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Ministerial accountability for planning and development will be restored under a Community Alliance Party intention to change the Planning and Development Act 2007, according to Community Alliance candidate for Ginninderra, Roger Nicoll.
Under the proposed changes, the Minister will be required to: - present all environmental impact statements (EIS) to the Legislative Assembly for approval
- make any EIS exemptions for development applications to be subject to the Legislative Assembly and a reinstated planning and land council
- gain approval to use ‘call-in powers’ from a re-instated planning and land council and the Legislative Assembly.
Under the Act, only significant development proposals require an EIS. The current Act gives the Minister the power to declare a development proposal exempt from an EIS if there is a pre-existing study, even if it is unrelated to the proposal. "It is entirely appropriate that exemptions and approvals should be subject to public scrutiny and approval through the Assembly," said Mr Nicoll. "There has been community concern over the use of call-in powers for a long time," said Mr Nicoll. If a development is worth while it should be able to withstand appeals, scrutiny and testing. "The quality of the development isn’t at issue here, it is about making sure that there is adequate assessment and approval processes. It is about getting the planning approvals process right," said Mr Nicoll. “A worthwhile development should be able to be approved on its merits stand up to a proper assessment process, reporting and appeals." "There is an argument for abolishing call-in powers altogether, or at least making them a disallowable instrument, and letting ACTPLA assess development applications without any potential for Ministerial interference,” said Mr Nicoll. The use of call-in powers without accountability or scrutiny overrides the whole point of a planning approval process, and opens the process to accusations of undue influence being brought to bear by proponents. "This proposal is as much about protecting the department and the Minister as about protecting the interests of the people of the ACT," he said. Other areas the Community Alliance wants to review include the lack of notification on the larger code-track developments and restrictions on third-party appeals. "After the experiences of recent years, people want to be listened to, and see some accountability in planning and development." Contact: Roger Nicoll |
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