Planning Bill introduced- Your Rights bulldozed

This week, after two years of preparation, Planning Minister Brad Hazzard introduced the Planning Bill 2013 to the NSW Parliament.

Government has made a number of concessions in response to widespread community concern about the draft planning laws.

But the revised legislation still falls far short—it remains unbalanced and unfair, placing the interests of developers and industry ahead of the local communities and the environment.

With parliamentary debate on the laws due to kick off early next week, it’s critical that elected representatives hear from people like you who support a system that puts the environment and local communities at the centre of planning decisions.

Due to community pressure, changes made to the draft legislation fix some of the worst features, but the legislation still fails to deliver a fair, sustainable planning system for our state.

Thank you for joining with thousands of others to voice your concerns about the draft legislation.  The letters, calls and outreach are making a difference!

We can’t stop now.

The legislation makes no reference to the principles of ecologically sustainable development and still allows the fast-tracked approval of ‘code assessable’ development, without community consultation.

We have a short window of time before debate begins and need to make sure decision makers know that the changes to the Planning Bill do not go far  enough.

Send a letter to Minister Hazzard and key parliamentarians today, the fate of the planning system now lies in their hands.

 The changes to the bill show that our efforts are working and that by standing together, we can make sure the government hears our concerns and develops a planning system that put communities and the environment at the centre.

 Thanks for all you do!

 Kate Smolski

Campaigns Director