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| Madam Speaker, I move that the bill be now read a second time. The purpose of this bill is to amend the Planning Act to strengthen the role of the Northern Territory Planning Commission, or the commission as it is known, and streamlining planning processes. The bill also includes amendments to the Planning Act and Planning Regulations to ensure that certain long-term leases over Aboriginal land for government-owned infrastructure are valid without subdivision approval. This government established the commission in 2012 to prepare integrated strategic land use plans, area plans and policies for inclusion in the Planning Scheme. The commission also advises the minister on significant development proposals. It exercises its functions independently, impartially and in the public interest according to the Planning Act. As part of developing its highly-detailed plans and policies, the commission conducts extensive community consultation to ensure that local knowledge and insights are properly considered. The Planning Act outlines the process leading to a decision when someone requests that the minister amends the Planning Scheme by changing a zone or that they be granted a permit to use or develop the land in a way which is otherwise prohibited by the planning scheme. Any proposal that will be considered by the minister is placed on public exhibition. Anyone can make a submission about the proposal. Section 21 provides for a reporting body to receive any submissions and conduct a hearing in respect of those submissions. A report is prepared on issues raised in the submissions, the hearing and any other matters the reporting body considers the minister should take into account. The report and all submissions are provided to the minister who considers the proposal and decides if the panning scheme will be amended or an exceptional development permit is issued or varied. This relatively straight forward bill repeals section 21 of the Planning Act that currently provides for a division of the development consent authority to be the reporting body. The functions of the reporting body described in sections 22, 23, and 24 are then assigned to the commission because of its broader strategic role and continued extensive consultation with the community regarding the planning scheme. The amendment to section 22 provides that hearings held in respect of submissions only require the chairperson or another member of the commission authorised by the chairperson to conduct them. It would be unnecessarily onerous and costly to convene a meeting of the commission for the purpose of such a hearing. The logical involvement of the independent commission provided for this bill will contribute to community confidence in strategic town planning issues and policies. The other minor amendments in the bill relate to section 5 of the Planning Act and regulation 3A of the planning regulations. Regulation 3A was made in 2009 to exempt the definition of subdivision, certain long term leases over Aboriginal land for government owned infrastructure. It was required for the rollout of the Strategic Indigenous Housing Infrastructure Program to enable the establishment of secure tenure in a timely and efficient manner. The period of the exemption was extended in 2013 due to the complexities involved and the inclusion of housing and infrastructure being constructed under the National Partnership Agreement on Remote Indigenous Housing, NPARIH as we all know it. The exemption was originally drafted with the understanding that the relevant essential services infrastructure was owned by Power and Water Corporation. In fact, the infrastructure belongs to the wholly owned not for profit subsidiary of Power and Water Corporation, Indigenous Essential Services Pty Limited, known as IES. Therefore the current regulation may not apply and these amendments to the act are required to retrospectively ensure the validity of agreements entered into since the current regulation commenced. This bill amends section 5 of the Planning Act to exclude from the definitions of subdivision, leases over Aboriginal land that were granted to IES after 29 June 2009 and before the commencement of these amendments. The bill also amends regulation 3A to include leases to IES after the commencement of these amendments. I commend this bill to honourable members and table a copy of the explanatory statement. Debate adjourned. |