A cone of silence over Burnside

THE decision to keep secret the details of the investigation into the Burnside Council is riddled with ironies, says the Adelaide Advertiser.  Ironic that the inquiry itself was brought about because of alleged undue influence behind closed doors.  Ironic that the State Government wants protection of witnesses when those likely to be witnesses were clamouring for a public audience for months before the concerns were heeded.

Ironic that the Government will use the evidence of the inquiry to decide if the council should be dismissed, but won't release the information because it could be unsubstantiated.  Ironic that the exemption from the Freedom of Information Act was made by the executive government through regulations, avoiding any dissent of the Parliament.

Ironic that the legislative powers of councils to hear matters in camera in the Local Government Act explicitly exclude the ability to do so to avoid embarrassment, a power the inquiry has now been given with the stroke of a pen.  Finally, it is ironic that the State Government will table the final report in Parliament to avoid legal action against those involved, but won't use this simple mechanism to protect any and all evidence given to the inquiry.  Of course, chief among the reasons the inquiry will be kept secret, save for a sanitised report to be tabled, is damage control.

ACT taxes ruled illegal

The ACT Government says a Federal Court ruling that its utilities tax is invalid will make it harder to bring the Territory Budget back to surplus.  The tax charges for the use of Territory owned land by utility networks and is budgeted to raise about $18 million a year.  The Queanbeyan City Council took ACTEW to the Federal Court alleging the ACT Government had invalidly imposed duties of excise on Canberra's water authority.  ACTEW had been charging the council a utilities tax since 2007 and a water abstraction charge since 2000.  The council has been withholding the abstraction charge from ACTEW which costs Queanbeyan ratepayers more than $3 million a year.  Yesterday the Federal Court ruled the tax was an excise duty and therefore made the act it was established under invalid. But it found the water abstraction charge was not a tax and therefore is a legally legitimate levy.

LGAQ embraces a defining approach (uh-oh)

Queensland council leaders will gather as one this week to discuss how best to deal with the state government's bullying tactics, says the head of the Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ).  LGAQ executive director Greg Hallam told AAP on Sunday the Bligh Government had treated councils poorly and a recent decision to abandon subsidising local infrastructure and programs would ultimately cost first home buyers.  "They treat councils like they're another department they can control when they want," Mr Hallam said.  "To scrap the infrastructure and subsidy programs means about $5,000 will be added to the cost of a new housing block which means the first home buyers grant will pay this.  There is a lot of concern about what the government has done and their bully-boy tactics."  The two and half day conference will be attended by more than 700 delegates with up to five members from each council across the state attending.

The Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ) has set up a fighting fund to pay for publicity campaigns against unpopular state and federal government decisions.  LGAQ president Paul Bell told the lobby group's annual conference in Brisbane that $600,000 has been put towards the fund.  ouncillor Bell says it will be topped up each year.  "That fund will be a million dollar fund very quickly," he said.   "It'll be a fund that will be there to fight the big issues of councils and communities that need to be taken into the public stage at any time we feel significant issues are being imposed on local governments and on local communities."

The LGAQ says this year's conference is one of the most significant of the past few decades. LGAQ executive director Greg Hallam says there will also be a debate about whether a moratorium on sacking staff from amalgamated councils should be lifted before the agreed timeframe of 2011. He says councils are increasingly looking to the Commonwealth for financial assistance in the wake of State Government funding changes. "It'll be a defining conference in terms of there'll be a mood shift in the conference one way or another about what the new world order looks like," he said.

Now it’s cash for council access

THE South Australian Auditor-General has been asked to investigate a scheme in which companies pay up to $20,000 to rub shoulders with council executives to win council business.  A ratepayers group wants an investigation into Local Government Managers Australia, a professional association for council executives which takes money to fund its "gala" dinner and other parties from companies vying for business from Adelaide councils.  LGMA SA promotional material says: "South Australian local government spends almost $1 billion annually on goods and services. LGMA SA can assist you to obtain a share of this market for your products and services."

Residents and Ratepayers Association president Kevin Kaeding said the association objected to help obtaining council business being offered in exchange for sponsorship deals.  "It just smells that there could be something not right about this – $45,000 on a gala dinner partly paid for by businesses and at a time when ratepayers are facing cutbacks," he said.  About 250 executives from throughout SA councils are part of the scheme.

LGMA SA president Mark Withers, who is also chief executive officer of the City of Charles Sturt, said even though the members were public servants, the organisation was not for profit.  "It is just a normal sponsorship arrangement, you get exposure to all these local government professionals in the sector," he said.  "The safety net for us is that LGMA does not consume any of the products or the services of the sponsors, it is marketing and exposure, not procurement." Private companies which gave $10,000 to LGMA this year were waste disposal firm SITA, accountants UHY Haines Norton, Norman Waterhouse Lawyers and management consultant CAM.

A spokesman for Local Government Minister Gail Gago said: "The LGMA cannot influence or direct the policies and decisions of individual councils."

Are Sydney growth area “the pits”?

Michael Suttor, principal at Michael Suttor Architects, is adamant that inferior transport and road services are to blame for the population declines endured by these “growth” areas, Danielle Bowling reports in the latest edition of Architecture & Design.  “I can’t understand how people that need to commute between Campbelltown and Sydney tolerate being two hours in their car either way. It’s just the pits,” he said.  There are a number of tradespeople living in Sydney’s outer suburbs, Suttor explained, and “inadequate” roads and facilities in these areas makes it impossible for them to commute.Inadequate road and transport facilities in Sydney's outer “growth” suburbs are forcing residents to pack their bags and move to the big-smoke.

Figures in the latest comparative data on councils published by the Department of Local Government for 2007-2008 shows that in the past five years, areas such as Liverpool, Campbelltown, Penrith, Sutherland and the Hawkesbury have registered population declines.  On the other hand, Mosman, Canada Bay, North Sydney, Willoughby and other areas closer to the city are enjoying an increase in population, with 90 per cent of new homes now being built within Sydney's existing urban footprint.

Low jinks in Victorian councils lead to greater State government scrutiny

Local Councils in Victoria will be policed by an investigation unit established in response to a string of scandals and growing anger at poor performance.  Premier John Brumby has announced a Local Government Investigations and Compliance Inspectorate, to be headed by a ''chief municipal inspector'', to help improve the performance of the sector.  The announcement was made on the same day the Ombudsman released another damning report on the performance of a local council, this time Port Phillip.  It follows a scathing Ombudsman's report on the Brimbank Council and coincides with a decline in community support for local government, according to a State Government survey.

Opposition local government spokeswoman Jeanette Powell said the Government had been ''shamed'' into introducing the compliance inspectorate.  Darlene Reilly, president of the Sunshine Residents and Ratepayers Association, also believes the Government was forced into action. ''They are just putting out spot fires at the moment,'' she said.  Municipal Association of Victoria president Bill McArthur said the Government was not being ''very consultative'' and should be providing more training on regulations for the local government sector.

Tasmanian State Government to pay for water concessions

The Tasmanian Government has announced it will pay all concession subsidies under its new water and sewerage reforms.  The Local Government Association last week rejected an offer to share the burden for pensioners and low-income earners.  The government originally wanted councils to pay the full cost.  The Premier, David Bartlett has confirmed the government will fully fund the concession of $130 for eligible customers.

"Today the cabinet decided to implement a regime by which no concession holder will be disadvantaged through water and sewerage reforms and no local government authority will be disadvantaged through water and sewerage reforms," he said.  It will cost the government $6.5 million to fund the concessions this financial year.

The Local Government Association's Allan Garcia says there should never have been any question about who should pay.  "Most councils would be very satisfied that standing up for the principle that this is a welfare payment that should be met by the state government is the appropriate response, there'll be no happiness or no glee, it's our expectation and we were very disappointed that it was going to go another way in the first place," he said.

WA local government consolidation mooted

WA Premier Colin Barnett has revealed his target for local government amalgamation.  The Premier told the WA Local Government Association's annual general meeting he expects there to be fewer than 100 councils within 5 years.  Mr Barnett says the majority of the current 139 councils have less than 2000 residents which is not viable.  "Reform is essential to keep local government being relevant, to be able to provide services, and to be able to minimise the effect on residents in terms of rate increases," he said.

The WA Local Government Association says it's committed to voluntary reforms.

WA Council amalgamations

Local governments want more time to assess the State Government's plans to amalgamate councils.  The Local Government Minister John Castrilli has called on municipalities to merge to create larger regional councils.

The WA Local Government Association (WALGA) says the minister did not make it clear until this week how he wanted the mergers to work.  The WALGA president Bill Mitchell says now that councils have a clear understanding of what is expected, they need more time to assess the proposal.  "We've wasted 2 or 3 months talking with our communities, arguing a certain model with them, now that has to be thrown out and we have to start all over again. and we only have less that 3 weeks to do that," he said.

Allowing conflicts of interest

The Greater Bendigo Council wants new conflict of interest rules for councillors to be relaxed.  The rules, which were introduced late last year, prevent councillors from taking part in any discussion on an issue if they have a conflict of interest.  The council wants Local Government Victoria to let councillors take part in debates and then abstain from votes if they have a conflict.

Mayor Kevin Gibbins says the rules are too restrictive and councillors have to remove themselves from discussions too often.  "This conflict of interest, whilst it's important, we need to be able to still represent people's views," he said.  “So what we're wanting is the previous system ... there's pages and pages of rules which, in most cases, are not workable."

LGA slams former Queensland Premier

The Queensland Local Government Association has blamed former Premier Peter Beattie for a public mistrust in how politics and business operates in the state. Association executive director Greg Hallam says the flawed system of accessing ministers via lobbyists must be fixed, as there has been a complete breakdown in public confidence. He says he has faith in Premier Anna Bligh. "I've got no doubt that the Premier is an honest politician but she's inherited a mess," he said. "We do need to get to the bottom of this issue and we do need to restore public trust in the system."

Former premier Wayne Goss agrees. "The longer any side of politics is in power the more risk there is that cobwebs will settle," he said. "That's not a criticism of Peter Beattie; it can happen with either side of politics." Mr Hallam says all major planning decisions should be made openly, as they are in local government. "If these things are done openly and transparently then a lot of the misconceptions and innuendo will go away," he said. "Unfortunately at the moment the system is ripe for people making accusations about improper behaviour."

Ms Bligh has announced a ban on success fees paid to lobbyists.

Another Brimbank?

A Sunday Report in today's Age highlights the murky recesses of local government, this time in the City of Dandenong. It's the sort of shenanigans that in other States might be investigated by a standing Corruption Commission. But, as Melissa Fyfe opines in the same edition, Victoria's politicians have never seen the need for such a body.