Pam Walker, Sydney
Nationwide News, a subsidiary of Rupert Murdoch's News Corp, has been granted permission to hand out its newspaper mX on city footpaths in exchange for a $362,000 yearly fee, payable to the City of Sydney.
And if you're wondering why you've heard nothing about it, it may be because the development application (DA) was not advertised and was not debated in open council.
On August 1, News asked for leave to lodge its DA, indicating it wanted the application dealt with quickly. The City of Sydney gave its consent and voted to make the decision under delegated authority, despite calls from Green and Labor councillors for public debate.
The application has now been approved, bypassing the usual council processes.
"One problem with this approval is that it has been assessed without any input from the public whatsoever", Greens councillor Chris Harris said. "An attempt by the Greens to have the matter debated in front of a council committee, where members of the public could make submissions, was defeated by the lord mayor [Clover Moore] using her casting vote.
"This DA approval could have significant implications for free speech and the distribution of community material on City of Sydney streets and no one has been able to say a word about it while bureaucrats have made the decision behind closed doors."
The council claims the DA process conformed to its notification regulations: a council spokesperson said the DA was not required to be advertised as it fell into the category of "minor miscellaneous DAs ... which will not impact upon surrounding land uses". He said the council had "imposed conditions to limit the impact of distribution activities on pedestrians and the environment".
"In line with council's August resolution, a policy to guide the distribution of print material on city streets is being developed and the community will be invited to participate in this process", he added.
But the council's legal powers to regulate the handing out of newspapers are in question: spokespeople from the offices of the ministers for local government, roads and planning all indicated that authority was not granted under any legislation within their portfolios.
And while the council has ruled on the mX application without a policy in place, talk of its proposed policy has alarmed advocates of free speech.
University of Technology law academic Geoff Holland said the policy was not authorised under any legislation he knew of.
"They have to operate within the powers granted to them — they can't just make up the rules as they go along", Holland said. He questioned whether such a policy would be lawful, even if there were moves to legitimise it through legislative amendments. "The issue would then shift to whether a law that would burden implied freedom of speech, directly or indirectly, would be lawful", he said.
The council argues it needs the policy to control activity on city footpaths but Holland said additional regulations were unnecessary. "The council has ample authority under current laws to control litter and activities that disturb the public", he said. "They don't need this policy — it's hard not to see this as just a money-making exercise and it establishes a terrible precedent."
The policy goes to the heart of free speech and media diversity according to Wendy Bacon, associate professor with the Australian Centre for Independent Journalism. "Already the media market place has led to the domination of a few players", Bacon said. "You have to look at how private power is interfering with a free flow of information. The streets should be open to all players provided there is no major obstruction.
"News [Ltd] might be able to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars but Green Left Weekly certainly cannot. Yet, my research on many issues would show that Green Left Weekly and other alternatives publish many stories that the mainstream ignores. I hope the council reconsiders this policy."
The NSW Council for Civil Liberties indicated it was opposed to any local government policy that restricts freedom of political communication by requiring anyone who distributes printed material to have a permit. "Councils should not be entitled to charge people who distribute newspapers on footpaths", Stephen Blanks said.[Reprinted with permission from the November edition of City Hub.]
From Green Left Weekly, November 9, 2005.
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