WA’s planning department has pushed for councils to be stripped of planning powers.

The West Australian Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage has made a submission to Local Government Minister David Templeman's review of local government law questioning councillors’ ability to vote on individual development applications.

“It is arguable that they should be limited to considering strategic planning documents ... not individual planning applications,” the submission said.

“An inordinate amount of time is spent by councillors on individual planning applications, often at times when their own strategic planning framework is grossly out of date.

“Various reviews, including by the Productivity Commission, have noted WA local governments have schemes that are decades out of date - despite a five-yearly mandated review. Time and effort would be better used by councillors at a strategic level, leaving operational matters to the CEO and their staff.

“Councils - like the Minister for Planning - should help shape the 'rules of the game' but not 'play the game'.”

The submission said local governments should be “greatly depoliticised” to reduce concerns over conflicts of interest and honesty.

“It would also address matters going to delegations and would allow a further reassessment of the need for a Development Application Panel [DAP] system,” the submission said.

The submission also calls for mandatory training in planning law and professional planning for all councillors.

“It should also be asked whether councillors should be prohibited from voting on planning matters (whether on DAPs or on council) without first having completed such training,” the submission said.

WA Local Government Association (WALGA) president Lynne Craigie says the perception that councillors get overly involved in day-to-day planning matters is not accurate.

“A change as significant as that suggested by the department should only be contemplated in the face of overwhelming evidence,” she said.

“To date this evidence does not exist.”

In 2017, she said WALGA performance figures showed 95.9 per cent of development applications to local governments were delegated to officers, and so did not go through council at all.

The Minister’s consultation paper mentions reducing red tape by improving co-ordination between local government and state agencies regarding applications and approvals.