The State has also exempted Councils from requiring planning permission for public projects valued under $10m (with a few exceptions). There is no expiry on these provisions, despite the explanatory report saying that these, too, are for economic recovery from coronavirus.

The provisions for state projects, however, expire on 30 June 2025. The Minister has until then to declare that a project qualifies as a 'state project'. We don’t know what this means yet; examples of the sorts of projects that would follow this approvals pathway aren't provided.

But the powers are extraordinary, and it is being taken on trust that the removal of all planning permission requirements for State Government public works will be managed responsibly.

Removing the need to amend planning schemes to allow otherwise prohibited land uses to be developed also removes the ability of Parliaments to disallow Ministerial actions. Removing this check on Executive power is significant in and of itself.

Obviously the new provisions don’t have as their primary purpose to build the most outrageous developments and bypass Parliament. It is clear however that coronavirus or not, economic recovery or not, the power concentrated in this new particular provision has enormous potential.

For the most part the powers are likely to be used reasonably. I understand the frustration within Government of applying to Government for permission to build Government projects (!), and that economic recovery is the catalyst for ‘removing red tape’.

At the same time, Govt must lead by example. The rigour of applying for planning permission is essential to generate public confidence in the planning system, for improving the quality of proposals generally, and for providing accountability and transparency to decision making.

If the Minister is worried that third party rights are unreasonably risking the rollout of job-creating infrastructure construction, he could have extinguished appeal rights only. Instead he has removed third party access entirely, along with planning permission.

No one is disputing the importance of economic recovery. Decisions like this may indeed remove perceived barriers to economic recovery but they *also* put at risk the integrity, structure and purpose of the planning system.

I hope we don’t look back on the addition of this new statewide provision in a few years with regret.

The amendment to the Victoria Planning Provisions is here:

planning.vic.gov.au/schemes-and-am…