MASTER Builders Association ACT executive director John Miller said there could be little doubt that the carbon tax would cascade through the supply chain and increase the cost of housing.

The MBA-ACT today expressed concerns that higher than average levels of remuneration in the national capital will prove disadvantageous for business and consumers, including the home building industry.

He said he endorsed the national building industry sentiment that there were few benefits in the carbon tax arrangements for home owners or the building industry, but believed the deficits were magnified by Canberra’s higher income demographic.

“As already been pointed out by our national spokesman, the Government’s compensation package may be adequate to cover increases in energy charges but it will not cover the cost of new housing which will be at least $5000 for a modest home,” he said.

Mr Miller said in circumstances where the compensation package would cut out at incomes over $80,000 and where the mortgage repayments would need to increase to cover higher input costs, many Canberra families stood to be at a particular disadvantage.

He said he believed there was a genuine argument to be mounted for the Government to take account of the building industry’s existing contributions to lower carbon emissions through mandatory energy efficiency measures.

“Our industry is already at the cutting edge in terms of building energy-efficient homes and this is something that needs to be recognised,” Mr Miller said.