Excuses, not reasons
It's now become very clear what this is all about -
maintaining Sydney's artificial, government-created
shortage of housing land. All the explanations put
forward by the government and council are simply
excuses, not reasons.
- Where is the logic in setting zone objectives
that focus almost exclusively on agriculture, when
according to the council's own studies, most land in
the area is not arable, and only 6% is in fact being
used for agriculture?
- Where is the logic in prohibiting development on
undeveloped land to maintain 'biodiversity', when we
are already surrounded by untold millions of acres
of bush and national parks - more than virtually
anywhere else on earth?
Everyone loses
When these restrictions were first imposed some 40
years ago, it was affected landowners who suffered the
most, through lost opportunity. Now, however, the true
cost to society is being exposed, as land prices in
areas where the planners say 'yes'
reach
absurd heights, pricing many out of the market, and
locking up capital that could be put to much better use.
Those who support these restrictions have
forgotten one crucial point – that prosperous and free
societies are founded upon respect for the sanctity of
property and the rule of law. In contrast, what we are
experiencing in regard to the use of private land
outside the existing urban areas is complete disregard
for ownership rights, and rule
by law – whatever the government
says we must do, we must do, even if it involves
undermining the most fundamental foundations of our
society.
Amendments to draft LEP
Distorting the market through restrictions on land
use squanders the benefits of what should be the
country's major competitive advantage - cheap land. It
is time to relax the restrictions before more damage is
done.
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A Protection Racket
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The government likes to characterise these restrictions as
"protection" - protecting the environment, or protecting
agricultural land - but the only thing they are actually
protecting is the profits of those with access to the levers of
planning.
Instead of letting the choices of free citizens
determine where development will occur, that decision it is now
in the hands of those with political power, who use it to
benefit themselves and their supporters, at the expense of
everyone else.
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