The Newbury Principles collectively refer to an
urban planning
Urban planning, also known as town planning, city planning, regional planning, or rural planning, is a technical and political process that is focused on the development and design of land use and the built environment, including air, water ...
guideline stating that decisions should be made based only on the planning considerations relevant to the current development, even if the consideration of ulterior purposes may lead to a greater public good. In practice, the principles are used as a test to verify the validity of conditions to be imposed by a planning authority.
Specifically, the decision of the
House of Lords
The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster ...
in ''Newbury District Council v Secretary of State for the Environment'', contains the following three principles when considering the reasonableness of imposing conditions on consents:
# It must be imposed for a planning purpose.
# It must fairly and reasonably relate to the development for which permission is being given.
# It must be reasonable.
Application in Australian Planning Decisions
The Newbury principles are applied in
Australia, and have been cited by courts in
New South Wales
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, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
and
Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to ...
. The Newbury test also remains in general application in the courts of
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...
.
[For example:]
NSW Environmental Planning & Assessment Act 1979 (EP & A Act 1979)
The power to impose conditions on development consent in NSW derives from the heads of consideration under S.4.15 of the EP & A Act 1979 (formerly S.79C) and S.4.17 of this Act. The purpose of these provisions is to provide for the various effects of a development consent which commonly arise in the assessment of development applications.
In specific instances it will be for conditions to be explicitly worded by assessment staff to deal with specific issues of impact or ongoing management. To satisfy the ''Newbury Principles'' in all such conditions must:
* serve a planning purposes;
* be clear, concise and measurable;
* must relate to the development; and
* must be reasonable having regard for the scope of development and must be enforceable (
the Wednesbury Principle).
It remains the responsibility of Councils to ensure that conditions are imposed having appropriate regard for key planning principles, as contained within relevant planning policies and which do not unreasonably burden the consent holder. In all instances the assessment officers must have regard for the contents of the development application at hand and the requirements of the EP&A Act and the Regulations to ensure that the development will meet legislative requirements.
Notes
References
* {{cite book
, title = The Environmental Law Handbook : Planning and Land Use in NSW, 4th Edition
, author = David Farrier
, author2=Paul Stein
, publisher = Redfern Legal Centre
, location = Sydney
, year = 2006
, edition= 4th
, pages = 748 pages
External links
Example invocation of the Newbury principles for a development application Ku-ring-gai council report, Nov. 15, 2006.
A more detailed exampleReport to the General Manager, North Sydney Council, Nov. 21., 2006.
Review of DA Conditions, Legal and Planning Committee Sep 2013Report to the General Manager, North Sydney Council, Sept 23, 2013
Woollahra Municipal Council - Conditions in development application consents
Urban planning