Submission on the Fast-track Approvals Amendment Bill
The Commissioner has submitted on the Fast-track Approvals Amendment Bill. He has detailed concerns that the Bill will undermine the legitimacy of the fast-track process and the robustness of its decisions.
The changes proposed in the Bill would have the effect of making approval of applications almost inevitable. It proposes increasing the power of Ministers by introducing tailor-made Government policy statements and giving Ministers greater directive powers to control EPA processes. It represents a significant expansion in Executive power when it comes to dealing with publicly owned resources and environmental impacts on affected communities.
The Bill would also curtail the ability to consider and test information crucial for the proper scrutiny of applications. It does that by proposing to shorten timeframes (which already make heroic claims on the ability of parties to assemble material and on panels to source expertise) and by further limiting public and community input.
The Bill appears to be an attempt to relitigate matters that were robustly considered during the original select committee process. While described as being about technical or machinery matters, the effect of the Bill would be to have far-reaching impacts on the fast-track process and decision-making.