Smiths Beach protest group wants an end to developer contacts with State Government decision makers

The Smiths Beach protest group is calling for an end to mingling between the development industry and Government officers. Smiths Beach Action Group convenor David Mitchell said long-running concerns were highlighted by a Urban Development Institute of Australia event last month in which the WA Planning Commissioner chief in charge of deciding the Adrian Fini-led project was seated with figures involved in the proposal. Mr Caddy oversees the State Development Assessment Unit which alone will determine the Yallingup project. There was no suggestion of any inappropriate conduct, but Mr Mitchell said the shadow of the Smiths Beach inquiry still hung over the project, and it was now appropriate for Government and industry figures to resist shared-table events. SBAG has also previously called for an end to political donations from WA’s development sector. “This raises some serious questions about access, money, donations and influence of developers and the WAPC chairman David Caddy, who makes the final decision on the SDAU recommendations,” Mr Mitchell said. “He is the ultimate decision-maker on Smiths Beach.” A spokesperson for the Smiths Beach project said it was “a standard activity” for the development sector to attend industry events, noting the UDIA forum was focused on housing. A spokeswoman for the Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage also ruled out any conflict in Mr Caddy’s attendance. “As with most industries, people from both the public and private sectors regularly attend planning-related conferences and other events,” she said. “The WAPC DPLH have robust conflict of interest and code of ethics policies and procedures to guide members’ and employees’ actions.” UDIA WA chief executive Tanya Steinbeck did not respond to questions around costs involved for attendance or how sponsorship affected seating allocations. She told the Times UDIA had a broad member base, but it was “not our role to influence decision-makers on specific applications”. “These events are an opportunity for our members and guests to come together and discuss a range of topics impacting on urban development and related issues,” Ms Steinbeck said. “From time to time, those events will include relevant Ministers or government representatives presenting on or discussing relevant policy. “There is often an opportunity for our guests to ask questions in an open forum. “It is in industry and Government’s interest to appropriately engage with the broad spectrum of our community when delivering projects to ensure that housing and future development meets the needs of a diverse range of people now and into the future.” A State Government spokesperson said Government Ministers did not determine SDAU applications, which were “subject to rigorous and comprehensive independent oversight”.