In opening the Conference, Frank Hornby, National President Local Government Community Services Association Australia, said that the theme ‘Developing Local Communities’ accurately reflects the spirit of Local Government initiatives in community and cultural development. However, he warned that gains over the past three decades risk being negated with current public policy directions in Australia, especially the singular pursuit of increased competition and market force dominance.
“The complex structure of Australian cities and towns, together with the rural and remote sector, calls out against a centralised system of public policy and planning,” Frank Hornby said.
“It threatens the fine balance between inputs, processes and outcomes of services. The dominance of looking only at national outcomes pays less attention to local inputs and processes – the very stuff of community development.”
He said that national outcomes being defined in the context of a single economic objective – economic rationalism – is a major concern for a range of organisations. This is particularly the case for those involved in the field of human services who seek multiple objectives such as access, equity, effectiveness, quality and efficiency.
“We hear and read about the push for competition at all levels of services,” Frank Hornby said. “The Queensland Government recently commented on the National Competition Policy saying competition encourages more efficient use of resources and offers the potential for a higher standard of living.
“By contrast the High Court in 1989 said that competition by its very nature is deliberate and ruthless. Competitors jockey for sales, the more effective competitors injuring the less effective by taking sales away. Competitors almost always try to injure each other.”
Frank Hornby also expressed grave concerns about the notion of regarding residents as customers of Local Government and that Council rates and charges are somehow an up front payment for the purchase of local community infrastructure and services. He believes this trend has serious implications for the fundamental understanding of local governance.
“As the local sphere of government in Australia, I rather think we regard our residents as citizens to whom rights and responsibilities have been bestowed,” he said. “They have an interactive relationship with Councils in the planning and provision of services.”
He added that he hoped the thrust for privatisation of public services, such as child care, family support, disability and the ensuing profit factor will not take services back to the private system of neighbourhood backyards and be governed by a mentality of voucher systems.
