Each edition we feature the views of a State Local Government Association President. The following is from Councillor Brad Matheson – President, Municipal Association of Victoria.
Local Government in Victoria has undoubtedly been the economic and social ‘laboratory’ in terms of municipal reform in Australia. Wholesale amalgamations, the introduction of Compulsory Competitive Tendering, not to mention rate capping, have reverberated throughout Local Government circles and fundamentally changed the nature of Local Government in this State.
As other States consider reform, they should ponder the situation in Victoria. There is no doubt the reform was necessary. Has it been a success? The jury is still out. What is obvious from this massive experiment is that reform should not take place on a whim or by decree, nor should it be carried out without consultation.
The 20 percent across the board rate cut imposed on all Victorian Councils is a prime example of what was wrong with the reform process. It was based on a premise that there was a lot of ‘fat to trim’ from Council operations and failed to consider the underlying circumstances in each Council area.
The end result is we have a group of Councils, principally those asset rich after the sale of electricity utilities, that have coped well with such a revenue cut. But, by far the greater number of Councils are continuing to suffer. The alienation of local communities is also cause for concern.
Four years down the track, we continue to see individual communities seeking to secede from one Municipality to another. The closure of Council offices and depots in some towns and a concentration of activity in others has intensified regional rivalries, rather than brought them together. Caught in the middle is a Council struggling to meet State Government imposed regulation or deal with competing interests from the formerly autonomous Local Government areas.
This is not to say the reform has not had benefits. Certainly there have been efficiencies and cost savings. Duplication of services is a rarity. Councils are outcome focused and there is a clearer delineation between the role of the elected Councillor and that of the officer. However, the fundamental lesson from Local Government reform in Victoria is that it should be carried out in partnership with the community and not simply by government edict.
If the community is consulted in the reform process, if it has ownership of the process, there is a far greater likelihood the emerging Local Government will positively reflect the aspirations of all – government included.
As other States focus attention on their Councils and the possibilities of reform, the message is clear – consider the Victorian experiment in total, the benefits as well as the deficiencies.
