State Planning System

Mrs PEARCE (King) (14:47): My question is to the Minister for Planning. Can the minister update the house on key performance indicators of South Australia's planning system?

The Hon. N.D. CHAMPION (Taylor—Minister for Trade and Investment, Minister for Housing and Urban Development, Minister for Planning) (14:47): I thank the member for King for her question and her passion on the issue of housing. We are clearly in a housing crisis and we know that there's a national emergency stemming from a chronic undersupply of housing over years across the country, in Greater Adelaide and, of course, in our regions. This is a government that's acting to address that crisis.

One of the things we need to do to address that crisis is have a planning system that's both transparent and efficient and we are lucky in South Australia that we have exactly that. South Australia's e-planning system, PlanSA, is the only comprehensive electronic planning system in the country. Recent figures by PlanSA show that more than $5.9 billion worth of development was approved through the planning system over the last financial year. That includes $2.5 billion in residential development across the state.

This investment in residential housing is aided by our fast-track planning approval process. For simple applications, such as housing in new estates, the planning approval time is 1.86 business days statewide, and the government's newly accepted development pathway has further increased those efficiencies. Planning approval is no longer required for many new houses in greenfield areas and it's this responsiveness that garners national praise for our planning system.

The figures also show that $2 billion of mixed-use development was also approved over the last financial year. That is the sort of development that this government wants to see more of. Mixed-use development creates great economic, social and environmental benefits to communities, and many of the new mixed-use developments were enabled through the statewide code amendment process.

Landowner-led rezonings can happen in just under nine months and South Australia is the only state in the country that allows that in their planning system. So far in 2023, our planning system has paved the way for initiation of code amendments on more than 1,690 hectares of land. This land has been approved to begin the rezoning investigation process. On top of those initiations, code amendments on more than 275 hectares of land have been adopted, and this is land that has been rezoned to support residential and mixed-use development, land that can now be subdivided and developed.

Our planning system has supported a 39 per cent increase on the approval of land division certificates over the last financial year, paving the way for 3,576 additional development-ready allotments. So, you can see, Mr Speaker, we have a planning system that is supporting the high growth that this government wants for this state. It's for those reasons that organisations like the Business Council of Australia recognise our planning system as being the very best in Australia, an efficient planning system, delivering for the state, delivering for communities and delivering housing for individuals.

We are doing all we can to fast-track development. We are doing all we can to alleviate the pressures on housing availability and housing affordability. And that of course stands in pretty stark contrast to those opposite, who didn't release enough land, who ignored the build-to-rent sector, who ignored the community housing providers—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! There's a point of order.

The Hon. N.D. CHAMPION: —who ignored their own constituency on regional housing.

The SPEAKER: Minister, there's a point of order. Be seated.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: Standing order 98, sir.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Chaffey is on a final warning. Member for Flinders, order!

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. N.D. CHAMPION: It talks about your inaction and this government's action on housing.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! Minister, the rules are slightly different in the state parliament as compared to the commonwealth parliament. Minister, you have the call.

The Hon. N.D. CHAMPION: Thank you, Speaker, for your education once again. It is true we have a nation-leading planning system. We want to do all we can to address the housing crisis, and, of course, if one was to make a comparison it would be an unflattering one to those opposite.