Aviation White Paper The Minister for Infrastructure, Transport Regional Development and Local Government, Anthony Albanese, released the Aviation White Paper, Flight Path to the Future, on Wednesday.
A national civics campaign a step closer
A national civics campaign a step closer A new parliamentary report has recommended sweeping changes to how Australians are provided information before a referendum.
Healthy communities program
Healthy communities program The Heart Foundation, National Stroke Foundation and the Australian Local Government Association have welcomed the announcement by the Minister for Health and Ageing, Nicola Roxon, to work with local government and health
Truss retains Local Government portfolio The Coalition Shadow Ministry was announced on Tuesday by new Opposition Leader Tony Abbott.
Call for a national infrastructure vision
Call for a national infrastructure vision The importance of having a national view on infrastructure funding and pricing was a key theme at an Infrastructure Forum hosted by the National Press Club yesterday.
Climate change talks
Climate change talks The president of the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA), Cr Geoff Lake, flew to Copenhagen earlier this week at the conclusion of the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) meeting to join the official Australian
Councils honoured by Attorney-General Attorney-General Robert McClelland recognised 14 community-based projects from across the country with the Australian Safer Communities Awards held in Canberra yesterday at Old Parliament House.
Smart infrastructure in Australia
Smart infrastructure in Australia Smart infrastructure can open up restricted routes in cities to significantly improve travel times and quality of life.
CPRS defeated in Senate
CPRS defeated in Senate It has been a tumultuous week in Federal politics.
Emergency Management Ministers' Council meets in Perth
Emergency Management Ministers' Council meets in Perth The Ministerial Council for Police and Emergency Management met in Perth last Friday to consider Australia's preparedness for natural disasters and to agree measures to improve the resilience of
Regional arts roundtable highlights role of local government
Regional arts roundtable highlights role of local government A national roundtable on regional arts attended by ALGA has underlined the importance not only of regional arts but also the role of local government.
Interim bushfire report
Interim bushfire report The Australian Government has welcomed the release of the Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission's second interim report on priorities for building in bushfire prone areas.
Draft national guidelines for wind farms The Environmental Protection and Heritage Council is releasing for public feedback draft National Wind Farm Guidelines which cover all phases of wind farm development.
Councils praised for chemical recycling
Councils praised for chemical recycling The Board of AgStewardship Australia has praised local government's contribution and support of the drumMUSTER and ChemClear programs in enabling more than 18,000 tonnes of agvet chemical container waste and over
An Indigenous communications framework
An Indigenous communications framework On Thursday 12 November 2009, ALGA attended the 17th meeting of the Online and Communications Council.
Housing affordability fund Round Two of the Housing Affordability Fund, opened this week. The Housing Affordability Fund is a $512 million initiative reducing planning and infrastructure costs of building new housing developments.
Heart Foundation Local Government Awards
Heart Foundation Local Government Awards The Heart Foundation's 2009 Local Government Award winners were announced in Melbourne recently. As in previous years, ALGA was invited to help judge the national awards.
Indigenous community safety
Indigenous community safety The Commonwealth Government hosted a roundtable in Sydney on Friday on Indigenous community safety for State and Territory Attorneys-General, Indigenous Affairs Ministers, Police Ministers and Commissioners and Indigenous
Food safety regulation A draft report released by the Productivity Commission has identified considerable differences in the burdens imposed on business by the food safety regulation at all levels of government in Australia and New Zealand.
White Ribbon Day
White Ribbon Day Join ALGA in supporting White Ribbon Day on Nov 25 and take the opportunity to swear to end violence against women.
RLCIP deadline reminder
RLCIP deadline reminder ALGA is reminding councils that the Federal Government has opened Round Two of the Regional and Local Community Infrastructure Program (RLCIP), worth $220 million.
Australian Sustainable Cities Awards The City of Canada Bay, NSW, is the winner of the Keep Australia Beautiful, Australian Sustainable Cities Awards, announced by Parliamentary Secretary for Social Inclusion and the Voluntary Sector Senator Ursula
Talking websites
Talking websites Nine other councils in Victoria's North-West have followed the City of Greater Bendigo's lead by installing software to make their websites talk.
Rural health infrastructure funding
Rural health infrastructure funding The Federal Government will inject a further $ 6.
Roads and Transport Congress - Agenda Paper The key objective of the Roads and Transport Congress is to develop and agree a framework for an updated Roads and Transport Strategy for local government.
Local government reform in WA
Local government reform in WA All WA councils have submitted reform proposals to the Minister for Local Government as part of a seven-month reform process commenced by the State Government in February.
Councils receive job funding
Councils receive job funding The first round of the Federal Government's $650 million Jobs Fund, has been announced with a total more than 30 councils receiving funding.
Support for women in local government The National President of the Australian Local Government Women's Association (ALGWA) Ms Darriea Turley (pictured) has applauded the Federal Government's announcement that it will provide $490,000 for a range of
Government open to discussion on broadband
Government open to discussion on broadband (This opinion piece was submitted by Senator Stephen Conroy, Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, pictured with ALGA President Cr Geoff Lake at the National General Assembly in June.
Road user charging 'compelling'
Road user charging 'compelling' Treasury Secretary Ken Henry, in a speech to CEDA yesterday, identified the case for road pricing reform as compelling.
Applications open for $220 Million in community infrastructure
Applications open for $220 Million in community infrastructure The Federal Government has today opened Round Two of the Regional and Local Community Infrastructure Program (RLCIP), worth $220 million.
ALGA attends Housing Ministers' Conference ALGA Board member Cr Sam Alessi joined Commonwealth, state and territory housing ministers at last Friday's Housing Ministers' Conference held in Melbourne.
Guide links local government and native title The National Native Title Tribunal and the Australian Local Government Association have published an updated 20-page guide to explain key native title concepts to local government decision makers and officers.
Last chance to take part in ALGA News Reader Survey!
Last chance to take part in ALGA News Reader Survey! ALGA News has received almost 60 responses so far to our short survey which will provide valuable feedback to us from our readers on how we can freshen up 'ALGA News' but still maintain a quality
Earlybird registration closing for National Roads and Transport Congress
Earlybird registration closing for National Roads and Transport Congress Earlybird registration for the Congress in Mackay from 8-10 November will be accessible until COB today. Save over $100 and register online at /policy/transport/congress/.
Local government on track with Stimulus spending ALGA President Cr Geoff Lake has praised councils for the positive assessment local government received in the Commonwealth Coordinator General's Progress Report on the Economic Stimulus package for the
Senate report on public transport The Senate Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport References Committee reported last week on its Inquiry into "Investment of Commonwealth and State Funds in public passenger transport infrastructure and services".
Local government must be included in any roads and transport tax reform
Local government must be included in any roads and transport tax reform The President of ALGA, Cr Geoff Lake, has called for local roads to be included in any move to link road funding with road use.
Minister Wong vows to press ahead with Emissions Trading Scheme
Minister Wong vows to press ahead with Emissions Trading Scheme The Government's emissions trading laws have been voted down in the Senate by all non-Government senators.
Citizenship ceremonies The Department of Immigration and Citizenship has praised local government's contribution to Australian citizenship through the conduct of citizenship ceremonies.
Parliamentary Inquiry into obesity Last month, the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Health and Ageing released its report on obesity in Australia.
Digital Economy Future Directions Final Paper released
Digital Economy Future Directions Final Paper released This week, the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Senator Stephen Conroy, released the final Digital Directions Future Economy paper.
State of the Regions urges more action on climate change
State of the Regions urges more action on climate change If the Federal Government considers further fiscal stimulus measures are needed, much of this should be directed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions for Australia to remain economically
COAG focuses on Indigenous issues in Darwin At its meeting in Darwin on Thursday 2 July, the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) discussed the importance of Closing the Gap in Indigenous Disadvantage and focused on best practice examples of
$245 million infrastructure bonus for communities The president of the Australian Local Government Association, Cr Geoff Lake, has welcomed the surprise announcement by the Prime Minister at the second meeting of the Australian Council of Local
Only two sleeps to go before the NGA! Almost 700 local government delegates will 'Rise to the Challenge' with the start of the National General Assembly (NGA) on Sunday night.
Count down to the National General Assembly It is just over one week until the 2009 National General Assembly (NGA), Rising to the Challenge - Infrastructure, Financing, Climate Change.
Councils get on with the job of delivering stimulus projects
Councils get on with the job of delivering stimulus projects More than 3,300 projects across Australia are currently being rolled out by Australia's 562 councils under the $800 million Regional and Local Community Infrastructure Program, a key part of
National Awards for Local Government - Category Winners
National Awards for Local Government - Category Winners Local Government Minister Anthony Albanese has announced the twenty-one council and shire projects that have been selected as Category Winners from 233 entries in the 2009 National Awards for Local
Tamworth named Australia's Tidiest Town for 2009 Australia's Country Music capital, Tamworth, NSW, has been announced Australia's Tidiest Town for 2009 at the annual Keep Australia Beautiful Australian Tidy Towns Awards, hosted by the Governor-General,
Local government funding weathers tough Budget The Australian Local Government Association has praised the Federal Government's funding commitment to local roads through Roads to Recovery and its renewal of funding for disaster mitigation in the 2009-10
ACLG meeting to follow National General Assembly The second Australian Council of Local Government (ACLG) plenary meeting, hosted by Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government Minister Anthony Albanese will be held on 25 June
Local government to play key part in COAG reforms The President of the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA), Cr Geoff Lake, said he was pleased that agreement had been reached at thursday's meeting of the Council of Australian Governments
Funding for heritage projects The Federal Government has recently committed $60 million to heritage projects as part of its $650 million Jobs Fund, overseen by the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations.
Rising to the Challenge - Infrastructure, Financing, Climate Change
Rising to the Challenge - Infrastructure, Financing, Climate Change ALGA President Cr Geoff Lake has encouraged councils across Australia to seize the opportunity to contribute to the development of national local government policy by submitting motions
Local government welcomes NBN expansion The Australian Local Government Association (ALGA) has welcomed the Rudd Government's announcement that it will build a significantly expanded National Broadband Network (NBN).
Local government welcomes High Court decision The Australian Local Government Association (ALGA) has welcomed today's decision by the full bench of the High Court to reject academic Bryan Pape's constitutional challenge to the Federal Government's
LOCAL GOVERNMENT WELCOMES HIGH COURT DECISION, URGENT NEED FOR CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM
April 3, 2009 The Australian Local Government Association (ALGA) has welcomed today's decision by the full bench of the High Court to reject academic Bryan Pape's constitutional challenge to the Federal Government's planned stimulus package payments.
Roads to Recovery allocations On Wednesday, the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, Anthony Albanese, announced individual council allocations for the next five years of the Roads to Recovery Program
Roads to Recovery ALGA President Cr Geoff Lake wrote to the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, Anthony Albanese, this week about arrangements for the new Roads to Recovery (R2R) Program to commence in July.
National General Assembly call for motions The 2009 National General Assembly of Local Government (NGA) theme is Rising to the Challenge - Infrastructure, Financing, Climate Change.
Councils and architects collaborate on infrastructure projects
Councils and architects collaborate on infrastructure projects Architects are offering their services on an initial pro bono basis to local councils for projects worth more than $1 billion under a partnership between the Australian Local Government
Extra $500 million for community infrastructure - councils urged to act
Extra $500 million for community infrastructure - councils urged to act Councils and shires will have until 4pm Eastern Standard Time on Friday 6 March 2009 to submit new or revised applications for the Regional and Local Community Infrastructure Program
Senate delivers infrastructure funding for councils
Senate delivers infrastructure funding for councils Australian Local Government Association President, Cr Geoff Lake, today welcomed the passing by the Senate of the local government components of the Rudd Government's fiscal stimulus package.
COAG and ACLG meet in Canberra Prime Minister Kevin Rudd convened a Special COAG meeting yesterday to discuss measures to stimulate the domestic economy.
ALGA lodges 2009/10 Federal Budget submission Earlier this month, ALGA lodged its Federal Budget 2009/10 submission with the Australian Government. It is available at www.alga.asn.au.
