Tasmania’s peak tourism organisation has welcomed passage through the Lower House of the Tasmanian Parliament, amendments to remove the Mt Wellington Trust’s authority to veto developments proposals for the mountain.
Tourism Industry Council Tasmania CEO, Luke Martin, commended the Liberal Party’s Will Hodgman & Elise Archer for pursuing the issue through parliament, and the Labor Party for putting common sense before politics in supporting the bill.
“The Management Trust’s veto powers over development is a completely unnecessary layer of additional red and green tape over what is already an extremely thorough and complex planning approvals process for any development proposal on the mountain,” Mr Martin said.
“The Management Trust has a representative-based structure made up by State Government Public Servants and Local Government representatives, who are not appointed for their skills in considering development applications and should not be involved in the planning process.”
“It was a mistake in the original legislation to establish the Authority with any role in the planning assessment process and we believe this is a major factor behind the current appalling state of visitor facilities on the mountain.”
Mr Martin said attempts by some to present this amendment as a green light to ‘inappropriate development’ on the mountain was mischievous.
Any proposal for development on the mountain still needs to comply with the Management Plan, get the approval of the Trust and the relevant Council that owns the land.
“It will then need to prepare a planning application to go through the normal planning approval process that all developments need to meet, and includes ample opportunity for public consultation.”
Mr Martin said last year the tourism industry’s Mt Wellington Task Force identified three key priorities for the mountain to achieve its true potential.
1.) Removing the draconian ban in the current Management Plan to consider any proposal for commercial activity on the summit.
2.) Removing the Trust’s Veto authority and role in the Planning Assessment Process
3.) For the Tasmanian Government to advertise for an open, nation-wide call for expressions of interest for ideas and concepts for tourism activity and development on the Mountain.
“The new draft Management Plan currently awaiting final approval for the Planning Commission has addressed the first issue.”
“The Veto Authority needs to progress through the Upper House.”
“And we encourage the Tasmanian Government to now consider the EOI process as a constructive and positive way to test the investment market for ideas and proposals for the Mountain.”
Luke Martin, Tourism Industry Council Tasmania
