Page 619 - Week 02 - Thursday, 20 March 2014

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development application to be lodged with a draft EIS as opposed to a completed statement and inserts new section 217A into the act to provide for concurrent public notification.

Under this option, the public consultation on the draft EIS occurs at the same time as the public notification of the relevant development application. This process has advantages. The process saves time by allowing the simultaneous completion of the EIS and notification of the DA. The process would also permit the public to review the draft EIS in the context of the actual DA. This would permit a clearer understanding and assessment of the overall proposal.

From the proponent’s point of view this option comes with some risk. The proponent risks the entire exercise being rejected on the basis that the completed EIS is not satisfactory even if the DA was otherwise acceptable. Such an outcome would mean that the effort and expense put into the DA would have been wasted. For this reason, this measure remains an option available to the proponent rather than a mandatory process.

In conclusion, the bill introduces important efficiency measures to the planning system. The bill facilitates the delivery of priority community projects through special precinct areas and major project declarations. The process on development applications on the basis of draft territory plan variations and on environmental impact statements is also an important measure which promotes the fast and effective delivery of development of major public importance in the territory.

I commend the bill to the Assembly

Debate (on motion by Mr Smyth) adjourned to the next sitting.

Information Privacy Bill 2014

Mr Corbell, pursuant to notice, presented the bill, its explanatory statement and a Human Rights Act compatibility statement.

Title read by Clerk.

MR CORBELL (Molonglo—Attorney-General, Minister for Police and Emergency Services, Minister for Workplace Safety and Industrial Relations and Minister for the Environment and Sustainable Development) (12.05): I move:

That this bill be agreed to in principle.

I am pleased to introduce the Information Privacy Bill today. This bill marks an important step in the protection and management of personal information by public sector agencies in the ACT. Today I will outline some of the key themes running through the bill and highlight how changes in technology, social media and public expectations about the handling of personal information have mandated a reassessment of privacy law in the ACT.


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