Page 4439 - Week 15 - Tuesday, 19 November 1991
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .
Mr Speaker, I think it is important to say one thing from the outset. Mr Kaine referred to the committee during his remarks. This, Mr Speaker, is not a majority report. It is, in fact, a report to which two out of three members agreed, but it is not a - - -
Mr Kaine: That was a majority the last time I heard.
MR JENSEN: I am sorry. It is not a - the word escapes me for the moment.
Mr Kaine: A unanimous report.
MR JENSEN: It is not a unanimous report. Thank you, Mr Kaine.
Mr Kaine: That I accept.
MR JENSEN: Thank you. It is not a unanimous report, and I think that is really one of the problems. That was why I saw fit to make my dissenting remarks.
Mr Speaker, in some ways, to a certain degree, this is also an historic report, for it is the first time that the Planning Committee has presented a report on a proposal to vary the Territory Plan. In this case, as I have already said, it is unfortunate that the Government chose to make a final decision before the committee completed its report.
Members will no doubt recall that the Rally's Bill to amend the interim planning legislation will ensure that this state of affairs does not happen again when, hopefully, the legislation comes forward for debate and passage through this Assembly. It has always been my view, and the view of the Rally, that this sort of inquiry is a major part of the role of the Assembly. I would hope that some of the other proposals put forward by the Planning Authority to vary the Territory Plan - proposals about which the community has already expressed its concerns - will be examined by the committee.
However, I have a fear that it will depend on the support for this suggestion by committee members and the provision of information to the committee before the final decision is made by the ACT Executive. My concern is, in fact, that the Executive will continue on its current path in making decisions despite concerns being expressed by the community that would warrant consideration by the Assembly Planning Committee, in much the same way as the joint committee of the Federal Parliament that looks at ACT planning issues, particularly the National Capital Plan, always consider proposals before final decisions are made.
In this case, if the majority report of the Planning Committee is accepted it will mean the end of the participation of the community in a process of development-driven planning that appears to have been rushed through
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .