NSW New Housing and Development Authorities Created, Planning Panels Abolished, and New Appeal and Consultation Rules

Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment (Planning System Reforms) Bill 2025

25 Nov 2025: Passed by Parliament and signed off by the governor.

This bill kicks in: TBA

Legislative Assembly

Legislative Council

Assent

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Topics

housing housing delivery information sharing land development land use local government planning appeals real estate regional planning road widening urban planning +6 more

Introduced by: The Hon Paul Scully MP (ALP); The Hon Penny Sharpe MLC (ALP)

Links to official parliament websites

Official page: progress through parliament

Official page: bill text and explanatory notes

Effects of this bill

If this bill passes, it means that:

Consent authorities cannot refuse a minor modification application if they fail to decide on it within 14 days.
Objectors must lodge appeals within 28 days of being notified of a decision.
Councils must nominate two people to serve on the regional planning panel.
The Housing Delivery Authority can now be delegated functions from the Planning Minister or Planning Secretary.
The Development Coordination Authority decides if required approvals are granted; it also reviews its own decisions.
The Development Coordination Authority replaces Transport for NSW for constructions on land affected by road widening orders.
The Planning Secretary must perform actions previously assigned to a general planning authority.
The Planning Secretary is now the Development Coordination Authority. Public authorities must give this authority any information it asks for if it is needed for its work.
A new Housing Delivery Authority is created. This agency will advise the Planning Minister on housing supply, zoning, and state significant development.
Sydney district planning panels and regional planning panels are abolished. Members of these panels will stop holding office and will not receive compensation.
The Independent Planning Commission and other approved bodies can now access council records and staff to help them do their work.
The Independent Planning Commission and other approved bodies must consult with a council if a decision might cause the council significant financial loss.
People applying for development consent now have 6 months to appeal a decision.
For certain types of development, the consent authority must show the applicant any proposed conditions and let them give written feedback for at least 7 days before the conditions are imposed.

The Debate

What different members said when this bill was debated:

Amanda Cohn GRN

“I continue my earlier comments in opposition to the Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment (Planning System Reforms) Bill 2025.”

Official source →

Mark Banasiak SFFP

“In principle, the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party supports the building of more homes for the people of New South Wales. It is a complex problem, and it is getting worse. The Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment (Planning System Reforms) Bill 2025 is complex. It gives sweeping powers to the Minister and the department to fast-track certain developments.”

Official source →

Abigail Boyd GRN

“I fully endorse the comments of each of my Greens colleagues who have spoken on the Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment (Planning System Reforms) Bill 2025. I reflect on the enormity of what is happening with this bill and on how much The Greens hate it—not just The Greens members in this place but The Greens MPs in the lower House and also our councillors.”

Official source →

Penny Sharpe ALP

“I acknowledge the cooperation and support of the Leader of the Opposition, who, importantly, led the debate on behalf of the Opposition in the other place, and the shadow Minister for Planning and Public Spaces, the Hon. Scott Farlow, in this place. They have acted in good faith throughout the process of helping to design the provisions in the bill.”

Official source →

News articles and press releases

Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment (Planning System Reforms) Bill 2025

Mr PAUL SCULLY, Minister for Planning and Public Spaces — 2025-09-17

The EP&A Act was given royal assent nearly 50 years ago. Since that time, it has been amended multiple times by successive governments and several times by this one. This has created an Act that has become complex and unwieldy. The combined effect over many years has produced an Act and a system that obsesses over relatively minor matters of detail and delays decisions about whether a proposal as a whole has merit. In short, the bill is about re-establishing a planning system that will assess land use to produce outcomes, not give priority to process—a modern system to deliver faster and fairer results. I now outline the details of the proposed amendments to the Act and explain why they are essential. The bill modernises the objects of the Act to reflect contemporary planning priorities.