New NSW Building Commissioner Keeps Raging Against the Machine

“I’ve been in the industry for a very long time and I’ve been quietly raging against the machine for improvements,” new NSW building commissioner James Sherrard says. “At some point you’ve got to say, ‘Wait a second, you can either be a bystander and complain about the problems or get involved to try and solve them’.” And that solution, in part at least, according to the new commissioner, is streamlining the system with the Building Bill. Sherrard assumed the role with the NSW Building Commission on the first anniversary of its formation, on December 1 of last year. He comes to the commission from Transport NSW, where he was head of commercial, performance and strategy, leading a team responsible for contract frameworks, the acquisition of property for major infrastructure projects, procurement including several multibillion-dollar projects and an analytics team. Sherrard is just the second person in the role. Inaugural commissioner David Chandler set out to “ get the industry’s mojo back ” when he took the job on, and made no bones about putting noses out of joint in the process. The commission now has a team of 450 who continue to bring dodgy operators doing poor-quality construction work to heel. ▲ Former commissioner David Chandler. In its first year the commission inspected about 1400 buildings across NSW, focusing on apartments. Sherrard says the Building Bill, which would “harmonise the legislation and construction market”, will be a huge part of his new year. “We are hoping to introduce it this year,” Sherrard told The Urban Developer . “It’s been worked on for a number of years already but it is getting to the pointy end and we are hopeful it ... will get across the line in 2025. “I’d like to say early 2025 but I am a realist—once you’ve got legislation in play you still need to develop the regulation and have that brought to effect. “It will replace a number of existing legislations that cross over each other in some places, don’t in other places, and create confusion and gaps. “Because there are many and varied things, it is confusing for customers, [and] for builders, so the opportunity to simplify that is right ahead of us.” ▲ In 2024 inspectors targeted sites in Sydney, Newcastle, the Central Coast and Wollongong, with a focus on apartments. The new building commissioner says there are a substantial number of people outlaying serious money to increase housing stock who are having a challenging time. “The number of people who can tell you horror stories with their builder is off the charts,” Sherrard says. “Working in the industry myself I see the good and the bad. “When you try to do good work and you see people around you taking short cuts, and that coming at the cost to consumers, it is disheartening. “You get frustrated ... and when you get older, you get more experienced and you get in a position where you think, ‘Wait a second, we can ... change this’.” There are still dodgy operators out there but there are fewer of them, according to Sherrard. “Without question we have shut down a number of operators who were doing the wrong thing,” he says. “We have very good intelligence capacity to prevent those individuals from holding licences for construction work in NSW. “If we can create an environment where people understand that if they do the wrong thing they are likely to be prosecuted, then that’s a disincentive for them to do it. “People are recognising there is greater efficiency and profitability in doing things correctly.” ▲ Before his Transport NSW role, James Sherrard was national lead partner of the infrastructure, urban renewal team and capital projects practice at PwC. The ultimate goal of the NSW Building Commission is to improve the quality of construction, improve confidence for investors to build and buy, and solve housing shortages. Sherrard says it is an obligation for society to “do these sorts of things” and so when the role came up, he was more than willing to jump into it. “Overall, it comes down to the quality of construction. Everything can be narrowed down to improving the quality of construction,” he says. “The housing shortage is not just about people not having a place to live. The knock-on social impacts that come [with that] ... affect us societally more broadly. “There’s a responsibility to do what we can as far as helping improve that.” You are currently experiencing The Urban Developer Plus (TUD+), our premium membership for property professionals. Click here to learn more.

New NSW Building Commissioner Keeps Raging Against the Machine

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