THE Urban Development Institute of Australia has elected Cameron Shephard as the new national president.
Shephard is a director of Perth based development firm Amex Corporation and has served on the UDIA Western Australian and national councils for many years, most recently as both UDIA WA president and UDIA national vice president.
Shepard said he will work to address Australia’s housing affordability crisis by advocating for state and federal governments to take actions to improve the supply of land for housing, fund more investment in critical urban infrastructure, and reduce unfair and unnecessary costs imposed on new housing and the development industry.
“It is essential that the Government recognises the importance of the property development industry, which is one of the key drivers of growth in the Australian economy. Research undertaken by Property Insights shows that property development is responsible for 975,000 full time jobs, and 7.3% of national economic output.
“With the Federal Budget under increasing strain, and the broader Australian economy on increasingly shaky footings, improving housing affordability and increasing development activity will be both more important and more difficult than ever,” he added.
Property Review
