Labor pledges better planning protections if it wins election

LABOR has flagged a considerable strengthening of planning laws for the Surf Coast and the Bellarine Peninsula if it wins November’s state election, pledging to protect the area from over-development.

On Tuesday, Planning Minister Richard Wynne announced that a re-elected Labor government would declare both the Surf Coast and Bellarine Peninsula “A Distinctive Area and Landscape” under the Planning and Environment Act 1987.

The declaration triggers a requirement for a Statement of Planning Policy, which will set permanent height controls and town boundaries to protect the environment, landscape and local lifestyle.

Any attempt to change these town boundaries must be agreed to by Parliament.

The Statement of Planning Policy would be developed within the first year of a re-elected Labor government in consultation with local councils and the community.

Labor’s pledge comes coincidentally at the same time that a number of Surf Coast community groups have announced their decision to form an alliance to push back against what they say is inappropriate and unplanned development in the Torquay area.