The ABC reports that Liberal Generalissimo Zed Seselja debated Labor’s Planning Minister Andrew Barr for the Property Council.
It would seem Barr was asking questions Zed didn’t feel like answering.
But he did announce some new initiatives of his own, and (angels and ministers of grace preserve us) even published his thoughts online.
- “To start with, we will appoint a CEO of ACTPLA to implement necessary cultural and structural change within ACTPLA. This position will operate separately from the Chief Planning Officer. The Chief Planning officer is an important role, and we need that person to concentrate solely on planning, not the daily grind of business administration.
“Next, we will establish a taskforce to clear the bottleneck of development applications that has built up since planning laws were changed in March 2008. Staff will focus on applications that have been waiting the longest time for processing and on applications where jobs are at direct risk from delays in approvals.
“We will also establish a Small Business Response Team to provide specialised advice to small builders, construction professionals, owner builders and home renovators. This team will operate a field operation as well as an advice line and over-the-counter help.”
UPDATE: Andrew Barr says that Zed’s plan to interfere in planning could cost the ACT billions in development.
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