The state government's proposed planning laws

I’ve never tried to comment on a current issue before, I don’t want to compete with the news section of the paper. But I am going to stick my neck out about the state government’s plan to remove some planning powers from council.
To begin with let’s be quite clear, this is not a party political issue. The regime the state Labor government wants to change was introduced by Neville Wran’s Labor government in 1979. (for that matter the first town planning scheme in the state was introduced by the Labor Government in 1948).
What turned out to be the most important change that Wran made was to involve the public in planning. This happened firstly because plans and major developments had to be exhibited for comment- and all neighbours had to notified of almost any development. The second change was to allow anyone to object to a development either when council was considering it, or if they were disatisifed with the council’s decision, -and if it’s a major development- by appeal to the Land and Environment Court (Which Wran’s government also set up at the same time). This has allowed special interest groups to campaign against a particular development and many have been stopped or modified.
Now this public scrutiny can embarrass the government- look at what’s happened with Wollongong City Council recently. But it can be more then embarrassing, the scrutiny can reveal corruption- again look at Wollongong Council. Sometimes the scutiny shows that everyone acted properly –such as in the Orange Grove case in western Sydney. And its just as important for people to know that the government acted properly, that the complaints were independently checked out as it is to find (and then fix) the corruption.
But quite apart from exposing bad decisions the whole process –with public input generally means that the majority gets what it wants, and that’s democratic And if the majority doesn’t get what it wants then there is a good reason. That doesn’t mean that Councils always make the right decision, they don’t and that is why we have a review process- ultimately ending up in the Land and Environment Court.
Councils have only limited powers and must abide by the rules and importantly must be seen to abide by the rules and if they don’t then the court generally makes sure they do.
But what the government proposals do is strip away some of this scrutiny. The government has already done this by taking away council powers to control ‘major’ projects. Instead the Minister decides first what such a major project is and then second he decides if that goes ahead. So locally the Minister approved the Huntlee development despite (According to Four Corners) advice from his department that the development should not proceed. And (again according to Four Corners) the developers had given almost half a million to the ALP over the seven years before the minister approved the development.
Now one of the changes the government proposes (And it’s the best one they have) is to remove much of the Ministers powers. Instead many of these developments will be controlled by a new Planning Assessment Commission. But here too the Commission only has the power to control the developments if the Minister says so and there are no appeals from the Commission which can run its proceedings more or less as it likes.
Councils are going to be restricted by regional panels- made up of 3 state government appointees and 2 council nominees. For example the council cannot reject a state government development without the approval of the panel (and state government officials make up the majority of the panel).
All in all this is a bad policy. The government’s excuse –that the council process takes too long – has been exposed for what it is by the report that the Minister takes longer on average then do councils when deciding on a similar development.
Further reading
Four Corners transcript http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/content/2008/s2216656.htm
The state government’s site where it sets out its side of the story http://www.planning.nsw.gov.au/planning_reforms/index.asp
The Local Government Associations site http://www.lgsa.org.au/www/html/2492-30-april-2008.asp?intSiteID=1 and http://www.keepitlocal.org.au/
And –for those interested- I am posting the older articles in this column on my blog. http://peterkirsop.blogspot.com/

Singers of Renown

for forty two years John Cargher brought Australians into the world of opera. His books and his programmes have been an education. He was never an expert, he never wanted to be, he was what he said he was a member of the audience sharing his joy with us. But even if he wasnt a musicologist (what a word!) he knew so much more then we did and wearing his knowledge lightly he taught us.

I started listening regularly in Cooma when we only had one ABC channel- regional radio and was always pleased that we the regional listeners got an extra song. And then his programme came on Radio National and I listened then. I still can not sing, I still can not tell different voices apart but I know that I liked the glorious sounds that he presented.

And now after a life of 89 years and a world of experience from birth in East End of London childhood in Germany and then return to England to be a tool maker and to RAF ground crews and to Australia Mr Cargher has died.

I will miss his programmes.

HE showed us so much. God rest his soul