Labor backbencher Michael Pettersson threatens to introduce private members' bill on ACT property developer licensing

Mr Pettersson is due to table a petition to the Assembly on Tuesday calling on ACT Greens member and Minister for Sustainable Building and Construction Rebecca Vassarotti to act on the government's promise to introduce developer licensing.

In 2019, the ACT government committed to a scheme that would require property developers to hold a licence to build projects in the territory.

Three years on Canberrans were still waiting, Mr Pettersson said.

"I was hoping, as a member of the government to see property developer licensing implemented by the end of 2022. Instead, we've got nothing on the table," he said.

In September, Ms Vassarotti told The Canberra Times work on the scheme had started, however she would not confirm a timeline.

Mr Pettersson said there was still no sign of a discussion paper.

"If the minister isn't going to get their act together and bring forward legislation I'm going to need to bring forward a private members' bill," he said.

Ms Vassarotti said she welcomed the petition from Mr Pettersson and said she intended to say more on the issue in the coming months. She said the discussion paper would be introduced in summer.

"I welcome Mr Pettersson's petition into the Assembly, which echoes CFMEU's recent polling which showed that the overwhelming majority of Canberrans want tougher regulation on property developers," Ms Vassarotti said.

"We all agree that property developers should be held accountable for the work they do, so the ACT will introduce greater accountability measures for property developers, including a developer licensing scheme."

It is understood the government plans to introduce a bill on developer licensing next year.

The government has prioritised legislation to introduce a licensing scheme for engineers, which is expected next week. The engineer licensing scheme has been promised for more than a decade.

Mr Pettersson said "every day we wait is a day too long" when it came to holding developers to account.

"We are increasingly expecting Canberrans to live in higher density living," he said.

"Property developers are at the absolute centre of the redevelopment of this city and they need to be held to a high standard."

Ms Vassarotti told annual report hearings earlier this month the delay in introducing the scheme was partly due to difficulty in defining what actually constitutes a property developer.

Zach Smith, secretary of the ACT branch of the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union, is behind Tuesday's petition, which closed on Friday with 820 digital signatures.

More than 200 additional paper signatures were also collected, Mr Smith said.

A RedBridge phone survey of 985 people in July found 76.6 per cent of respondents supported a licensing regime for ACT property developers.

Mr Smith said despite broad support for the scheme, there had been little action from the government.

The union recently engaged NSW barrister and former CFMEU legal officer Tony Slevin to prepare a framework for how developer licensing could work in the ACT.

The framework recommends a licence should be a requirement for anyone to submit a planning application in the ACT or carry out works under an approved application.

To be granted a licence, a developer would need to pass a fit and proper person test, have completed relevant training and have no history of phoenixing or contravening health and safety laws and no history of failing to complete rectification works, the framework suggests.

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The union also recommends the licensing scheme should be overseen by a new independent office to deal with issuing and renewing licences, education and compliance.

Mr Smith said the idea that a licensing framework was impractical was "nonsense".

"I don't want to hear that it's too hard or too complex," he said.

"We've put a workable model on the table, so let's move forward swiftly from here."

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