An interview with Rex Mooney, CEO Alice Springs Town Council, NT.
FOCUS recently caught up with Rex Mooney to uncover what he thinks the big ticket items will be into the future and what councils should be doing to remain sustainable and efficient. In his view, the following is an overview of the most important issues.
According to Rex, financial sustainability and cost shifting will remain key challenges. He said the signing of an Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) between all three spheres of government in 2006 was a step forward for Local Government, and its review on 12 April 2011 will be particularly important in terms of cost shifting.
“If new or changed legislation is proposed, it is important that Local Government is consulted, and the IGA is a key way of ensuring this happens,” he said.
“Not only does it set out regulations for consultation, but it ensures that any changes to Local Government are considered fairly.”
Closely linked to the IGA review, is the ongoing challenge of obtaining recognition of Local Government in the Australian Constitution.
“Local Government itself does not need to be convinced of the need for recognition,” he said. “The challenge will be for Local Government to convey this message to the wider community. Our residents must understand the implications associated with recognition and they must vote ‘yes’.
“Councils must work with State and Territory associations to develop a clear and consistent message using multimedia campaigns.”
Rex Mooney said it is ever important that councils attract and train staff to embrace the wide range of new technology becoming available.
“Our websites are a key resource and communication with our communities needs to be done more effectively,” he said. “Technology can be used to communicate with our residents and ratepayers through online surveys and we can keep them better informed through up to date website articles, complete with our business papers, and by broadcasting Council meetings to make them available to the widest possible audience.”
He said attracting and retaining staff is an ongoing issue that will continue into the future.
“It is important that councils maintain attractive incentives and an appropriate culture, while ensuring there is a commitment to training and upskilling staff.
“Local Government is a big family and maintaining good standards and training is a win for all councils. Even if you lose one staff member to another council, you might gain a new staff member from a different council. It all goes around in a circle, so we can afford to lose successful staff to other councils.”
Having gone through the reform process in the Northern Territory, Rex Mooney believes it does have its merits, but these must be proven before implementation.
“Reform is not a new word to Local Government – the challenge of change has been around for decades,” he said. “Ongoing reviews are necessary to meet challenges, but bigger is not necessarily better.
“Resource sharing should be considered where it is feasible, but in some areas it can prove challenging. For example, in the Northern Territory, large geographical boundaries mean resource sharing is not always as straightforward as it sounds.
“As with all change, it has to be implemented for the right reason and it must be able to achieve measurable results. It should not be change just for the sake of change.”
With many councils currently setting carbon emission reduction targets and implementing stricter environmental plans, Rex Mooney said that this focus will continue into the future.
“These days, there is a greater focus on our environmental impacts,” he said. “From kerbside collections and recycling to running our administration buildings, councils have a responsibility not just to residents and ratepayers, but to the environment. It is important to shift our thinking and work towards a culture that incorporates environmental impacts into how we as councils do business.
“No one can afford to stand still, if we don’t go forward, we go backwards.”
