Interview with Sally Sara, ABC National Radio Breakfast

Event: Interview with Sally Sara, ABC National Radio Breakfast

Date: 2 September 2026, 8.05am AEST
Speakers: Denita Wawn, Master Builders Australia CEO

Topics: Builders under stress, state of the construction market, CFMEU Royal Commissions

E&OE

Sally Sara, ABC National Radio Breakfast host: This week new data from the Bureau of Statistics shows a drop in building approvals. Meanwhile, Cotality and the Insurance Council of Australia show construction costs are rising above inflation, in part due to natural disasters, and the Commonwealth Bank yesterday warned we are entering a housing correction. So, where does this leave the construction industry, which is trying to meet ambitious targets of building 1.2 million new homes by 2029? Denita Wawn is the CEO of Master Builders Australia and joins me now. Denita, welcome back to breakfast.

Denita Wawn, Master Builders Australia CEO: Good morning.

Host: What do you want people to most understand about what’s happening in the housing market right now?

Denita: I think the stress on not only builders but the subcontractors and clients. We’ve seen costs escalate now to over 50 per cent in the last five years, and that means there is massive demand for new homes, but people simply cannot afford it. And because of those escalating costs that catch some builders unaware, then they are also, in many instances, building at a loss, and that then has implications throughout the entire supply chain. We are ready to build all of those homes the Prime Minister talking about, but Government and broader conditions are making that nigh impossible at the moment.

Host: Why are building costs going up, and which costs in particular are going up?

Denita: A big one at the moment is a lack of people to undertake the work. If you think about the fact that we’ve got huge demand for housing, but equally for commercial work, including data centres as well as big infrastructure projects, the demand across the country for labour is immense. We’re estimating that we need at least another 150,000 odd workers today to undertake the work, let alone the forecast increases. So, we’re focusing on more apprentices. We’re focusing on a better skilled migration system. We’ve been calling for fast track pathways for skilled tradies with skilled migration for a long period of time, and likewise we simply need more tradies. So, the labour is a massive issue, but likewise delays in building approvals, development approvals, all add to holding costs and transaction costs as well, so they’re the main factors. But equally, we’re seeing declines in productivity by over 20 per cent and we’re seeking with the Administration of the CFMEU greater productivity outcomes as we go into important EBA negotiations.

Host: What do you put the monthly reduction in building approvals down to, particularly with privately built homes?

Denita: This is simply because housing is now costing too much to build new homes. This is both for owner occupiers as well as investors, and of course, we’re seeing an escalation of concern and hesitancy in the market since the tax hikes that were implemented in the federal budget. And so, as a consequence, the July figures are alarming, but the anecdotal evidence on the ground for July is even worse, so we’re alarmed that we’re not going to meet the supply needs of Australians when it comes to building our homes.

Host: Since we last spoke, Victoria’s new premier has called a royal commission into the construction industry in that state. Your New South Wales branch has since spoken out calling for a national royal commission into the CFMEU. Do you support those calls?

Denita: We believe that these state inquiries are the best focused attention on the particular issues that have arose in each state when it comes to the CFMEU. Our focus nationally has been not only on Administration as the first step, but a range of other initiatives that the Federal Government needs to take into account. That includes a fit and proper person test. We need to ensure that we have a robust regulator that is not just looking at industrial relations laws, but is also looking at criminal and anti-competitive laws as well. We know the answers, four royal commissions over about 30 odd years have told us what we need to implement, but the Federal Government has not done that, and there is more work to be done in that space. Likewise, we need more work from the Administrator to ensure that the rot of the CFMEU is removed, and we’re seeing that continue to occur in pockets in a number of states, but particularly in Victoria.

Host: Denita, thank you for joining me this morning.

Denita: Thank you.

Media contact: Dylan Hafey, Adviser, Media & Government Relations

0497 330 064 |  dylan.hafey@masterbuilders.com.au