fit and proper’ person thresholds and educational requirements (Recommendation 2). Accredited developers will then be subject to several obligations, including pre-contractual disclosure and the registration of certain development activities (Recommendation 1). The recommendations also specifically incorporate two existing legislative frameworks into the conduct expectations of accredited developers. Specifically, a breach of Queensland’s non-conforming building product (Recommendation 3) and fairness in contracting (Recommendation 4) laws will each be grounds for disciplinary action against accredited developers.
The Panel recommends the Queensland Government introduce an accreditation, disclosure, and registration framework (the framework) for developers in the building and construction industry. Primarily, a developer should be prevented from entering into a contract that will require a project trust account unless they obtain and maintain accreditation.
The purpose of the framework is to provide minimum standards for developers in the building and construction industry and to offer greater certainty and transparency to head contractors, subcontractors, workers, financiers, investors, consumers, and the public.
The framework seeks to set minimum expectations for the work of developers and provide information to enable more informed decisions about accredited developers and registered development activity.
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