Calls by the National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation for greater transparency and accountability in the use of development contributions to fund urban infrastructure are well justified. But arguments for a return to traditional funding models based on taxes and recurrent user charges should be treated with caution. They could simply transfer wealth to development site owners with no gain in housing affordability, said Dr Marcus Spiller.

Proposed planning measures to protect winter sunshine in Melbourne's public spaces could generate a benefit of between $50 million and $100 million per year.

Retail centres contribute to residents' economic and social wellbeing, but declining suburban retail centres and high streets need government support to stay viable into the future.

The new windfall gains tax has attracted special ire from the property lobby, but this fear mongering helps nobody. Both developers and the community can win.

The Victorian Government’s decision to introduce a 50 per cent tax on rezoning windfalls, announced in its 2021-22 Budget, made many peak industry bodies froth at the mouth. But criticism of the windfall tax does not consider basic economics and a common-sense view of fairness.

In 2019-20, co-operative and mutual enterprises (CMEs) contributed a whopping $90 billion towards Australian incomes, $20 billion towards Australia’s GDP and 180,000 full-time equivalent jobs reveals the new National Mutual Economy Report.