The state government has just stacked the deck against any hope of a win by council ratepayers !
Approval for developments has been steadily taken away from councils and put firmly in the hands of the planning minister, Kristina Keneally. In a bid to damp down criticism, the minister setup Joint Regional Planning Panels ( JRPP )to inject a supposedly local content into decisions.
JRPP are far from impartial. They consist of three members who are state government appointees - and two members appointed by the council. The deck is stacked to ensure the wishes of the government are upheld.
Now a new factor has been introduced. When dissenting parties take these decisions to court by way of appeal, the council will be financially responsible for defending the decisions of the JRPP - despite that decision being the result of it's representatives being out voted by government stooges !
In many development cases politics are involved. The government has one objective and this runs contrary to the wishes of the council and it's ratepayers. The decisions of the JRPP become involved where the development costs are between $ 10 million and $ 100 million - and court action in such appeals can run to hundreds of thousands of dollars.
This is a very efficient way to silence councils - and cower them into a quick surrender.
It seems that the government is using a two headed penny in this game of two-up !
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