[Greens-Media] (Sylvia Hale MLC) Council Powers: Planning Minister Set to Do Developers Bidding

[Christopher Holley]

Planning Minister Set to Do Developers Bidding 

NSW Greens MP and planning spokesperson Sylvia Hale today accused the Planning Minister Frank Sartor of preparing to do the developers bidding by issuing an order that will allow him to unilaterally remove the planning powers from local councils. 

On 17 July property industry lobby group, the NSW Urban Taskforce, issued a media release calling on the government to strip a Sydney council of its planning powers for alleged delays in approving developments. Three days later the Minister issues the order that gives him the power to meet the property lobbys demands, said Ms Hale

The government appears to be being led by the nose by the property industry which is agitating to remove planning powers from local councils. The developers want to speed up approvals by cutting local communities out of the process, said Ms Hale.

The order issued by Minister Sartor sets out the issues that the Minister should consider when deciding to appoint a planning administrator or planning panel to take over development approval powers from a local council. 

The order is written very broadly to give the Minister virtually unfettered power to intervene based on his own subjective judgement, said Ms Hale.

The property industry donated millions of dollars to the re-election campaign of the Labor Party. Since it was re-elected the Labor government has been falling over backwards to give the big property developers what they want. 

They want the planning laws rewritten, the Minister has offered to rewrite them. They want councils stripped of planning powers, hes taken the necessary steps to do just that.

The ICAC identified as far back as 2005 that there are problems with a lack of transparency about political donations by developers and the exercise of Ministerial discretion in planning matters, but the government has taken no action to address those problems.

Moves like this only add to the perception of a disturbingly close relationship between the NSW Labor Party and the property industry, said Ms Hale. 

It is no wonder that people across the spectrum are calling for a review of political donations and their effect on government decision-making.



Contact: Chris Holley (02) 9230 3030 / 0437 779 546