Tradies offered free TAFE to meet 2029 housing target

Construction is well underway at this Adelaide home as they manage to get the products and trades needed, but it’s expected to soon ramp up. There’ll be a lot more pressure on us as builders to be able to, you know, keep up with demand, so we need trades. The government’s been drawing up a plan to help promising 20,000 extra TAFE and pre apprenticeship spots from January to train up future construction workers. We need more tradies to build more homes. The goal set by the government is to build 1.2 million new homes by 2029. But an independent report last week found that target would be missed, The treasurer also admitting it won’t add up without a lot more workers. That’s why we’re making this $90,000,000 investment in the budget. If this government builds 1.2 million homes by 2059, I will be amazed. The industry’s been saying it needs the workforce to urgently grow by 90,000. It’s a start a plan also to make it easier for four and a half thousand skilled migrants to get construction jobs by fast tracking applications and ensuring those who are already here can put their qualifications to use. What a waste of someone who’s got a skill to help build a home and all they get to do is drive an Uber. But the workforce isn’t the only challenge. A key component of the reason why we’re not building them is that private investment in a home building has dried up. Why has it dried up? Because simply it’s become too expensive to build. As well as housing supply, the cost of renting continues to be a big issue, and the government’s under pressure to use next week’s budget to provide more rent assistance.