Queerying planning in Australia : the problems and possibilities of multiscalar governance for LGBT sexual minorities

One major issue that affects the inclusion of LGBT minorities in planning processes is the multiscalarity of legislative and planning responsibilities, where decision-making is distributed in a complex and overlapping manner between national, state and local levels of governance. This has been largely overlooked in extant queer critiques of planning, but recent calls to consider the different scales of sexual citizenship (Grundy and Smith 2005, Bell and Binnie 2006) – that is, the governance of social inclusion/exclusion based on sexual subjectivity – suggest greater attention must be given to the multiscalarity of planning with regard to LGBT minorities. This chapter investigates the multiple scales of governance within which planning for LGBT minorities occurs in the specific context of Australia. The political and legal geography of Australia provides an important case for exploring how multiple, interrelated scales of planning affect the inclusion of LGBT minorities in planning processes. Australia is a federation, with a tripartite hierarchy of political, jurisdictional and legislative power divided between national, state/territory and local tiers. Each tier is responsible for different aspects of planning, with various legislation, regulation and responsibilities attached to different scaled arenas. This can lead to jurisdictional conflicts over planning powers, on the one hand, or shirking responsibility for planning, on the other. Both are evident when it comes to planning for LGBT sexual minorities, at times hindering social inclusion. But simultaneously, these multiscalar horizons paradoxically present possibilities for the recognition of LGBT minorities in planning policies and practices. My contention, then, is that the effective inclusion of LGBT minorities requires consideration of the multiscalarity of planning and the relationships between scales of governance. I argue that recognition of LGBT minorities in planning is both complicated and enabled by Australia’s multiscalar governance. This chapter will explore some of these multiscalar complications and potentials, focusing on two particular attempts to recognize and incorporate LGBT minorities at the local scale: first, the Australian Capital Territory’s (ACT) efforts to introduce legislation recognizing same-sex partnerships; second, inclusion by some New South Wales (NSW) local governments of LGBT minorities as a targeted group in compulsory social plans. First, though, I set the conceptual and empirical context for these case studies, discussing governance and planning for social diversity and LGBT minorities in Australia, and suggesting how attention to scale adds to this work. I then interrogate the multiscalarity of social planning in Australia, focusing on the two case studies noted. While these examples highlight the problems and possibilities posed by multiscalar governance for LGBT minorities in the context of Australia, the underlying principles contribute to the wider project of ‘queerying’ planning and recognizing sexual diversity.