THE COMMERCIALl construction sector is facing a devastating downturn due to the impact of COVID-19 unless governments act to provide stimulus.

Denita Wawn, CEO of Master Builders Australia said, “Commercial construction activity is forecast to severely decline. Compared to our previous forecasts Master Builders now expects commercial building activity to be 15.7 per cent lower in 2020/21 and 11.5 per cent lower in 2021/22.

“The lockdown has obliterated private sector demand in the economy and a gradual easing of restrictions is not going to replace that demand, so governments need to act.

“The impact on the commercial construction sector (as well as residential construction) is severe because the majority of projects are not publicly funded,” Ms Wawn said.

“There are 459 projects in Master Builders’ reports on the current pipeline of potential commercial building projects in Australia. Most of these projects, 314 (68 percent) are private sector funded projects, 108 (23 percent) are public sector projects and 37 (8 percent) are public private partnerships; 43 percent of all projects cost more than $50 million, 24 percent are under $50 million and the cost of 33 percent of the projects is unknown,” she said.

“Master Builders is calling on National Cabinet to urgently develop a COVID-19 Action plan for the building and construction industry including measures to address the looming devastation to the forward pipeline in commercial construction.

“Logical areas where government stimulus can help build the bridge to recoveryare are where the public sector dominates, such as in education, health and defence.

“Bringing forward maintenance on government buildings is a stimulus measure Master Builders has been calling for and we commend the Department of Defence which has just announced $870 million in estate works which will bolster the confidence of construction contractors and subcontractors,” Ms Wawn said.

Other measures that Master Builders is calling for include:

• An expansion of government construction of education, health and aged care facilities.

• Extending the government guarantee for working capital loans to projects above $50 million could reduce the impact of financial risk from COVID-19 thereby softening the impact on commercial activity.
• Governments taking the lead in funding cladding rectification and asbestos remediation. Buildings requiring rectification were identified in the state and territory cladding audits and projects on government asbestos remediation lists could be fast tracked with government stimulus to prop up commercial activity and provide employment opportunities

www.masterbuilders.com.au

ends

THE CARAVAN and camping sector can lead the road to recovery for regional tourism with an average spend of $584 per trip according to Tourism Research Australia, and over 500,000 travellers indicating they’d take a camping trip within two months. 

This has the potential to kick-start the recovery for tourism and inject over $292 million dollars directly into the hands of regional tourism operators who rely on caravanners and campers travelling to experience a wide variety of attractions.  

The intention to go caravan and camping is significantly higher than general travel intention, with only 12 percent of the broader Australian population planning to book a holiday in the next three months, indicating that caravan and camping travellers are seven times more likely to take a holiday in the next three months than the rest of Australians.  

With restrictions beginning to ease in parts of the country, this is great news for the many regional communities who rely on this market to support local jobs. With over 711,000 registered RV’s and thousands of free-standing roofed accommodation options, it presents a massive opportunity for towns all around Australia.  

Most caravan and holiday parks have implemented COVID-19 safe guidelines already, catering for permanent residents, essential workers and stranded caravanners. 

This includes contact tracing, social distancing and increased hygiene regimes in common areas and amenities.  Unlike other accommodation they also don’t have shared lifts and lobbies or shared air-conditioning facilities.  

This economic opportunity is reflective of the pent-up demand of those that own caravan and camping product which has been sitting idle for months.

www.caravanindustry.com.au

ends 

THE CARAVAN and camping sector can lead the road to recovery for regional tourism with an average spend of $584 per trip according to Tourism Research Australia, and over 500,000 travellers indicating they’d take a camping trip within two months. 

This has the potential to kick-start the recovery for tourism and inject over $292 million dollars directly into the hands of regional tourism operators who rely on caravanners and campers travelling to experience a wide variety of attractions.  

The intention to go caravan and camping is significantly higher than general travel intention, with only 12 percent of the broader Australian population planning to book a holiday in the next three months, indicating that caravan and camping travellers are seven times more likely to take a holiday in the next three months than the rest of Australians.  

With restrictions beginning to ease in parts of the country, this is great news for the many regional communities who rely on this market to support local jobs. With over 711,000 registered RV’s and thousands of free-standing roofed accommodation options, it presents a massive opportunity for towns all around Australia.  

Most caravan and holiday parks have implemented COVID-19 safe guidelines already, catering for permanent residents, essential workers and stranded caravanners. 

This includes contact tracing, social distancing and increased hygiene regimes in common areas and amenities.  Unlike other accommodation they also don’t have shared lifts and lobbies or shared air-conditioning facilities.  

This economic opportunity is reflective of the pent-up demand of those that own caravan and camping product which has been sitting idle for months.

www.caravanindustry.com.au

ends 

AS PART of its inquiry into the education of students in remote and complex environments, the House Education Committee wants to know more about the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on home learning and teaching.

The inquiry was initially launched in December, and has received submissions from a wide range of stakeholders and experts. The Committee has outlined areas of interest, but in recent months suspended its program of hearings because of the pandemic.

"As Australian students and teachers move to the next phase, we are again inviting views – we are sure that lessons being learned help improve our understanding of a student’s education journey in remote and complex environments," said Andrew Laming MP, Chair of the Committee.

"The Committee has been examining how education meets the learning needs of students and how barriers in the education journey are overcome. The response of Australian schools to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the need for rapid adaptation to home and online learning, has clearly accelerated the importance of flexible and well-supported responses," Mr Laming said.

"We want to expand our range of evidence into specific lessons and consequences of rapid and flexible home and online learning and teaching. The Committee hopes to learn more about how these new flexible approaches might continue to be applied in remote and complex environment long after schools return to ‘normal’ face-to-face teaching," Mr Laming said.

"We also hope that some of the excellent stakeholders we’ve heard from so far might give us the benefit of their recent, COVID-19 experience so that we can take this inquiry forward."

Beyond hearing more about adaptations and solutions to challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Committee’s areas of interest include 

• small remote schools; particularly in challenging areas like the tri-state area of central Australia;
• career counselling of remote students and means of connecting them to further education or local employment;
• challenges faced by regional schooling providers and initiatives in place;
• how families of vulnerable young children can access, enrol and remain in early learning, and the collaboration between early and primary education; 
• the performance and monitoring of those in home schooling to maintain national minimum standards; and
• access and support to deliver the Australian Curriculum (including STEM) in a flexible way, to meet local learning needs and interests of remote students, including examples of innovative ways in which the curriculum is being delivered in remote schools.

ENDS