A parliamentary inquiry says the recent row over building new memorials to the world wars on the shores of Lake Burley Griffin demonstrates the current ''highly flawed'' approval process must be scrapped.
The scathing report criticises the lack of transparency and calls for the adoption of the model used in Washington - with nationwide public consultation and advice from experts - to scrutinise proposals for future monuments.
The committee recommends scrapping of the 1928 ordinance governing decisions on which memorials can be built in Canberra.
The catalyst for the inquiry was the row over building two 20m-tall towers - as new memorials to the world wars - on the Rond Terraces on the shores of Lake Burley Griffin.
The National Capital Authority and the Canberra National Memorials Committee were criticised during the inquiry's hearings.
Committee chairwoman, Labor's Louise Pratt, said the current approval process was highly flawed.
''The Washington model has both a robust planning process as well as parliamentary engagement,'' she said.
''National memorials do need to connect with the Australian community, not just the Canberra community.
''We really need a process of engagement with the wider community to show that these symbols are connected to the nation.''
The committee recommends binding criteria for assessment and approval, with advice given by a panel of historical and cultural experts.
A master plan should be drawn up to guide future development.
In a two-stage process, proposals would be assessed for their commemorative intent and budget, and later for design and location.
The final decision would be taken by Parliament's National Capital and External Territories Committee, which conducted the inquiry.
Significantly, the committee recommends current approvals be allowed to stand, but only for the duration of current site leases.
''If the proposed memorials are truly viable, they will progress in the time available; if not, then it is probably fitting that they pass quietly into history themselves,'' the report says.
The committee is particularly concerned that no Canberra residents have been appointed to the Canberra National Memorials Committee, overseeing the approval process. Senator Pratt said the approval process for the proposed war memorials by the lake was highly problematic.
''The memorials were purportedly approved in accordance with the guidelines,'' she said.
''At the same time that's not reconciling the fact that they were destined to be built in a location that was set aside for non-military purposes.
''They also really did not properly discuss or debate the issue of whether they were duplicating the role of an existing memorial.''
ACT Liberal Senator Gary Humphries proposed the federal inquiry look at the Washington model after he visited the United States capital this year.
Labor Member for Canberra Gai Brodtmann welcomed the recommendation that, as an interim measure, the vacant positions open to ACT citizens on the Canberra National Memorials Committee be filled. Labor Member for Fraser Andrew Leigh said the report struck a balance between local and national interests.
This reporter is on Twitter: @rosspeakect
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