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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2003 Week 12 Hansard (19 November) . . Page.. 4317 ..

Mrs Dunne: I rise to a point of order, Mr Speaker. Is it an announcement of government policy if he is reconsidering his current position?

MR SPEAKER: No, it is not an announcement of government policy. Nice try, Mrs Dunne; 10 points for trying.

MR CORBELL: I am reconsidering it because of the relatively low level of interest expressed from a range of suburbs that the CPFs are proposed to cover. I am exploring a range of other options to ensure that there is effective community representation when it comes to considering planning proposals. That is something on which I hope to reach resolution shortly.

MR SPEAKER: Do you have a supplementary question, Ms Dundas?

MS DUNDAS: Yes, Mr Speaker. I would like the minister to answer the first part of the question and define what he meant by "shortly". Also, I would like to know what is going to happen to the development applications currently in train that normally would have gone to LAPACs or a community planning forum but have missed out on either process and how community input will be brought in on the current DAs.

MR CORBELL: The community, of course, continues to be involved in the full statutory process for assessing all development applications that are publicly notified and the opportunities for public comment, objection and review remain the same as they always have been under the land act. In relation to resolution of the future of community planning forums and whether alternative avenues will be pursued by the government, that is something on which I am in detailed discussions, as I have said, with the Planning and Land Authority. The bottom line is that the government has received a relatively poor level of interest being expressed in the community planning forums and I do not think that it is appropriate to continue to establish these bodies if that level of interest remains, because it just means that they will not work and we want to make sure that a community consultation process does work. We will consider other avenues to make sure that we can achieve that.

Aged care facilities

MR CORNWELL: My question is to the Minister for Health and Minister for Planning, Mr Corbell. Minister, in July you claimed that there were development proposals for 500 independent living units and 300 aged care beds. These proposals still appear to be tied up in red tape, without a brick being laid. Indeed, with the closure of Peppertree Lodge in Queanbeyan, we have lost aged care beds throughout the region. Why have you failed to cut the red tape that is holding up developments for aged care-

Mr Stanhope: Queanbeyan is in New South Wales, Greg. Ask Bob Carr about that one.

MR CORNWELL: while you seem to be willing to do so for developments in Civic West?

Mr Stanhope: That's not in New South Wales.

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