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“This isn’t going to be easy,but we have to start somewhere’:Premier Chris Minns.Credit:Dion Georgopoulos

The premier will detail the policy atThe Sydney Morning Herald’s Sydney 2050 Summit at the Sofitel Darling Harbour on Monday,where he will draw attention to the size of the housing supply crisis facing the state.

Minns said he would write to all ministers this week asking for their departments to audit their landholdings and identify surplus or under-utilised land parcels for rezoning. The audit is to be prioritised,and completed within months.

It follows revelations NSW will fail to meet its obligations under the National Housing Accord to build 314,000 new homes over the next five years,with the department forecasting just 180,000.

The state government is also concerned about the housing implications of migration after last week’s federal budget confirmed net overseas migration was predicted to be 400,000 in 2022-23,followed by 315,000 in 2023-24.

Minns said he wanted to leave no stone unturned. “I expect the NSW government to do its fair share to identify and open new land it owns for housing,” he said ahead of Monday’sHerald summit.

“The pressures on the rental market are extreme. But our job is to get more supply into the system to help alleviate some of that pressure. This isn’t going to be easy,but we have to start somewhere,and it’s a priority of my government.”

The government cautioned the audit would not be a panacea for the housing crisis by unearthing large swathes of idle land,but said it was an important measure. It also has a target for 30 per cent of all new homes on public land to be social,affordable or community housing.

One of the government agencies already involved in converting surplus land to affordable housing is the Transport Asset Holding Entity,which Labor pledged to abolish after aHerald investigation revealed cost shifting hadinflated the budget bottom line by tens of billions of dollars.

Late last year TAHE said it had identified four sites for rezoning,at Newtown,Wolli Creek,Granville and Blacktown,and estimated they could provide about 300 apartments. Labor remains committed to dismantling TAHE,but Treasurer Daniel Mookhey said in April it could take as long as five years.

Asked early this year about its surplus land,NSW Health said it maintained property assets for potential expansion of clinical services,“in line with contemporary master planning principles”.

This was a strong consideration for hospitals and health services in high density areas of Sydney,or hospitals in major regional locations,NSW Health said. Land that became surplus to needs was disposed of in accordance with state government guidelines,it added.

Dwelling approvals rose in NSW in March by 3.1 per cent in seasonally adjusted terms. There were just over 3000 homes approved,about half of what the number was for most months in 2015,2016 and 2017.

As part of the housing supply drive to be announced at Monday’s summit,Minns also wants to strengthen the role of the NSW Building Commissioner,David Chandler. The role was introduced by the previous government to combat dodgy practices and shortcuts in the construction industry,following the evacuation of the Opal Tower in Olympic Park at Christmas 2018.

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