President of the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA), Councillor Mike Montgomery, believes that cost shifting, urban and regional growth, and the threat of development assessment powers being removed from Councils are the big challenges facing Local Government in 2004.
Councillor Montgomery said that recommendations from a Development Assessment Forum (DAF) review in NSW could see 70 per cent of development assessments taken away from Councils.
“It is an attack on democracy and it will not be tolerated,” he said. “I understand that there needs to be a streamlining of the development process, but we don’t want to take away the rights of local communities to challenge or modify local developments. It is a point of conflict that will arise in the coming 12 months if these recommendations even look like being implemented.”
Councillor Montgomery said urban and regional growth would be leading issues in 2004 – the Year of the Built Environment.
“It’s good that the Commonwealth is starting to take a more urban focus, after they walked away from the Sustainable Cities project initiated by the previous Government,” he said. Councillor Montgomery said the fight against cost shifting would continue, with Local Government Minister, Senator Ian Campbell, due to respond to the Rates and Taxes: A Fair Share for Responsible Local Government report in May.
“I’m very pleased that the committee running the cost shifting inquiry came up with the result that they did,” Councillor Montgomery said. “We now need all State and Territory Governments on side to assist in bringing the committee’s recommendations to fruition. There is along way to go and we need goodwill from all parties, including the Commonwealth Government and the Parliament.”
Councillor Montgomery said the campaign against cost shifting demonstrated how Councils and Local Government Associations could work together.
“There are variations in the ability of Councils to deliver services, yet everyone acknowledges that there is a financial crisis in Local Government,” he said. “Everyone was singing to the same tune on the issue of cost shifting and I think they can all be very proud of this achievement.
“It shows that we can have a better system of Federalism in Australia if we all sit down and work together. We can have our population receiving better services from Government that are delivered in a more efficient way.”
Councillor Montgomery said the Roads to Recovery program – which allocates $300 million a year directly to Local Governments – was another model for successful intergovernmental relations.
“It is a specific purpose payment without any strings attached, which is almost unique in Commonwealth Local Government relations,” he said.
Prime Minister, John Howard, praised the Roads to Recovery program at the National General Assembly of Local Government in November.
Councillor Montgomery hopes that whichever party wins at the next Federal election will renew the program, which expires in 2005.
He said ALGA also wanted the Government to produce a national transport strategy that includes public transport.
“I would anticipate that AusLink will be out shortly, but it should be seen as an integrated freight plan,” he said. “The Australian Transport Council and the Commonwealth, through AusLink, could coordinate a national transport system that delivers both people and goods to their points of destination. That can be done.”
