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14 Nov 2008
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Infrastructure and constitutional recognition top agenda at ACLG

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The Federal Government has announced the key discussion themes for 'break-out' sessions at the Australian Council of Local Government meeting next Tuesday:

  • improving engagement of local and federal governments, including constitutional recognition;
  • investing in local, regional and national infrastructure;
  • making our major cities more liveable, productive and sustainable;
  • working towards more efficient and sustainable local government;
  • strengthening regional economies, including broadband and communications;
  • adapting to our changing local environments;
  • partnering to improve housing affordability, including more effective planning and development processes;
  • facilitating social inclusion in our communities;
  • improving wellbeing in our communities; and
  • closing the gap: Indigenous engagement in local communities.

The Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, and the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, Anthony Albanese, will host the inaugural meeting of ACLG on 18 November 2008. An evening welcoming function will be held on 17 November 2008 at which presentations will be made to the winners of the 2008 National Awards for Local Government.

The mayors of all councils and shires across Australia, the heads of local representative organisations and state and territory ministers for local government and planning have been invited to attend the meeting.

The one-day meeting will address issues of priorities for national and local infrastructure, tackling the challenges of our major cities and examining a process for recognition of local government in the Commonwealth Constitution.

It is expected that at the November 18 meeting, the Government will also announce the ongoing membership of ACLG. ALGA has prepared a kit of fact-sheets to provide background for the meeting and this has been mailed to all councils. It is also available on-line at www.alga.asn.au Details of the ACLG meeting are at www.aclg.gov.au

Funding regional and local community infrastructure

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The House of Representatives Committee on Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government has taken the unusual step of releasing an Interim Report on 5 November even though the final report was due by the 30 November. The Interim Report examines possible administrative arrangements for the proposed Regional and Local Community Infrastructure Program (RLCIP).

There is no structured process for providing comments on the Interim Report. The Chair of the Committee, Catherine King, acknowledges in the Forward that the interim report has been released "as a means of assisting the Government in its decision making process" in relation to the RLCIP in the context of the current global economic crisis. The Committee believes that the RLCIP "has the potential to help stimulate growth at the local level and contribute to nation building in Australia."

The Committee makes 24 recommendations about the administrative arrangements for the RLCIP based on public submission and the Australian National Audit Office report on the Regional Partnership Program. The recommendations in some cases provide alternative approaches to some issues. There is also a dissenting report from Paul Neville.

The Committee notes that there was very little consensus on how a program should operate. The report acknowledges the ALGA submission that pointed out the backlog in community infrastructure identified in the PricewaterhouseCoopers Report and emphasises that regional and local level community infrastructure has "a vital role in a community's wellbeing and sustainability".

The key recommendations, from local government's perspective, are that:

  • local government be the key agency for applications in a region with a requirement that local government contribute (whether by way of capital, maintenance or operational funding);
  • Not-for-profit organizations that do not require a local government contribution would require a letter of support from local government and then be able to apply directly;
  • the focus of funding should be on physical infrastructure,
  • cover all regions of Australia;
  • the program be applications based with closed funding rounds;
  • for-profit entities be excluded from the RLCIP and that a separate program be established for them; and
  • there be a sliding scale of complexity of forms and information requirements for applications and suggests three streams:
    • less than $50,000;
    • $50,000 to $250,000; and
    • more than $250,000.

These recommendations place local government in a pivotal role and ensure that councils are not left with legacy costs from grants to not-for-profit groups.

In terms of assessing projects, the Committee recommends a centralised assessment process for the RLCIP. The Committee also recommends establishing panels in each state and territory, with delegates from the three tiers of government and others (peak community organisations, economic development bodies, philanthropy groups and people with particular expertise), to provide recommendations on applications to the Ministerial decision-maker.

ALGA is generally supportive of the approach in the Interim Report looks forward to see how the Government may use the recommendations in the Interim Report in structuring the RLCIP. The Interim Report can be found at www.aph.gov.au/house/committee/itrdlg/regionaldevelopment/report.htm

ALGA President discusses settlement services with Parliamentary Secretary

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ALGA President Cr Paul Bell met recently with the Parliamentary Secretary for Multicultural Affairs and Settlement, Laurie Ferguson. At the meeting Cr Bell suggested council 'welcome centres' could provide humanitarian entrants with a one-stop shop for information about community and settlement services, particularly in regional areas, and these could assist those who come out under the proposed Pacific Island guest worker scheme.

"Strong leadership by all spheres of government and good planning are the ingredients that lead to successful migrant settlement," Cr Bell said, and citing some best-practice examples such as Shepparton and Warrnambool and the Queensland Local Area Multicultural Partnership (LAMP) scheme as models for community engagement.

Mr Ferguson provided details of grants available to local government under the Settlement Grants Program and the Living in Harmony community grants round.

Cr Bell welcomed the rollout of the Complex Case Support program. The program, which began nationally on October 1, will assist recently arrived refugees and other humanitarian entrants in difficult and unique circumstances where their needs cannot be adequately addressed by existing services. The service will assist particularly vulnerable people to help build a life in Australia.

In 2007-08, Australia granted 13 014 visas under its refugee and humanitarian program.

Further information on the CCS program can be found here
From the President

I write this final column with some sadness but also with a profound sense of gratitude for the four years I have been at the helm of local government in Australia .

This time next week you will have a new President and a new era will begin.

Over the past four years, we at ALGA with State and Territory Associations and member councils have achieved much together. We have put the issues of Fair Funding, Fair Treatment and Formal Recognition (the 3F's) on the map. We have updated these with a 4th F - Future Challenges - in recognition of the reality of climate change and the threat to our water resources.

We have made progress on all these fronts and this has been well-documented in my weekly scribblings through 'ALGA News.' It is hard to decide what has been the most important achievement over this time - the huge success of continuation of Roads to Recovery and its bipartisan support is high up there and is something of which all councils should be proud. Other successes that stand out are the signing of the Intergovernmental Agreement on Cost-Shifting and local government's progress towards Constitutional Recognition, culminating in a Summit to be held in Melbourne in December.

But if I had to name a single highlight, it would be a piece of paper, a report which presents a detailed road-map of the challenges ahead for local government.

The PricewaterhouseCoopers report into local government funding was a watershed. Almost two years on, this report underpins everything that we believe in and we are on the cusp of achieving one of its major recommendations, a Local Community Infrastructure Renewals Fund. I am hopeful the Federal Government will be making an announcement on this very soon.

Other aspects of the report are yet to be achieved but our case has been strengthened by its evidence-based approach to cutting to the heart of the inequities facing the third sphere of government.

We are still underfunded - our funding has not kept up with the growing demands of our communities. Unlike the states, we do not have a growth tax and we are still firmly committed to arguing for at least 1% of direct revenue.

Local government has proven that we can deliver services efficiently and cost-effectively without the overheads and burgeoning costs of many state government programs. We need our own source revenue to meet the challenges ahead. From this central truth, everything else flows.

As a person who is totally committed to our sphere of government, I look forward with great energy to continue to promote and achieve the goals of the 4 F campaign.

I look forward to the next three and a half years as a member of the ALGA Board and President of the LGAQ. I offer the new ALGA President and Executive my total support and best wishes as we progress Fair Funding and Constitutional Recognition of local government.

 

Cr Paul Bell AM
ALGA President

Australian Transport Council

Transport Ministers from each Australian State and Territory met with the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, Anthony Albanese, and ALGA President Paul Bell at the Australian Transport Council (ATC) in Adelaide last Friday to discuss progress towards achieving more consistent national arrangements for ensuring the nation gets best use out of its transport infrastructure, and also transport security issues.

ATC settled the terms of a draft agreement to underpin the operations of a new National Road Safety Council (NRSC) for consideration by COAG early in 2009.

The NRSC will provide new approaches to road safety to reduce road trauma through evidence-based measures and the application of Safe Systems principles. The NRSC will bring together a high level group of key community leaders and experts to help raise the profile of road safety and forge critical partnerships across relevant government, industry and community sectors.

As part of the meeting, Ministers signed the Smartcard Licence Interoperability Protocol (SLIP) to ensure that when states and territories introduce smartcard technology the information contained on the card's chips will be accessible by the traffic and law enforcement authorities of other jurisdictions - while safeguarding the privacy of Australians.

Smartcard technology will make it harder to use stolen or fake cards, an important protection in these times of growing identity theft. These licences also have the potential to make it easier for motorists to change their personal details and store a range of other important information such as donor and health information.

Ministers heard and noted the progress being made with the National Transport Policy and Heavy Vehicle Regulatory reform.

Ministers also noted the continuing progress in heavy vehicle regulatory reforms and approved a PBS amendment package that gives the PBS Review Panel greater discretion when considering PBS applications. These amendments respond to industry and jurisdictional concerns that greater flexibility is needed in the PBS scheme. The NTC has also commenced a review of PBS standards for completion in early 2009. The review work will inform development of a Regulatory Impact Statement that will propose an improved regulatory structure and facilitate the preparation of the PBS model legislation package.

Ministers noted that the new fatigue laws commenced in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and South Australia on the ATC agreed implementation date of 29 September 2008, whilst the Northern Territory and Tasmania will implement at a later date. The new laws will not be implemented in the ACT. The Western Australian Government advised that it will continue to regulate fatigue under its own Occupational Health and Safety laws. The laws provide for transitional arrangements to assist industry adjustment to the new requirements.

These new laws move to a stronger performance-based focus, addressing the root causes of driver fatigue rather than simply regulating work hours. Operators who require drivers to work long hours and night shifts must reduce driver fatigue risks through audited accreditation schemes.

These new laws move to a stronger performance-based focus, addressing the root causes of driver fatigue rather than simply regulating work hours. Operators who require drivers to work long hours and night shifts must reduce driver fatigue risks through audited accreditation schemes.

Ministers endorsed a national framework to progress the Australian Government’s commitment to harmonise disability parking schemes across Australia. The framework provides for the creation of an Australian Disability Parking Scheme to achieve national consistency in disability parking across all States and Territories. The national scheme will improve opportunities for eligible people with disability by providing common eligibility criteria, entitlements and a national parking permit. Key elements that will be developed through 2009 include a national consultation strategy and communications framework.

This work is being led by the Commonwealth Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs, along with State, Territory, Local Government and other providers. Ministers noted that the proposal had also been referred for the endorsement of the Community and Disability Services Ministers' Conference

As the meeting on Friday 7th November was the last attended by Cr Bell in his current role he received a warm round of applause from Ministers for his contribution.

The full communiqué can be found here

Bottled water and fluoride

On Tuesday, Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) released a report for public comment that proposes amending the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code to allow manufacturers to voluntarily add fluoride to bottled water.

The addition of certain substances, such as fluoride, must undergo a pre-market safety evaluation by FSANZ before they are approved for use at specified levels.

If FSANZ approves the sale of bottled water containing added fluoride, it will be a voluntary permission. Manufacturers will be able to add fluoride or not, under the conditions of the food standard.

FSANZ welcomes submissions from interested parties, which should be in FSANZ's hands by Tuesday 23 December 2008.

Details at www.foodstandards.gov.au

Cycling awards

Many councils are implementing innovative strategies to promote and encourage cycling and improve infrastructure to make it easier for people to cycle for transport, health or recreation. A special category for local government has been established as part of the 2008 Bicycling Achievement Awards of the Cycling Promotion Fund. Nominations are open now and close on 19th December. Winners will receive a cash prize of $1000 and will be invited to an award ceremony in Canberra. In addition, nominees will be included in a booklet that is distributed widely around Australia. More information at www.cyclingawards.com.au
Waste focus for Ministers

At the 17th meeting of the Environment Protection and Heritage Ministerial Council (EPHC) held in Adelaide on 7 November, the Council supported the development of a national waste policy and the compilation of a comprehensive report on waste. Ministers agreed that a national waste policy will provide much-needed clarity on what is appropriately dealt with at which level and that it also affords a timely opportunity to revisit waste policy in the context of broader government policies on climate change and sustainability . Other important matters discussed at the EPHC meeting include:

  • Carbon capture and storage guidelines;
  • Consideration of a report on impediments to wind farm energy development;
  • Methane emissions from landfills;
  • A framework for product stewardship;
  • Plastic bags; and
  • The National Packaging Covenant Mid-Term Review.

The Australian Local Government Association (ALGA) was represented at EPHC by Cr Bill Mitchell.

Ministerial Conference on Ageing

Last Friday, ALGA attended the second meeting of the Ministerial Conference on Ageing. ALGA was represented at the meeting by ALGA Board Director and President of the Local Government Association of Tasmania, Mike Gaffney.

The Ministerial Conference was chaired by the Victorian Minister for Senior Victorians, Lisa Neville, who confirmed that Melbourne will host the 2010 International Federation of Ageing Conference.

The agenda was wide-ranging and included discussion on the aged care needs of Indigenous Australians, options for national initiatives to encourage all spheres of government to work together to promote social inclusion of older people, and agreement to continue to discuss aged care and disability programs.

Around 13 per cent of Australia's population (some 2.8 million people) is currently aged 65 years or older. This number is expected to rise to 18 per cent by 2021, and to 26 per cent (or around 7 million people) in 2051. Over the next 20 years, the number of people aged over 80 years will almost double.
Local government continues to promote positive ageing in local and regional communities, and recognises the significance of planning for the ageing population as confirmed by the results of the Australian Local Government Population Ageing Action Plan 2004-2008.

The next meeting of the Ministerial Conference on Ageing will take place in 2009.

Safer Communities Awards

Attorney - General Robert McClelland presented 16 Australian Safer Communities Awards to innovative and educational projects that promote awareness and management of natural disasters , including an award to Emergency Management Queensland and the Local Government Association of Queensland for its 'Red Alert' and 'Get Ready Kidnas' Disaster Education for Young People and Children Project .

Several of this year's awards are aimed at raising the awareness of young people to the need for emergency preparedness and local government has again provided significant community projects.

For more information about the Australian Safer Communities Awards, please refer to www.ema.gov.au and select 'Communities', 'Safer Communities Awards'.

Second FAGs instalment

The Federal Government will next week deliver the second quarterly instalment from its $1.9 billion Financial Assistance Grants program.

The Financial Assistance Grants are being delivered to individual councils based on the recommendations from local government grant commissions in each of the states and territories. This year's annual allocation to individual council can be found at: www.infrastructure.gov.au/local/assistance

The grant recommendations from the Northern Territory are still being assessed.

Registrations of interest for ABC

ABC childcare was big news this week with receivers seeking an urgent cash injection from banks in a desperate attempt to keep the 1040 child-care centres open until the end of the year, and the Senate passing a motion calling for a roundtable on the issue.

On Tuesday, the Deputy Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, announced that as a consequence of discussions between the government’s childcare industry task force and the receiver, it has been agreed that government representatives including members of PPB, an insolvency and corporate recovery practitioners firm, "will be embedded working with the receiver in undertaking this work of a detailed review of the operational data of each and every ABC Learning Centre."

"In some cases this may create opportunities for not-for-profit and for-profit entities to operate local childcare centres that were previously operated by ABC but were not viable under the ABC current business model," she said.

"As members of the parliament would be aware, and would have seen media reports in relation to, a number of organisations have already contacted the receiver and others have contacted various arms of government with a view to expressing their interest in potentially buying or otherwise operating individual or a number of ABC Learning Centres. It is important to note that at this stage the receiver expects that most centres will continue to operate into the new year. There is currently no sale process being conducted for ABC assets. However, the receiver will need to be as well informed as possible when making decisions about the future of each centre and the care arrangements for families. Today I can announce that an expression of interest process has commenced to ensure that the receiver has the best available range of options for considering the future operation of ABC Learning Centres. I encourage any parties, be they for profit or not for profit, to register their interest in participating in the future of ABC with the receiver. Once the review process has identified the likely future arrangements for each centre, the receiver, working with the government, will map and sort the registrations of interest against the identified local need."

The Taxation Review

Treasury Secretary Ken Henry outlined the timetable for the Tax Review in his address at the National Press Club on Wednesday. He said the review would be 'root and branch, not just pruning and shaping.' ALGA's submission is available at www.alga.asn.au under 'recent updates.'

"Progressing tax system design isn't easy," he said. "But I'm optimistic. Certainly, it will be more feasible if we have a sensible discourse. Recognising that, the Review Panel has committed to a few ground rules: first, we must remain open to new ideas; second, the review is both too complex and too important to rush; and third, we cannot make good progress without engaging the community."

"The steps in the review process are these. In August, as I have noted, the Treasury released its architecture paper, to seed debate. Next month, the Review Panel will release a consultation paper. That paper will summarise what we've heard so far from the community, identify some key issues, draw out the choices that emerge from our analysis of the issues, and seek views on a range of more specific questions. Following the release of the consultation paper there will be a second, longer consultation period of perhaps six months. During that time, there will be many opportunities for engagement – public meetings, round table discussions, and a tax policy conference in June.

In the second half of next year we will be writing up our report, due to the Government by December 2009."

MobileMuster - nominations closing

MobileMuster is inviting local councils nationwide to show off their mobile phone recycling efforts by entering the 2008 MobileMuster Local Government Awards, with a reminder that nominations are required by Wednesday 19 November. MobileMuster has been impressed by the quality of nominations received to date and is looking forward to an exciting (and difficult) selection process of the eventual winners!

MobileMuster, the official recycling program of the mobile telecommunications industry, launched the awards in 2007, with the aim of recognising the outstanding efforts by local councils in promoting and collecting mobile phones, batteries, chargers and accessories for recycling.

Winners of the five awards (Best Promoter, Working with Schools, Top Collector/Recycler (overall and per population) and the National Excellence Award) will be announced during the Local Government Constitutional Summit - a special National General Assembly, which will be held at the Melbourne Convention Centre from 8 December - 11 December 2008.

Participating councils are reminded to nominate for three of the four categories, Best Promoter, Working with Schools and National Excellence. For more information or to nominate online go to www.mobilemuster.com.au or call 1300 730070.

National Food Safety Week 2008

In launching National Food Safety Week 2008 (10-16 November 2008) , Food Safety Information Council Chairman, Dr Michael Eyles, congratulated Australians on their adventurous spirit in adopting such a wide array of foods in their diets, but warned that with all adventures there are risks.

"Variety is one key to healthy eating - being food smart is another", Dr Eyles said.

"The food safety risks in trying the unfamiliar can be significantly decreased through greater knowledge in selecting, preparing and storing foods.

"40 years ago cookbooks listed pizza under international food, a curry was a casserole with a teaspoon of 'curry powder’ from a small orange can, coconut milk was boiled fresh milk with desiccated coconut added, using chilli meant you’d travelled to 'the far East’, a preference for salami over devon white bread sandwiches indicated your 'Mother tongue’ was probably not English, and prawns usually involved cocktails at a wedding.

"How things have changed! Today fewer Australian households see well done meat and three veg as a menu definer. Stir fries, sushi, prawns on the barbie, and curry preparation involving a stone mortar and pestle are not out of the ordinary.

"This is all welcomed, but as the Food Safety Information Council points out meal preparation involving light cooking and longer periods for food to be in the Temperature Danger Zone increase the risk of bacteria surviving causing the consumer to perhaps become one of the more than 5 million Australians who suffer from food borne illnesses each year.

"The Council’s basic food safety tips – Cook, Clean, Chill and Separate – are still as relevant as ever, but when on an adventure some extra thought is needed. For instance, when cooking stir fry meat needs cooking on all surfaces before vegetables are added. Rabbit is again becoming popular, but it along with other small animals should be treated like chicken and always cooked through until the juices run clear."

More information at www.foodsafety.asn.au

The basic food safety keys are:

  • Avoid the temperature danger zone – serve hot food steaming hot. Put leftovers into the fridge as soon as they stop steaming. Chill all food as soon as possible after cooking or buying. Make sure your fridge is clean, uncluttered and 5°C or below. Ask for ice when buying seafood.
  • Cook chicken, rabbit, sausages, minced meat dishes, hamburgers, rolled and stuffed meats right through, until the juices run clear.
  • Separate foods that are raw such as chicken, meat and dirty vegetables from foods that are ready to eat such as salads, cooked meats etc. Make sure raw chicken and meat are stored below other foods in the fridge to avoid cross contamination.
  • Keep cooking utensils and all surfaces your food will touch scrupulously clean to avoid contamination with food poisoning bacteria and viruses.
  • Clean your hands. Hands should be washed with soap under warm, running water for 20 seconds and dried for 20 seconds.
Quote of the week

"This system complexity acts like an additional tax, but the worst kind of tax, a tax that provides no revenue is indiscriminate in whom it affects and serves little social value. Ideally, we’d like to reduce this complexity, although it’s naïve to think that we can remove all of it."
Treasury Secretary Ken Henry at the National Press Club this week

International news  

It is true. You really do have to sing for your supper! A Swiss shopkeeper fed up with scores of requests for parking-meter change is making motorists sing for it. "I didn't want to be rude and just tell people to get lost, so I thought up the ideas of getting them to do something if they really wanted the money," the shopkeeper, Rene Jenni, said. We at ALGA wonder if 'Money, Money, Money' by ABBA is a winner!

State of the Regions report 2006-07
Forthcoming events

For a full listing of forthcoming events, see ALGA's Events calendar.
ALGA News can be read online each week at www.alga.asn.au/news.aspx
Editor: newscomments@alga.asn.au Tel: 02 6122 9434.
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