The Good Oil * by Rod Brown
The Mayors’ Summit in Canberra highlighted the perception, from a significant section of the media and the community, that the $300 million for Local Government infrastructure was further pork barrelling, and money in brown paper bags.
The situation wasn’t helped by Canberra’s ‘Mayor’ Jon Stanhope suggesting that it was unfair that Tasmania,
whose population is only 100,000 more than the ACT, received
$8 million compared with the ACT’s $2 million.
We raised our collective eyebrows with the Chief Minister’s main line of defence – ‘I could have myself designated Mayor of Canberra, and on one level I am’.
Anyway, the clear message is that the Australian Local Government Association, and all constituent councils and territory governments, must continue to hammer the importance of local infrastructure, and the need for all spheres of government to embrace a national system of infrastructure planning.
You can already sense that the Infrastructure Australia funding is going to get caught up in pork barrelling claims. The problem will continue until there is a long term framework in place. Over to you, Geoff Lake and the new ALGA Executive.
Anyway, the important thing is that PM Rudd stated that the $300 million is an ‘initial down payment’. The good oil is that there will be another tranche announced next March, or in May as part of the Budget.
However my hunch is that the second tranche may not be tied to the new Regional Development Australia (RDA) program. The RDA replaces the ill fated Regional Partnerships Program, and the RDA Committees (the former ACCs) will need some decent funding, otherwise the whole exercise is rather pointless.
If the Feds are smart, they will empower the ACCs, get them to map out the national infrastructure plan, give them some role in expenditure decisions, and use them as solution brokers. The Feds might also wish to address the view that the issues facing the cities are now very different to those in the remote and regional areas – the inference being that two separate programs are required.
Minister Albanese seems to have a handle on the issues. It will be interesting to see his grand plan.
Map the economic geography, says World Bank
The ‘World Development Report 2009: Reshaping Economic Geography’ says the most effective policies for promoting long term growth are those that facilitate geographic concentration and economic integration, within and across countries.
The World Bank challenges the view that economic activities must be spread geographically to benefit the world’s most poor and vulnerable. Trying to spread out economic activity can hinder growth and does little to fight poverty.
Governments must instead promote economic integration, which is about the mobility of people, products and ideas. Integration is the pivotal concept, and debates on urbanisation, regional development and globalisation should focus on the location of production and people.
The World Bank’s integration argument is consistent with its interest in cultivating high performing hubs and clusters. Just Google the report’s title.
Politicised and pushy
Last month, I lamented that dealing with some Federal officials is like prising a bone off a Doberman. Some of my APS colleagues actually agreed. But of particular interest was the following comment by someone asking to go incognito.
“I enjoy your column in the LG newspaper and particularly your insights…you cut right to the chase. We are pretty tired of the processes one has to follow in order to extract some measly dollars from State or Commonwealth. My basic observation over a nearly 40 year career in Local Government is that State and Commonwealth public servants have become P and P. Politicised and Pushy…increasingly politicised in that they are required to direct most of their efforts to make the Minister look good, and pushy to get results so the Minister does not look bad.
I have attended many a meeting of Local Government people where the staff lament the fact that they spend their time trying to extract money for their cash strapped council by adjusting their grant application to the weasel words of the grant scheme.
Both the application form and the reporting schedules are ridiculously onerous and then council must bow to the PR machine. It is not unusual to be chastised for releasing information before the Minister has put his suit on, and has cut the ribbon.
Notice the signs that now go up even in the suburbs and towns advising that a project is funded by such and such level of government. It is also not unusual to receive a phone call questioning a comment made by a council which has been viewed as a criticism of a Minister or Department.
Sharing a project say on a 75/25 basis with State or Commonwealth Government means that the lesser partner tries to take the whip hand. This situation is so ridiculous that we now try to do as little with governments as possible. Sounds like a cut your nose off to spite your face, but Rod it is a lot easier and less stressful.
Not that long ago I asked a longtime acquaintance in State Government what he was up to that week and he sighed, “Another dog and pony show for the Minister!”
One telling situation in respect of this whole issue is that good regional people working for State and Commonwealth have little or no autonomy. All grant approvals must still go back to Sydney or Canberra where the political eye is cast over them.
The economic development game is less about genuine care and nurturing by government and more about political advantage. I think I’ll go and take a happy pill now!” Senior officer from a NSW council
Auto industry plan draws international interest
The Government’s recent announcement of a $6.2 billion plan to make the Australian automotive industry more economically and environmentally sustainable certainly fired up Laura Tingle, political editor for the Australian Financial Review. Laura says the plan is “sloppy, badly constructed, fiscally negligent, irresponsible, protectionist, irrational appeasement of rent seekers, which is now being camouflaged not only as a response to climate change but the global financial crisis”.
Whew! But we are taking an optimistic view of the plan, and we like the emphasis on integrating our companies into global supply chains, and a better targeted, greener, Automotive Transformation Scheme.
International members of our Cockatoo Network have been showing strong interest in Minister Carr’s assistance package.
*Rod Brown is a Canberra based consultant specialising in industry/regional development, investment attraction, clusters and accessing Federal grants. He can be contacted at apd@orac.net.au or phone (02) 6231 7261. Go to our blog at www.investmentinnovation.wordpress.com for 400+ articles on issues relevant to Local Government.
