Council
3 May, 2024
Shire to submit to new inquiry
CORANGAMITE Shire Council will be putting forward a submission into a new inquiry into the sustainability of local governments after moving the motion at last week’s council meeting.
Council received correspondence from House of Representatives Standing Committee on Regional Development, Infrastructure and Transport chair Luke Gosling OAM MP recently, inviting council to put forward a submission.
The inquiry will focus on financial sustainability and funding of local governments, changing infrastructure and service delivery obligations of local governments, structural impediments to security for local government workers, infrastructure and service delivery, trends in the attraction and retention of a skilled workforce in the local government sector, and the role of the Australian Government in addressing issues raised.
Councillor Ruth Gstrein said it was vital for Corangamite Shire Council to put in a submission to the inquiry, noting there are more than 500 local governments across Australia.
“I would think that the issue around sustainability probably affects 95 per cent of them, if not 100 per cent,” she said.
“As a council, we’re seeing the issues around workforce retention as Miss Linley mentioned – also around housing; if we’re lucky enough to employ a staff member, where are they going to live?
“We talk about the rate cap and, while in some cases the rate cap is a good thing, it certainly does constrain council’s ability to raise vital funding. There aren’t that many opportunities for council to do that outside of rates.
“We outlined in the report about borrowing, but we can borrow money – you wouldn’t want to borrow anything for recurrent operations – at the end of the day, you’ve still got to pay it back and I think we’re in quite a good position that we don’t have that burden on us at the moment.”
Cr Geraldine Conheady seconded the motion.
“We need to take this opportunity to make a submission, and to point out the pressures that are coming to bear on local government to provide the services to remain sustainable and to point out the limitations that are on our budgets on our capacity to provide services and do the work that we’re here to do,” she said..