Victorias War on Planning Red Tape has Relevance to NSW

14 May 2012

The recent release of the key reforms recommended by the Victorian Planning System Ministerial Advisory Committee and the Victorian Governments response has some important proposals that should be considered in the NSW planning review says the Urban Taskforce Australia.

 

 

The Victorian Government is supporting recommendations to encourage councils to delegate decision making powers, rebalance the planning system towards greater certainty and to develop a Code Assessment process. Says Urban Taskforce CEO Chris Johnson. These recommendations are similar to what is needed in NSW if we are going to increase productivity in the property sector.

 

It is good to see that the Victorian Minister for Planning, Mathew Guy, is talking about declaring war on the red tape that is stifling the economy, particularly in the construction industry.

 

He is also calling for increased productivity in the Victorian economy to provide more jobs yet the approvals and construction performance on a per capita basis significantly exceed that of NSW.

 

The Victorian planning review received 547 submissions well above the 328 received for the NSW review.

 

With the Green Paper imminent in NSW we are hoping that a similar focus on productivity will be highlighted with a move to more code assessable determinations and an encouragement for councils to delegate decision making to independent bodies like the Joint Regional Planning Panels. The Victorian Government is proposing to establish a Planning Application Committee for this purpose.

 

Other initiatives the Victorian Government is pursuing include modernising the structure of the Department of Planning and Community Development, improve the performance of referral authorities, reduce the multi layering of planning controls and increasing flexibility in zoning.

 

Another area that NSW can learn from would appear to be the operation of the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) which hears disputes in a non-court environment and according to many of the Urban Taskforce members who operate in Victoria is a good system for resolving planning disputes.

 

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