Jay, Grace Mairi M.2008-11-122008-11-121999Jay, M. (1999). Does practice make perfect? Debate about principles versus practice in New Zealand local government planning. Planning Practice and Research, 14(4), 467-478.https://hdl.handle.net/10289/1310Legislation and practice are two arms of public policy planning. Legislation empowers or enables; practice is the articulation and implementation of legislative principle. In New Zealand there has been widespread debate in recent years about the relative importance of practice versus legislation in achieving planning outcomes under its key planning legislation, the Resource Management Act 1991. This paper proposes that the effectiveness and efficiency of planning practice may depend on a range of factors, some of which are beyond the control of planners, and outside of legislation. They include political priorities and the countervailing administrative responsibilities of the public agencies involved.application/pdfenThis is an author’s version of an article published in the journal: Planning Practice and Research, (c) 2008 copyright Taylor & Francis; Planning Practice and Research is available online at http://www.informaworld.com.geographyJournal Article10.1080/02697459915562