A prominent community leader and statistician has called out misinformation being told by one Labor Majority Council to help sell its Local Environment Plan (LEP), which aims to appease the State Labor Government.
Statistician and former-Independent Councillor for the Inner West, John Stamolis, has called out misinformation from the Labor Majority Inner West Council to help sell its highly-controversial LEP, the “Fairer Futures Plan”.
The Plan, which has been met with sharp pushback from residents and community groups, proposes 31,000 new dwellings across the Inner West over the next 15 years, almost doubling the State Government housing targets for the area.
In an interview with ABC’s 7:30 Report, Inner West Mayor, Darcy Byrne, was asked why the Council has proposed such aggressively high numbers. Byrne responded that the increase in targets was an attempt to stop an “exodus of young people” from the area.
“Every week we’re seeing young people who love the Inner West being forced out by the cost of housing,” Mayor Byrne told 7.30.
The latest ABS data (2023 Population Estimates by age and sex) clearly refute this statement, instead, showing a massive inflow of young people.
Over the last two years for which data was available, 2022 and 2023, the Inner West saw 4,700 people aged 20-39 move into the area. Two-thirds of this increase were people aged 20-29.
“Byrne misinformed our national broadcaster, when he stated that there is an ‘exodus of young people’ from the Inner West. This misinformation has been repeatedly told to his constituents and multiple press outlets.
“Byrne is way out-of-date with his understanding of our community and fails to appreciate that the fall in numbers of young people several years ago was a temporary Covid effect. Since Covid, Inner West has experienced a big resurgence of young people. ” explains Stamolis.
“Data is being misreported to sell Labor’s plan for over development. There is no exodus at all. The population of young people is now expected to be at, or near, record levels.” Stamolis states.
Mayor Byrne was also quoted in the ABC 7:30 Report on Thursday 21 August that “no one will have to leave” in order to fit an additional 31,000 new dwellings into the Inner West, Australia’s 5th most densely populated Council.
“Thousands of private homes, affordable flats, low-income boarding houses and shops will need to be demolished to make way for Council’s massive development plan. It’s nonsensical to state that no one will need to leave. How else does Council plan to cram 31,000 new dwellings into our already very high-density suburbs?’” Stamolis questioned.
