Page 461 - Week 02 - Thursday, 22 February 1990
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on planning and its preliminary drafting instructions. Matters raised during the community consultation meetings on planning, which were held late last year, have also been taken into account.
Since the Alliance Government came to office, meetings have been held with a range of interested groups at both ministerial and senior officer level and these have provided the Government with further information on the community's wishes in relation to planning issues.
To ensure that all interested persons have an opportunity to consider and comment on the Government's specific planning proposals, each draft Bill, starting with the ones I have tabled today, will be made publicly available before its formal introduction into the Assembly. Through these measures we will ensure that there is maximum opportunity for public participation in developing our planning legislation.
We invite comment from all interested parties on these exposure drafts so that the Bills ultimately tabled for adoption by the Assembly will truly represent the community's views. However, we are announcing details about certain key areas of the remaining Bills in advance of their release so that the public is informed at this stage about these important parts of the package.
With regard to betterment, we will introduce a system under which a charge will be applied of 100 per cent of the difference between the "before" and "after" values of a lease, but with remissions according to the length of time since the original issue of the lease. Different rates of remission will be applied according to whether the lease was originally granted at full market value, at a concessional price or whether it was granted free. This will mean, for example, that for a lease issued 10 years ago at full market value, a remission of 20 per cent will apply and so a betterment charge of 80 per cent will be payable when the lease purpose is changed. After 20 years, remissions would rise to their maximum of 50 per cent of the difference between the "before" and "after" values for leases originally granted at full market value. The rate of remission on betterment payable in relation to leases granted at a concessional price or granted free will accrue more gradually. This will result after 20 years in payment of 80 per cent betterment for concessionary leases and 90 per cent betterment for leases granted free of charge. We believe, Mr Speaker, that those remissions accurately reflect the public's opinion on these matters.
This new method for charging betterment will be certain, even-handed and effective. It will balance the need for an adequate return to the community with the need to maintain appropriate levels of development activity in Canberra. In view of the need to address any uncertainty that may exist in the market at present, the legislation will provide for the new betterment arrangements to apply from today and for appropriate transitional arrangements.
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