Federal Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, Anthony Albanese, told delegates at the 15th National General Assembly of Local Government that governments are not judged on one off events but by the way they are able to change the social landscape that survives the electoral cycle.
He pointed to the efforts of the first Federal Minister for Local Government, Tom Uren, who in the 1970s introduced Financial Assistance Grants (FAGs) that are still the primary means for providing Federal funding to Local Government.
“The Rudd Government will continue to build on the success of the first plenary meeting of the Australian Council of Local Government (ACLG) with the second meeting scheduled for 25 June,” the Minister said. “The feedback we have received from councils is bound around the one key word used by the Prime Minister and Cabinet Ministers and that is ‘respect’.
“Scheduling the second meeting during a sitting week of Parliament means that the Mayors attending will have access to the Prime Minister and Cabinet as well as politicians from both sides of the House.
“I believe this new partnership we are forging with Local Government will be a lasting reform of the Rudd Government, that we have permanently changed the relationship between Local Government and the Commonwealth Government.”
He described ACLG meetings as the structural or organisational basis to drive reform in the partnership between the two spheres of government.
Minister Albanese said that empowering Local Government has been a conscious program.
“We wanted to go through locally elected representatives – with every council receiving $100,000 and the rest being divided up based on the FAGs grants commission formula. This means that the council with the largest population got the most – in this case Brisbane City Council.”
The Minister said that 53 per cent of this funding went to councils in Labor held seats (Labor holds 55 per cent of seats), 41 per cent to Coalition seat areas and six per cent to seats held by Independents.
“In this global downturn all areas are affected,” Anthony Albanese said. “The Rudd Government has undertaken a practical approach to assist localities with community infrastructure projects that have been needed for many years.”
He said that across Australia this has provided local jobs, with the multiplier effect coming into play. He thanked delegates and their councils for acting quickly in getting these projects up and going.
“But you have to keep your foot on the accelerator,” he said. “You are on notice to deliver on your commitments within the agreed time frame.
“You understand the need to stimulate your local economies and have assisted in Australia being one of the few OEDC nations to not be in recession today. But we are not out of the woods yet and we are all in this together.”
The Minister pointed to the fact that the capacity of Local Government to deliver well planned infrastructure does vary across the nation.
“There is a need for a nationally consistent set of financial and asset management plans,” he said. “We are keen to enter a dialogue with you about how best this can be achieved.”
