Page 2890 - Week 08 - Wednesday, 24 June 2009
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I would like to take this opportunity to quickly run through the sorts of reforms that I am talking about. A significant number of development proposals in residential areas have been exempted from the requirement for a development assessment application. Over the last 12 months, around 1,000 developments were newly exempt from the requirement to lodge a development application; only a building approval was required in these cases. The number of exemptions will continue to rise over time as the full effect of the existing exemption regulations is realised. We will also look for new opportunities to remove classes of minor development from the development application system.
For instance, it is now no longer necessary to lodge development applications for home businesses, sheds, roof slope changes, skylights and demolitions. The list of building approval exemptions has continued to grow. A range of minor works are now exempt, including fences, walls, retaining walls, portable pools and pool fencing, garages and other class 10 structures, water tanks, doors, windows and the like. This is a simpler, faster and more effective planning system leading to better and cheaper housing.
The size and complexity of the territory plan and related instruments have also been slashed; 87 different concept plans, master plans, neighbourhood plans, registered and unregistered guidelines were collapsed into the three-volume territory plan. The territory plan codes provide a vehicle for government agencies to document their development standards into the territory plan. In turn, this will reduce the need for agency referral. Over time, the DA process will become a one-stop shop and this will create a new opportunity for reform of whole-of-government processes—an element that I will return to shortly.
The new planning system also created a technical amendment process and this enables the Planning and Land Authority to quickly rectify or refine the territory plan with minor or technical changes which do not change the policy intent—so, again, simpler, faster, more effective planning systems leading to better and cheaper housing.
The housing investments developed in response to the commonwealth funding that Mr Hargreaves is working on provide another opportunity for the planning system to adapt to ensure more and better housing for Canberrans. The government was able to respond to the commonwealth package with a regulation change which allowed the building of social housing with the time-limited commonwealth funding. This in turn will lead to the development of a social housing code, which will further speed up approval processes for putting social housing applications on the code rather than the merit track. This will have the effect of stretching the social housing dollar further, allowing efficiencies to be spent on more and better housing.
The government’s response to the commonwealth funding package is a great example of the new act providing the flexibility to respond to unforeseen circumstances while protecting planning standards—so, again, a simpler, faster and more effective planning system leading to better and cheaper housing.
Not content to address the processes which approve development, the government has also worked on what we call the long pipeline for land release. The estate
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