Since the WA Inc days of the 1980s after which a Western Australian premier and an America’s Cup winner were jailed and when the state lost hundreds of millions of dollars in irregular skyscraper investments, government links to the property sector have been a touchy topic in Perth.

But with the government of Brian Burke and the dealings of late sailing impressario Alan Bond beyond living memory of many at The Urban Developer’s inaugural Perth Developer Symposium, delegates discuss the role of government in property development without too much trepidation.

Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage director general Anthony Kannis explains that WA’s Perth and Peel @ 3.5 million plan, released in 2018, set the western metropolis a target of 47 per cent urban infill by the time the city reached a population of 3.5 million.