Page 4722 - Week 15 - Wednesday, 7 December 1994
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The fourth recommendation is as follows:
The committee recommends that the guidelines bearing on the Territory Plan, and any further guidelines developed in the future, be disallowable instruments pursuant to the Subordinate Laws Act 1989.
This, Madam Speaker, was a recommendation of the Planning, Development and Infrastructure Committee in its response to the Territory Plan. I believe that it was in report No. 12, which we tabled during 1993. We have seen some examples recently where guidelines have been prepared by the Planning Authority but not necessarily tabled in this Assembly and being subject to the disallowance provisions of this Assembly. The committee has recommended again that this recommendation be taken up.
The fifth recommendation says:
The committee recommends that the Planning Authority and DELP aim to have suitable processes and facilities in place such as to enable any person inquiring about the nature of planning legislation pertaining to a particular portion of land to access that information quickly and accurately.
The chairman of the Planning Committee drew attention to this particular recommendation. I endorse it. I believe that the committee endorses it. The community certainly needs better access to planning information so that their participation in the planning process is more effective, and can be more effective.
I do not have too much longer, Madam Speaker, so I will cover some of the remaining recommendations I wish to comment on quite quickly. Under the heading of "Consultation", the committee recommends "that the minimum time for public consultation on a draft variation to the Territory Plan be doubled from the present 21 days to 42 days". The committee thought about this at considerable length. We believe that 42 days, or six weeks, is an appropriate length of time in which members of the community, and members of the community who participate in community organisations, can adequately respond to draft variations to the Territory Plan. Further, in recommendation 7, the committee recommends:
... that the consultative processes of the planning legislation and planning process be urgently reviewed by a panel of Government, industry and community representatives with a view to simplifying and rationalising the consultation processes.
This idea was proposed during the public hearings by a number of industry groups, and I believe that it was warmly welcomed by members of the committee.
I will move on to the recommendations which suggest that further work be done by committees of this Assembly. I believe, Madam Speaker, that it is somewhat unfortunate that the committee has had to recommend that a number of further inquiries take place in relation to particular issues highlighted in this report. Members of the community may
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