Ridgway told InDaily last month he expected the Opposition would abandon its push to maintain one council representative on the planning panels and instead back Attorney-General John Rau, who wants no local government representation whatsoever.

“We fought a fight to get one councillor on DAPs [but] I suspect we’re probably happy to have none,” Ridgway said ahead of a party-room meeting.

But it’s understood his comments prompted a heated exchange of words with Steven Griffiths, the Opposition’s planning and local government spokesman.

Griffiths, a former CEO of the Yorke Peninsula and Orroroo/Carrieton/Peterborough councils, told InDaily he felt “very strongly” that it was important to maintain “local, democratic” representation.

“The Minister and I have significant differences about that,” he said.

Asked whether the party had changed its position, he replied: “No, the position remains… our position is one [councillor].”

Asked whether he had a robust discussion to that effect with Ridgway, he said: “We’ve had a chat, that’s true.”

“We’ve had a [party-room] discussion about what the party policy is, that’s all I can really tell you… the rest is subject to shadow cabinet [confidentiality],” Griffiths said.

“I think it’s safe to say we’ve had lengthy discussions about a significant number of clause areas [but] people express opinions in joint party and I preserve that confidentiality.”

It’s understood the internal debate has been a fraught one for the Liberals, who have several MPs with prior council experience. Asked whether he favoured banning councillors from DAPs, one-time Kangaroo Island mayor Michael Pengilly said: “The party position is we seek to maintain one member on the [panel].”

The latest twist in a see-sawing debate that has at times bordered on farcical will likely see Rau’s push to ban councillors thwarted when it returns to the Upper House.

The Local Government Association has confirmed it has lobbied key crossbenchers to support the Liberals’ position, and believes it has enough support to “make it stick”.

Greens leader Mark Parnell confirmed he “will now be supporting one councillor on development panels at the request of the LGA”, who evidently recognised that represented their last option to retain local government influence.

Dignity for Disability MLC Kelly Vincent’s office said she had not been approached by Government or Opposition in recent days but “will continue to support a councillor being on the panel”.

The looming compromise will anger the development lobby, with the Property Council’s SA executive director Daniel Gannon today urging “all parliamentarians to stand up for jobs, development and small business, and that means removing elected representatives from the development application process”.

“Let’s be clear – there is a role for councillors in local planning, and that role is at the front end of the process when the policy is actually developed… however, elected representatives shouldn’t be involved at the back end of the process in assessing applications,” he said.

“This is about certainty for developers and certainty for economic development – depoliticising the planning system will do just that.”

Ridgway was unavailable for comment as he was in parliament, as the debate moved into its eleventh day this year in the Upper House.

Rau did have one win overnight, with his revised Infrastructure Levy proposition being passed.