The Department of Planning, Industry and Environment (DPIE) is to act on recommendations made by the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) to fortify local Government and the planning system against corruption.
Announcing the release of the Department’s action plan, Minister for Planning and Public Spaces, Rob Stokes said the DPIE Response and Action Plan – ICAC Operation Dasha Recommendations followed ICAC’s investigation into the former Canterbury City Council.
“The ICAC’s findings and recommendations act as a reminder that we need to remain ever-vigilant about corruption,” Mr Stokes said.
“We’ve already introduced a raft of reforms to guard against corruption and strengthen the integrity and transparency of our systems, including the creation of independent planning panels to determine controversial proposals,” he said.
Mr Stokes said the DPIE would work with the ICAC to implement the Action Plan, including developing a new risk-based monitoring framework; a reminder to councillors of their conflict-of-interest disclosure obligations in Council business and briefing papers; audits checking compliance with Gateway Determination conditions for rezoning proposals; and examining the appropriateness of capital investment value as a metric for planning pathways.
The Minister said the DPIE and ICAC would also update guidelines to enable performance agreements of Council general managers to include indicators related to ethical culture.
He said action on a number of reforms was already underway, with many scheduled to be completed by the end of the year and all to be undertaken by 30 June next year.
The DPIE’s 12-page Action Plan can be downloaded from this PS News link.
