Council seeks transparency and regulation for data centres
Published on 21 August 2026
The City of Whittlesea will push for the federal and state governments to establish a robust regulatory and planning framework for data centre development, amid growing concerns about potential impacts in the municipality.
At the Council Meeting on 18 August, Councillors noted significant public interest in data centres and noted the lack of transparency and community consultation in current state-led planning pathways for their development.
Planning applications for data centres are increasingly being assessed by the Victorian Government’s Development Facilitation Program (DFP), which unacceptably restricts the ability of Council and community to provide feedback and influence decision-making.
City of Whittlesea Mayor Lawrie Cox will write to the Victorian Government to call for a range of actions aimed at increasing transparency for the community about data centres, developing regulation which addresses social, environmental and economic matters, and establishing processes that consider Council policies, expert advice, and community views.
In addition to proposing a Parliamentary Inquiry to help inform a regulatory framework, Council will seek establishment of a joint state and local government taskforce to develop policy responses and seek a commitment from the Victorian Government to implement a rigorous and transparent planning permit assessment process for data centres.
Council also called for the implementation of an Infrastructure Funding mechanism as part of the development process for data centres to deliver tangible local community benefits, as well as establishment of a ‘Future Fund’ to enable appropriate decommissioning of these buildings in the future.
In the City of Whittlesea, one data centre has been approved by the Development Facilitation Program and an application for another is currently being reviewed by DFP prior to formal application lodgement.
In July 2024, Council submitted a formal objection to the Victorian Government for the data centre planning permit application for 525 and 535 McDonalds Road and 765 Plenty Road in South Morang. Despite multiple concerns raised by Council in its submission, the data centre was approved by the Minister for Planning.
The City of Whittlesea actively participates in committees established to inform local government on data centres, including the Municipal Association of Victoria, National Growth Areas Alliance, and the Planning Institute of Australia.
In May, the Australian Government opened a parliamentary inquiry into artificial intelligence and data centres.
At the August Council Meeting, Councillors supported a Council submission to the Australian Government’s parliamentary inquiry, either directly or through the National Growth Areas Alliance or Outer Metropolitan Councils Group.
Quotes attributable to City of Whittlesea Mayor, Councillor Lawrie Cox:
“Data centre development must be guided by an evidence-based regulatory framework and transparent decision-making that builds public trust and delivers long-term community benefits.”
“As demand for data centres accelerates, strong regulatory oversight is essential to balancing economic opportunity with environmental, planning and sustainability considerations.”
“Communities deserve clear information about how data centres will affect their neighbourhoods.”