Planning and Design Code

Mr COWDREY (Colton) (15:01): My question is to the Attorney-General in her capacity as Minister for Planning. Can the minister provide an update to the house on how the new planning system is improving outcomes and helping families, councils and developers build what matters?

The Hon. V.A. CHAPMAN (Bragg—Deputy Premier, Attorney-General, Minister for Planning and Local Government) (15:01): I am very happy to in my role as the planning minister. I am pleased to confirm to the parliament that at 12.01 on Friday we will be launching phase 3 of the Planning and Design Code and we will be going entirely into an e-planning program.

Why is this important and how does it deliver better provision for our families, councils and the developers in building what matters? Let me give you three examples. Firstly, it aims, as an electronic program, to ensure as an Australian first that we bring all the planning systems together in one easily accessible e-planning platform. You will be able to go in and out and make applications 24/7. You can do them Sunday mornings, if you like, and you can do them in general business hours, and it will provide flexibility in relation to the utilisation of this central development application processing system.

It is a one-stop shop to help guide development across the state and it has a wide range of guides, instructions and videos to help people lodge those applications, find information, determine what development approval is needed and if it is, of course, what needs to be done. All this is to provide a statewide program that will reduce delays, lessen paperwork, etc. We have heard of things being simpler, quicker, easier and better lots of times. I have certainly heard it a lot in the time I have been here in the parliament.

To demonstrate how effective rounds 1 and 2 have gone, can I tell you that the code has been running effectively for rural, which is phase 2 areas, since 1 July 2020 with recent reports showing the system is certainly delivering results. As at 1 March, over 3,000 applications have been lodged through that portal by phase 2 councils. Those applications in regional areas alone are worth over $620 million.

The accepted development or deemed-to-satisfy pathways—these are for relatively simple projects—are taking councils on average 3.6 days to approve compared with eight days under the previous system. The more complex performance assessed projects are being approved in 14.72 days on average, and that's three days faster than before.

So, yes, it is being demonstrated, and one in seven applications are occurring outside office hours, indicating that users are taking up the advantage of adding flexibility in the system. When the code was considered for this last stage, there were four areas where in the code at its various stages a number of issues were raised.

Firstly, there was the question of lifting the bar on the quality of infill development through the requirement of trees and soft landscaping for each property including better water retention. Protecting our character and heritage: most notably this was through the retention of contributory items as representative buildings, as well as stronger state heritage protections.

Thirdly, there was the issue of protecting native vegetation through the inclusion of new overlay (that has been attended to) and promoting value-adding in rural areas by allowing property owners to facilitate development for value-adding businesses like shops, tourist accommodation or food and beverage production, industries with rural and Adelaide country zones.

Michael Lennon, our Chair of the State Planning Commission, has announced that he will be retiring on Friday. I thank him for his service. He has followed through the hardest part of the development of the Planning and Design Code, and he and other members of the department and commission should be strongly commended.

The Hon. S.C. Mullighan interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Lee will resume his seat. The time for answering the question has expired.