7   What are the purposes of this Act?

The purposes of this Act are as follows:

(a)  to provide the legal framework for an effective, efficient, environmentally responsible and open system of local government in New South Wales,

(b)  to regulate the relationships between the people and bodies comprising the system of local government in New South Wales,

(c)  to encourage and assist the effective participation of local communities in the affairs of local government,

(d)  to give councils:

•  the ability to provide goods, services and facilities, and to carry out activities, appropriate to the current and future needs of local communities and of the wider public

•  the responsibility for administering some regulatory systems under this Act

•  a role in the management, improvement and development of the resources of their areas,

(e)  to require councils, councillors and council employees to have regard to the principles of ecologically sustainable development in carrying out their responsibilities.