 | |  ALGA has welcomed the Government's formal commitment to further investment in the Roads to Recovery (R2R) programme, black spots and local bridges included in the Land Transport Infrastructure Amendment Bill, which has been introduced into Federal Parliament. The Bill maps out the Federal Government's infrastructure policies required to meet its $35.5 billion commitment to delivering the infrastructure that Australia needs to address the challenges and opportunities of the 21st Century. As well as identifying major projects slated for development, the Bill reflects the Government's commitment to the R2R programme, confirming its future for another five years - beyond the current end date of 30 June 2019 - with $1.75 billion of funding. Following the Bill's introduction into Parliament, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development Warren Truss said: "Roads to Recovery provides vital funding to local governments for the maintenance of the nation's local road infrastructure." "Further, the Government has committed $300 million to the Black Spot Programme addressing road sites that are high risk areas for serious crashes, in addition to our new $300 million Bridges Renewal programme to restore dilapidated local bridges," Mr Truss said. The Australian Governments Roads to Recovery (R2R) program has become an essential element in local government's ability to maintain and upgrade the local roads network. While, local roads are owned and maintained by local government, the cost of this maintenance is immense. In recognition of the growing backlog in local road maintenance, the Federal Government established the Roads to Recovery Program in 2000, which has helped local government begin to address the backlog of local road maintenance, improving safety, transport efficiency and stimulating economic development across the country. However, results from a national study commissioned by the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA) to examine the condition of community roads and infrastructure reinforce that more than 10 per cent of sealed roads are in poor condition and a large proportion of timber bridges are substandard. The 2013 National State of the Assets Report represents the findings from analysis of data provided by 344 councils, which manage almost $100 billion worth of transport assets, including sealed local roads, unsealed local roads, concrete bridges and timber bridges. Key findings suggest that $8.3 billion in sealed roads are in poor or very poor condition, together with a further $1.9 billion in unsealed roads and $1.4 billion in concrete and timber bridges. ALGA President, Felicity-ann Lewis says the findings reinforce the need for further investment in local roads and bridges, which are critical to the social and economic development of communities and national prosperity. "We can't afford to have substandard local roads and bridges. These are the gateways to and from our communities. They provide access to local, regional, state and national services and markets and play a vital role in driving our economy," Mayor Lewis said. Mayor Lewis says that while councils appreciate assistance provided through the Federal Government's Roads to Recovery program, more needs to be done to address the estimated funding shortfall for local roads of $1.2 billion annually. "Local government manages more than 80 per cent of our national road network and we need to ensure that we can afford to maintain local roads to a sufficient standard, otherwise local and national productivity will suffer," Mayor Lewis said. "The Coalition Government has committed to a Bridges Renewal program to fix some of the problems councils are experiencing with aged infrastructure, such as timber bridges, and we wholeheartedly welcome that initiative." | | | | |  Local communities across the country are this week holding events to mark International Women's Day, which is recognised each year on 8 March. ALGA President Felicity-ann Lewis is taking part in celebrations which aim to recognise the contributions of women and acknowledge areas requiring further action to ensure women's equality. "International Women's Day is especially important for local government, a sector which is under-represented by women, both as council members and within senior staffing positions," Mayor Lewis said. "Nationally, 45 per cent of the local government workforce is women, however only 20 per cent of these women work in a professional position. "In my home state of South Australia, only 24 per cent of senior managers in councils are women and only four councils out of 68 have a female Chief Executive Officer. "In order to do more to address the under-representation of women in professional positions, we need to pay attention to research that suggests that many current leadership models are based on male stereotypes. We need to re-consider current measures of leadership capability and look at new methods for promoting gender equity." Mayor Lewis will be addressing these and other concerns when she delivers the opening keynote address at the 2014 Australian Local Government Women's Association (ALGWA) NSW Annual Conference in Broken Hill from 21-22 March. The theme of the ALGWA Conference is "Embracing Change - Be the Driver, Not the Passenger". It provides an opportunity for people in local government to discuss changes impacting local government, including amalgamations and possible new planning laws. During her presentation, entitled "Embracing Change and Gender Equity in Local Government", Mayor Lewis will be drawing on research to discuss some of the barriers that have been identified for women moving into executive positions. She will also be highlighting the challenges that she has experienced as a long-serving Mayor and Councillor and will raise ideas for change to ensure that women can expect to have the right working environment and the right circumstances in which to reach their full potential. To find out more about the Conference, please click here. | | | | |  As the Centenary of the beginning of the First World War approaches, ALGA is pleased to confirm that the Director of the Australian War Memorial, Dr Brendan Nelson, will be addressing the National General Assembly of Local Government (NGA) on Wednesday, 18 June 2014. The key presentation will provide an opportunity for Dr Nelson to outline the Memorial's plans for the coming years and reflect on the role of councils in annual commemorations which recognise community members who have served in the armed forces. It is expected that councils across Australia will be marking, in their own way, the 100th anniversary of the start of the First World War on 28 July this year. Communities are also encouraged to mark the centenary of the first ANZAC landings at Gallipoli on 25 April next year. Dr Nelson's presence at the NGA will be a strong reminder of the importance these events will have in Australia over the coming years and ignite discussion about the development of commemorative events across councils. Dr Nelson's speech will highlight the crucial role local government plays in citizenship services and the commemoration of Australia's service personnel. Registration for the NGA is now open and information on registering and submitting motions is available here. | | |
| |  Community organisations are again being offered Community Heritage Grants of up to $15,000 from the Commonwealth Government and I would encourage all councils to consider an application. The Grants are provided to assist with the preservation of locally owned but nationally significant collections of materials that are publicly accessible. Such collections could include artefacts, letters, diaries, maps, photographs and audio visual material. Community organisations eligible to apply include local historical societies, regional museums, public libraries and indigenous and migrant community groups. In 2013, 78 Grants were awarded, totalling $425,684. Among the recipients were the Albury City Council's Library Museum, which received $4740 towards its "Significance Assessment of the Indigenous Collection" project. The Broken Hill City Council received $4000 for its "Significance Assessment of the Outback Archives Collection" and the City of Greater Geelong Council received $4000 towards the "Significance Assessment of the Geelong Heritage Centre collection". The 2014 Community Heritage Grants round opened this week and closes on 2 May 2014. The National Archives of Australia contributes funding and helps to manage the scheme, which is administered by the National Library of Australia. Grant winners receive practical preservation and archival training from the National Archives when they attend the grant giving ceremony held in Canberra. For more information, including application guidelines, please visit: www.nla.gov.au/chg/guidelines Mayor, Dr Felicity-ann Lewis
ALGA President | | |
| | The Premiers of Queensland and Western Australia and the Chief Minister of the Northern Territory have agreed to join a new Strategic Partnership to inform the development and implementation of Australia's first Northern Australia White Paper. The Federal Government is delivering on its commitment to put in place the policies and plans to develop Northern Australia’s potential with more investment, infrastructure, jobs and services. The White Paper will set out a clear, well-defined and timely policy platform for promoting the development of Northern Australia. The Government has stated that it wants to capitalise on Northern Australia’s existing strengths and natural advantages in agriculture, cattle and energy as well as to seize opportunities in tourism, education and health services. The White Paper is expected to provide pathways to harness opportunities which capitalise on the region’s strengths, including ways to advance trade, cultural and investment links with the Asia Pacific region, and to provide the best regulatory and economic environment for business. It will also identify the critical infrastructure needed to support the long-term growth of the region, ways to incentivise public and private planning and investment while tackling impediments to growth. The Strategic Partnership between the Premiers and the Chief Minister will be supported by an Advisory Group made up of business, community and Indigenous leaders of the north. This group will meet for the first time in the coming months. A Parliamentary Joint Select Committee on Northern Australia has also been formed, chaired by Warren Entsch MP. This Committee will commence community consultation next month and report to Parliament in July. These activities will provide direction for Government support and action aimed at allowing Northern Australia to prosper through investment, infrastructure, jobs and services. More information can be found at the White Paper on Developing Northern Australia website. | | | | | Federal Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce has released for comment an Issues Paper that will underpin the much anticipated Agricultural Competitiveness White Paper. When released later this year, the White Paper will provide stakeholders with the opportunity to engage with the Federal Government on strategies aimed at promoting economic growth, exports, employment and investment in the Australian agricultural sector. To this end, the Issue Paper seeks comment on the following nine key issues: - Ensuring food security in Australia and globally;
- Improving farm gate returns;
- Enhancing access to finance;
- Increasing the sector's competitiveness and its value chain;
- Enhancing agriculture's contribution to regional communities;
- Improving the competitiveness of input costs;
- Reducing ineffective regulations;
- Enhancing agricultural exports; and
- Assessing the effectiveness of incentives for investment and job creation.
The Federal Government has identified agriculture, and in particular agricultural exports, as being one of the "five pillars" of its economic growth policy aimed at shifting Australia's reliance on mining exports. Submissions on the Issues Paper close on 17 April, 2014. It is expected that a Green Paper will be released in the first half of 2014 seeking further submissions. The White Paper is expected to be released in the last quarter of 2014. To access the Issues Paper, please click here. | | | | | Legislation to establish the Green Army has been introduced into Parliament and councils will soon be able to put forward applications for Green Army project proposals. The Minister for the Environment, Greg Hunt, said in the first year, the Green Army would be rolled out with 250 projects and about 2,500 people undertaking on-the-ground environmental activities. It will grow to become Australia's largest-ever environmental workforce with 15,000 participants by 2018. Already 150 projects had been committed and these would be delivered in the initial rollout, the Minister said. He said it was an opportunity for young Australians aged 17-24 to gain training and experience in environmental and heritage conservation fields and to explore careers in conservation management. Participation will be open to school leavers, gap year students, graduates and job seekers. Participants will receive a Green Army allowance and will also have the opportunity to undertake training. Team Supervisors will be paid a wage consistent with the Gardening and Landscaping Services Award. The Commonwealth will soon be seeking tenders for Service Providers, who will engage the Green Army teams, manage projects and report on progress. Local councils, community groups and natural resources management organisations will be able to submit Green Army project proposals for consideration. Applications will open shortly. Green Army projects will include activities such as restoring and protecting habitat, weeding, planting, cleaning up creeks and rivers, and restoring cultural heritage areas. Projects may be carried out across urban, regional and remote Australia on public land, Indigenous-held lands, or private land where there is a clear community and environmental and heritage benefit. For more information, click here. | | | | | Canberra has been ranked Australia's most liveable city but housing affordability remains a concern. It is the first time the nation's capital has achieved the ranking after being runner-up to Adelaide in the past two years. The report shows Canberra scored higher than all cities on six of 17 attributes including having a wide range of recreational outdoor environments, a clean, well-maintained and unpolluted city and safe places for people and their property. Canberra rated just 1.3 points above Adelaide to take out the title. The report said Canberra's rise to the top was based on further improvement in the areas it had always performed well in such as being safe and clean and having good schools and healthcare. The only significant decline in 2013 was in having good employment and economic opportunities. Canberrans still found housing to be an area of concern and rated the ACT government badly in its provision of making housing more affordable, setting a fair level of taxation when people bought or sold properties, and supplying infrastructure to keep up with demand. About 5390 people from all capital cities and regional centres Newcastle and Wollongong participated in the online survey, rating their city against a set of attributes. Hobart finished third behind Adelaide and Canberra and Darwin took out the wooden spoon for the third year in a row. | | | | | The Council of Capital City Lord Mayors (CCCLM) has released the Unlocking Smart Growth in Australian Cities report by Urbis Australia. CCCLM Chair, Lord Mayor of Melbourne, Robert Doyle, said it makes sense for city planning to focus on locating people close to jobs and using existing infrastructure. "Our capital cities are home to an increasing majority of Australians, more than two-thirds of us live in one of our capitals and numbers are growing, but stretching city borders to accommodate more people is not the best option," Lord Mayor Doyle said. "A Smart Growth approach to increase populations in established areas means people living in those communities have easy access to jobs, a range of housing and transport choices and public spaces. "Building in established parts of a city is cheaper than building new developments on city fringes and therefore reduces the pressure on federal and state governments to provide the required infrastructure." Lord Mayor Doyle said the decline of employment in conventional industries means capital cities have to take the lead to cultivate our employment industries of the future. "By making smart investment choices in city infrastructure, we can meet the needs of communities and set in motion significant private sector investment, creating new jobs as traditional employment sectors dwindle," Lord Mayor Doyle said. "The CCCLM would like to see all levels of government work together on a new approach to development that will ensure the long term prosperity, liveability and sustainability of Australia's major cities. "Unlocking Smart Growth in Australian Cities is the first report to explore the Smart Growth concept in an Australian context." The report presents a number of principles to guide smart growth in Australia including: - building only on the land we need and making the best use of existing and future
- infrastructure investments;
- creating connected places that are easy to move to and through;
- supporting resilient and adaptable communities that offer healthy lifestyles choices for
- current and future residents; and
- offering opportunities for involvement and collaboration between government,
- communities and the private sector.
Report author and Urbis Director, Michael Barlow, welcomed Australia's capital city Lord Mayors in initiating a conversation about smart growth in Australia. The Lord Mayors have also asked the federal and state governments to adapt a 'whole of government' approach to their significant investments in Australian cities and create a new infrastructure funding model that aligns investment around cities. | | | | | Drought-affected farmers are encouraged to visit the Mobile Service Centre 'Desert Pea' when it is in Southern Queensland next week to test their eligibility for income support by lodging a claim. Minister for Human Services Senator Marise Payne said the Mobile Service Centre will be travelling to St George, Hebel, Dirranbandi, Bollon and Surat next week to offer farmers assistance with Interim Farm Household Allowance claims. "Some farming families in Southern Queensland have been experiencing financial hardship, but have not been eligible for income support to help with their daily living expenses," Minister Payne said. "Both Mobile Service Centres, 'Kangaroo Paw' and 'Desert Pea', will be visiting drought affected areas in northern NSW and Queensland. I encourage farmers to visit the Mobile Service Centre when it is near them to test their eligibility and apply for the Interim Farm Household Allowance. "The Interim Farm Household Allowance has a higher farm assets test threshold, so households with net farm assets of up to $2.55 million can apply for financial support. "It will be paid at a rate equivalent to Newstart Allowance (or Youth Allowance for those under 22 years old) and farmers will have access to other assistance such as a Health Care Card. "Staff can help farmers to lodge their claim form on board and refer people to other community support organisations for further assistance." Minister Payne said staff on board the Mobile Service Centre have extensive experience in rural servicing and understand the needs of people living in rural and regional communities. "The original Mobile Service Centres were known as the 'drought buses' and came into service in 2006 as a drought response measure," Minister Payne said. "Since 2009 the Mobile Service Centres have travelled over 300,000km to 1400 rural and regional communities across the country and helped over 50,000 people access Centrelink, Medicare, Australian Hearing and Child Support information, payments and services." For more information on the Interim Farm Household Allowance, visit humanservices.gov.au/rural or call the Farmer Assistance Hotline on 132 316.
To see which drought-affected communities the Mobile Service Centre will be servicing next, visit humanservices.gov.au/mobileoffice. | | | | | Minister for Ageing and Disability Services John Ajaka reminded carers across NSW to have their say on the development of a new five year NSW Carers Strategy before public consultation closes at the end of this week. "The NSW Government wants your help to develop strategies to support the state’s 850,000 carers which is why we are inviting you to take part in a short online survey," Mr Ajaka said. "The NSW Carers Strategy will underpin the way the government provides support for carers across the state until 2019. "The survey is quick and easy to complete and allows you to tell us what ideas you think are the most important for supporting carers in each area of their life. "This is your opportunity to tell us how we can improve services for carers and help tackle issues such as health and wellbeing, financial stress and social exclusion. "The proposed ideas in the online survey are the result of carers, government and community working together to develop innovative solutions. "Don't miss your chance to be involved in helping us produce a new plan to support carers." Carers are family members, friends, housemates or neighbours who provide ongoing unpaid support to people who need help with everyday aspects of life. All public feedback will be considered carefully and will be included in the consultation report which will be presented to the Ministerial Carers Summit at the end of this month. If you would like to have your say visit www.haveyoursay.nsw.gov.au and provide feedback before Friday 7 March. | | | | | Professor Peter Shergold AC will chair the Aged Care Sector Committee, tasked with building the foundation for a constructive and lasting partnership between the Australian Government and the aged care sector. The committee will provide guidance to help the aged care sector adapt to new demands and a greater consumer focus. Committee members have been drawn from peak bodies representing providers across residential and home care; for-profit and not-for-profit providers; consumer and workforce representatives. One of its first tasks is to develop the Aged Care Sector Statement of Principles to set out the way in which government and the aged care sector will work together to progress reform. This statement of principles will reflect the need to bed down reform, ongoing monitoring and how the recommendations of the Productivity Commission's Caring for Older Australians report are considered in the five-year review of the reforms in 2016-17. This committee will provide an important conduit from the sector and other stakeholders to government. It will provide important advice, including identifying where to start the critical task of cutting red tape in aged care-practical steps that can be taken to reduce administrative burdens and compliance costs. Members of the Committee have already been involved in consultations to develop a better way to allocate the former Aged Care Workforce Supplement funding in a more flexible and targeted way. | | | | | To find out what's happening in local communities on Harmony Day, held each year on 21 March, visit the on-line National Harmony Day Diary search facility. You can also choose to share your own Harmony Day plans with others across Australia. Councils, schools, community groups and organisations across Australia hold events to celebrate Harmony Day. There’s almost no limit to the types of events that can be held and they don’t have to be on 21 March. In fact, any time of year is a good time to celebrate Harmony Day. Along with Harmony Day on 21 March, other events that promote themes of multicultural harmony and social cohesion are held around Australia. State and territory governments organise annual multicultural awards to recognise the contributions and achievements by diverse Australians in promoting a multicultural Australia. | | | | | Geelong Mayor Darryn Lyons has been nominated for the world mayor competition. He is one of two Australian mayors, along with Sydney's Clover Moore, to make the long list of 50. Councillor Lyons says it is an honour to be recognised. "It clearly shows that my work in Geelong is having a big impact on the world stage and I really appreciate the recognition," he said. A short list of the world's top 25 mayors will be announced in June. Councillor Lyons says since taking office nearly 100 days ago, he has worked hard to lift Geelong's profile. "At the end of the day it's not all about the publicity, it's about leveraging off that for the future growth of this city and bringing companies in," he said. Geelong's economy is in transition after a number of announcements of job losses in the city. Alcoa will wind up its aluminium operations in the city by the end of the year, cutting 800 jobs, 300 Qantas workers will finish up at Avalon Airport at the end of the month, and Ford will stop making cars in the city by 2016. | | |
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