The perseverance of the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA) in securing Senate support last year successfully averted what was looming to be the greatest challenge to Local Government over the past 25 years. With funding, at least for the time being, safely back under the Commonwealth Financial Assistance Grants, this campaign illustrates how important it is for Local Government to continue to build on its relationship with the Federal Government.
Had Councils become reliant on their respective State or Territory Government for grants, as was proposed initially under the tax reform package, then Local Government’s role, both in national policy initiatives and in its relationship with the Commonwealth Government, risked being seriously undermined.
In spite of this victory, ALGA President John Ross is calling for a ‘new dynamic in the relationship between all three spheres of government’ (refer page 1). He rightly points to a number of areas where Local Government has a vital role to play yet is still not party to any real partnership with the other spheres. With Local Government input at the policy formulation stage often denied, as well as the issue of Councils increasingly taking on unfunded mandates, this situation is continuing to cost communities dearly.
With the growing disparity across regions, alienating large numbers of individuals and communities, never before has the combined effort of all spheres of government to address an issue been more paramount.
To ensure Local Government is best placed to lobby for this cause and be in an optimal position to take up its rightful place as a full partner in policy development, its national peak body, the Australian Local Government Association, must have the full support of its members, the State and Territory Local Government Associations, as well as all individual Councils.
As the challenges and opportunities this new millennium brings are taken on board, a united approach by Local Government has never been more vital. Any deviation from this, which allows divide and conquer tactics to step in, will spell disaster for Councils and the communities that are reliant on them.
