❓ Mrs. Godfrey questions planning decision timeliness. Minister defends the government's planning reforms, citing increased efficiency and land release, while acknowledging complexities and quoting industry support.
AnsweredQoN 627Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
DEPARTMENT
OF PLANNING — DECISIONS
627. Mrs G.J. GODFREY to the
Minister for Planning:
Today the media reported some comments about the time it is
taking to make planning decisions and to bring land to market. Can the minister
please advise the house what the government is doing to process timely planning
decisions?
OF PLANNING — DECISIONS
627. Mrs G.J. GODFREY to the
Minister for Planning:
Today the media reported some comments about the time it is
taking to make planning decisions and to bring land to market. Can the minister
please advise the house what the government is doing to process timely planning
decisions?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for Belmont for the question. I did notice
a little commentary about our planning system and suggestions that a lack of
resourcing of the Department of Planning and the Western Australian Planning
Commission is causing excessive delays in the release of land for development.
In fact, the need to streamline our planning system and to ensure that timely
and quality decisions are made has been a very high priority of the government
since we came to office six years ago. The first phase of planning reform was
essentially completed in our first term of government. The second phase of
planning reform and the actions that will be taken were put out there about
four to six weeks ago. I have already spoken about that in this place. Essentially,
we are acting to ensure that a system of approvals is in place that not only is
contemporary and responds to the growth pressures in Western Australia, but
also allows adequate time for appropriate community consultation and input and
for environmental issues to be taken into account and so on.
As Minister for Planning, I have made 2 026 statutory
decisions in the past six years on new planning schemes and scheme amendments.
In 2013–14, the last financial year, 3 657 subdivision applications
were approved, 84 per cent of which were within the statutory time frame. That
compares with 2007–08, when only 59 per cent of those applications were
approved within that 90�day statutory period. There has been a substantial lift
in performance by the department, in part caused by the establishment of the
Department of Planning in its own right and the separation from the previous
Department of Planning and Infrastructure.
It is very easy to suggest that under-resourcing is causing
delays, but often the issues are far more complex and involved than that. Some
planning scheme amendments take a long period to finalise because additional
information needs to be sought from proponents, local governments, other states
or, in some cases, federal agencies. All those issues need to be taken into
account. Also, sometimes legal action is taken, such as it was by the Town of
Cottesloe recently in relation to the finalisation of its town planning scheme.
A contemporary statistic can be found in the June quarter of
this year, when 5 364 lots in the Perth, Mandurah and Murray regions were
released, which is the highest number in the 25 years since records were first
kept. That is a 23 per cent increase in the figures for June 2013. Those
numbers are largely market driven—demand driven. If people are not
developing land on a widespread basis, fewer lots will be released. The fact
that the figure in the last quarter has been the highest for 25 years is
evidence that the department is generally performing very well. The number of conditional
approvals of new residential lots in the Perth and Peel regions is about 61 000
compared with the long-term average of 51 000. As I said, the second phase of
planning reform will result in further substantial changes to streamline our
system further.
In conclusion, I simply draw attention to comments from a
number of commentators on the reforms that are being put in place. For example,
on 12 August this year, the Housing Industry Association said, amongst other
things —
The State Government is to be
congratulated on this and the other reforms in the Planning Makes it Happen:
Phase 2 Action Plan, �
Kelvin Ryan, the CEO of BGC, Australia's largest home
builder, stated —
''The reforms announced
today represent a giant leap forward in the state's planning system and
are warmly welcomed by BGC.
Finally, a quote from the Property Council of Australia was
included in the article in today's The
West Australian . The Property Council of Australia, on a national basis in
its ''Development Assessment Report Card 2012'', made some very
positive comments about changes to the Western Australian planning system,
including —
Western Australia has been
outstanding in terms of its recent reform achievements, with considerable
progress being made in the policy and decision-making areas.
I accept there is always more to be done, but I think,
overall, our planning system is functioning well.
a little commentary about our planning system and suggestions that a lack of
resourcing of the Department of Planning and the Western Australian Planning
Commission is causing excessive delays in the release of land for development.
In fact, the need to streamline our planning system and to ensure that timely
and quality decisions are made has been a very high priority of the government
since we came to office six years ago. The first phase of planning reform was
essentially completed in our first term of government. The second phase of
planning reform and the actions that will be taken were put out there about
four to six weeks ago. I have already spoken about that in this place. Essentially,
we are acting to ensure that a system of approvals is in place that not only is
contemporary and responds to the growth pressures in Western Australia, but
also allows adequate time for appropriate community consultation and input and
for environmental issues to be taken into account and so on.
As Minister for Planning, I have made 2 026 statutory
decisions in the past six years on new planning schemes and scheme amendments.
In 2013–14, the last financial year, 3 657 subdivision applications
were approved, 84 per cent of which were within the statutory time frame. That
compares with 2007–08, when only 59 per cent of those applications were
approved within that 90�day statutory period. There has been a substantial lift
in performance by the department, in part caused by the establishment of the
Department of Planning in its own right and the separation from the previous
Department of Planning and Infrastructure.
It is very easy to suggest that under-resourcing is causing
delays, but often the issues are far more complex and involved than that. Some
planning scheme amendments take a long period to finalise because additional
information needs to be sought from proponents, local governments, other states
or, in some cases, federal agencies. All those issues need to be taken into
account. Also, sometimes legal action is taken, such as it was by the Town of
Cottesloe recently in relation to the finalisation of its town planning scheme.
A contemporary statistic can be found in the June quarter of
this year, when 5 364 lots in the Perth, Mandurah and Murray regions were
released, which is the highest number in the 25 years since records were first
kept. That is a 23 per cent increase in the figures for June 2013. Those
numbers are largely market driven—demand driven. If people are not
developing land on a widespread basis, fewer lots will be released. The fact
that the figure in the last quarter has been the highest for 25 years is
evidence that the department is generally performing very well. The number of conditional
approvals of new residential lots in the Perth and Peel regions is about 61 000
compared with the long-term average of 51 000. As I said, the second phase of
planning reform will result in further substantial changes to streamline our
system further.
In conclusion, I simply draw attention to comments from a
number of commentators on the reforms that are being put in place. For example,
on 12 August this year, the Housing Industry Association said, amongst other
things —
The State Government is to be
congratulated on this and the other reforms in the Planning Makes it Happen:
Phase 2 Action Plan, �
Kelvin Ryan, the CEO of BGC, Australia's largest home
builder, stated —
''The reforms announced
today represent a giant leap forward in the state's planning system and
are warmly welcomed by BGC.
Finally, a quote from the Property Council of Australia was
included in the article in today's The
West Australian . The Property Council of Australia, on a national basis in
its ''Development Assessment Report Card 2012'', made some very
positive comments about changes to the Western Australian planning system,
including —
Western Australia has been
outstanding in terms of its recent reform achievements, with considerable
progress being made in the policy and decision-making areas.
I accept there is always more to be done, but I think,
overall, our planning system is functioning well.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.