Shadow Minister for Primary Industries & Water, Shadow Minister for Police & Emergency Services, Shadow Minister for Parks & Wildlife, Shadow Minister for Local Government

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10
Mar

Real change for Local Government

2010

A Hodgman Liberal Government will put Local Government back at the centre of local communities by respecting the voice of Local Government and providing councils with new opportunities to grow and broaden the range of services they provide and implementing a major modernization program for our 29 municipalities.

As a Hodgman Liberal Government drives the economy forward, and important services cut by the Bartlett Labor Government can be restored, we will seek to engage local government in the provision of appropriate services for government agencies and enterprises.
This will occur on the following principles:

•a commercial contract basis, with no unfunded mandates

•an opportunity basis, with no loss of existing jobs

•on at least a cost-neutral basis, delivering savings to all Tasmanians.

Examples of services that could be provided efficiently and cost-effectively in the future by Local Government include public services such as managing public housing in their municipalities or providing maintenance of local National Parks and Wildlife Service assets that have been neglected due to under-resourcing.

Enabling local government to deliver new local services will help put it on a stronger, more sustainable footing for the future and ensure its role becomes more, not less, relevant to Tasmanians.

Unless there is a compelling case for reform, we believe that councils should be empowered to carry out their tasks in the community without the constant fear of intervention from the State Government.

There will be no forced Local Government amalgamations under a Hodgman Liberal Government.

We will continue to encourage Local Government to share services and plant and equipment where that is proven to be cost-effective and save money for ratepayers.

In return for giving Local Government the chance to compete for the delivery of public sector services in their own area, and thus giving them scope to fully utilise their capacity and achieve their potential, a Hodgman Liberal Government will require Local Government to undertake a major modernisation program.

This will be designed to harmonise operations across the 29 Tasmanian municipalities, streamline processes for those who deal with Local Government and create a more efficient and professional local government sector that operates according to some basic agreed standards.
These will include:

•Implementing a state wide residential planning code

•Standardizing relevant by-laws

•Developing a Statewide Good Neighbour Charter as a best practice tool to deal with common local government issues.

•A $500,000 funding pool to encourage innovative practices by councils in sharing resources and technology and the development of compatible computer systems

•Implementing an induction program for all new councillors

•Prohibiting deficit budgeting for council operation budgets

•Requiring all councils to benchmark themselves against other like councils and disseminate that information to ratepayers

Helping councils attract local GPs
To help local councils attract and retain local general practitioners a Hodgman Liberal Government would establish a $500,000 Attracting Local Doctors Fund to enable local government councils to obtain grants of up to $100,000 to attract and retain a general practitioner to work in their municipality.

These grants will be able to be used such costs as building local clinic/residences and reasonable assistance with relocation expenses.

This approach has been adopted successfully in other States and I am sure some of you will be interested in this new initiative.

Road Safety
A Hodgman Majority Liberal Government is committed to assisting local councils with line-marking and signage on regional roads. Faded or non-existent non‐existent line‐marking is a major contributory factor to accidents on regional roads in Tasmania.

On Sunday, the Tasmanian Liberals committed to allocate an initial $500,000 from the Road Safety Levy for Local Government councils to apply for funds for improved line‐marking, signage and barriers in their municipalities.

Fixing Labor’s water and sewerage mess
Labor’s water and sewerage changes have largely been a disaster. A Hodgman Liberal Government has committed to a comprehensive review (to commence as soon as possible after the election) into the efficiency and structure of the four corporations.

In particular, this review will look at giving the owners of the corporations – local government – a greater say. We do not believe Labor’s model provides local government with an adequate voice.

A Hodgman Majority Liberal Government will also provide assistance to councils that may receive a lower priority dividend from the Water and Sewerage Corporations than they first expected, and whose concerns and representations to the Bartlett Government have fallen on deaf ears.

Compulsory voting
The Tasmanian Liberals do not support compulsory voting for local government. The effect of compulsory voting would inevitably be the politicisation of Local Government in Tasmania, because parties would be more likely to endorse candidates.
 
A direct voice
A Hodgman Liberal Government would establish a Council of Mayors which would be convened every six months and comprise of the elected heads of all Tasmanian municipalities. The Council would meet with the Premier and the Minister responsible for Local Government to discuss matters of mutual interest.

Review of local government rating system
A Hodgman Liberal Government will conduct an independent review of the Local Government rating and valuation system. The objectives of the review will be to achieve greater overall equity and efficiency. We have no preconceived views about what the review might conclude, but we are aware that there is healthy public debate about the relative merits of the existing Assessed Annual Value rating system and other rate options. Labor promised a review as far back as August, and in December said it was ‘urgent’, but nothing has happened.

The retiring Local Government Minister has branded the AAV system as ‘useless’, yet during all his term in the portfolio has done nothing to fix it.

The Auditor-General has highlighted rates anomalies across the State and where councils have implemented a changed system, there have been sharp spikes which have had significant impacts on businesses and private residences.

If a better system can be recommended, we will consider that – but we will do so in consultation with all of Tasmania’s 29 Local Government councils, the Local Government Association of Tasmania, the Office of the Valuer-General and other interested parties.
A Hodgman Liberal Government will refer the rating system to a Joint Select Committee of the Tasmanian Parliament for a full, open public inquiry which allows ratepayers, councils and all other stakeholders the opportunity to have their views heard.

A Hodgman Majority Liberal Government will offer real change and a co-operative partnership with Local Government in Tasmania.