New planning laws will also be introduced to allow for koala habitat ‘land swaps’ inside and outside the urban footprint and compulsory acquisition of land outside the footprint, which could impact heavily on areas of Thornlands and southern Redland Bay, which were removed from the urban footprint under the SEQ Regional Plan in July.

SEQ Councils will work with the State Government to establish the specific areas of land to be affected, but in the meantime, an immediate ban on clearing habitat land, as designated by the State’s koala mapping, has also been announced.

Infrastructure and Planning Minister Stirling Hinchliffe said the government would “consult closely with councils to ensure the intended provisions and planning policy are workable before being released for official public comment later this year”.

Climate Change and Sustainability Minister Kate Jones said the package “will provide the greatest protection of koalas ever seen in South East Queensland”.

“The State Government has needed to step in because for too long past councils dropped the ball on their own planning schemes and development approvals,” Ms Jones said.

“We will put the brakes on development that clears vital koala habitat.

“This new planning and development assessment framework will be introduced by the end of the year to help conserve koalas and their habitat,” Ms Jones said.

Redland Mayor Melva Hobson said the council had been mentioned by Ms Jones as proactive on koalas and welcomed the announcement, but said that it reflected a range of issues already being considered.

“We often make reference to creating dog-free and animal-free communities for new developments in the Redlands, but our focus is really on educating owners of the need to restrain pets at night so koalas can pass through backyards, and on reminding them to slow down at night because they move about on our roads,” Cr Hobson said.