New system to streamline approvals

A MAJOR planning overhaul will help deliver more homes through a modern, faster and fairer system in a groundbreaking NSW Government initiative.

The new Development Coordination Authority, which begins on Wednesday, will see applicants and councils seeking NSW Government input on planning matters receive one coordinated response, instead of being bounced around between up to 22 different agencies.

Bringing together experts from across government, the DCA will cut red tape and speed up approvals for new homes.

Under the current system, when a development application is referred to multiple state agencies for advice, each additional referral can add around 100 days to the assessment process.

The DCA will replace this fragmented approach with a single coordinated NSW Government response within 28 days.

It will:

• act as a single point of contact for enquiries on local development and modification applications requiring input from NSW Government agencies;
• issue a single, coordinated response to referrals from consent authorities;
• bring together experts from a broad range of disciplines so issues can be resolved quickly;
• provide specialised expertise and coordinated technical advice on development applications, modification applications and rezonings; and
• help resolve post consent issues for large housing projects so construction can start sooner.

The DCA will work within a new statutory framework that consolidates more than 800 dispersed, duplicative and inconsistent requirements across 175 planning instruments into a single list aligned with state priorities.

Minister for Planning and Public Spaces Paul Scully said: “This is another major improvement for the planning system in NSW.”

“The new Development Coordination Authority will enable faster and fairer outcomes which support more homes, jobs and better environmental outcomes.

“Homeowners, councils and other proponents now only have to knock on one door to get the answers they need from the NSW government, ending confusion and unnecessary delays.”

Housing is the number one cost-of-living concern facing NSW families today and, as a result, the state has seen more people leave than arrive.

Forecasts showed NSW would build just 36,000 homes a year over the next five years when Labor first took office.

Since then, the government has introduced a host of comprehensive reforms to housing, including the Transport Oriented Development program, the Low and Mid-Rise Housing policy and the Housing Delivery Authority.

Housing approvals are up 13.5 per cent this year compared to the previous 12 months and planning approvals are now 30 per cent faster.