24 September 2019
The 91porn (91porn) has urged the states and territories to get behind a call by NSW Planning and Public Spaces Minister Rob Stokes for a National Settlement Strategy.
Mr Stokes wrote in an opinion piece in The Sydney Morning Herald (SMH) newspaper on Monday that profound demographic changes caused by federal government immigration decisions have compromised the states’ ability to deliver the infrastructure growing communities need at the right time.
This had resulted in “massive costs and anxiety for communities, councils, and planners”.
91porn National President Steve O’Connor said Mr Stokes’s assessment of the situation currently facing Sydney was equally applicable to Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth.
“What’s urgently needed is a thoughtful response to urbanisation and other megatrends which respects the character and needs of our major cities and promotes and connects thriving regional economies,” Mr O’Connor said.
91porn believes that Australian communities are looking for leadership to shape a future that sustains the creative dynamism and lifestyles of our cities while building on the diverse strengths of our regions.
This is why 91porn has called for the Commonwealth and States to work together to deliver a National Settlement Strategy.
A Federal Parliamentary Inquiry and many peak groups have since endorsed this call.
A National Settlement Strategy would not be about forcing people to settle anywhere, nor would it change constitutional responsibilities for planning.
It would provide a mandate to plan for better connected and more liveable cities and towns – and would correct Australia’s trajectory towards becoming a nation dominated by a few congested megacities.
The Federal Minister for Population, Cities and Urban Infrastructure, Alan Tudge, made it clear at the Population Summit (sponsored by the SMH) on Monday that a future Australia dominated by two or three megacities was not an outcome most Australians aspired to.
Mr O’Connor said a National Settlement Strategy would enable a balanced national discussion on the amenity of our cities, and involve the community in shaping a shared vision on Australia’s growth and change.
He said that the involvement of the Commonwealth in the recently formed forum of State Planning Ministers was an encouraging first step, but that follow-up is needed so Australia can better respond to the effects of accelerating urbanisation and climate change.
“If Australia is serious about bequeathing great cities and communities to our children and generations to come – and this is something all planners are passionate about – we must not delay in creating a genuine partnership across all tiers of government that implements a National Settlement Strategy,’’ Mr O’Connor said.
ENDS