AN expert panel headed by former University of Western Australia vice-chancellor Alan Robson has recommended a shake-up of local government in the Perth metropolitan area that would see most of the local councils erased from the political map.
In their ‘Draft Findings’ paper released last Friday, the independent Metropolitan Local Government Review Panel suggests axing at least two out of three of the 30 councils, with one option even calling for the creation of a single metropolitan council.
Minister for local government John Castrilli appointed the panel in July 2011 to revive the reform process. Members include Mr Robson, University of Notre Dame former vice chancellor Peter Tannock and Leadership Western Australia CEO Sue van Leeuwen.
“It would be in the best interests of the Perth metropolitan community if Perth had fewer, larger, more capable local governments,” panel chairman Mr Robson said in a statement.
The structure of local government has remained largely unchanged since 1900 when the total population of metropolitan Perth was around 73,000. The population has since risen to more than 1.7 million. The number is expected to reach 3.5 million by 2050.
The report noted that “if any objective and independent group were given a brief to design an optimal local government structure for metropolitan Perth today, it would be highly unlikely that they would design one with so many local governments, let alone one with such a variety of sizes of local governments as we currently have”.
The panel has formulated three different options that it hopes will kick-start public discussion.
The first option calls for 10 to 12 local councils being aligned to strategic activities centres. These centres are the focus for Perth’s future development.
The second option is to narrow the number of councils down even further to five based on the central area and sub-regions.
Option three amounts to nothing less than amalgamating all 30 councils to form one single metropolitan council.
“Significant benefits could be achieved by reforming our local government sector,” Mr Robson said.
There would be a more equitable spread of resources across metropolitan Perth. A streamlined environment would create greater transparency and certainty, which, in turn, could generate cost savings. Residents would enjoy a more even-handed delivery of services.
The report also noted “the large number of small local government areas in metropolitan Perth restricts the ability to effectively deliver positive whole-city outcomes in a coordinated way. The metropolitan area is now so closely tied together economically, socially and structurally by daily human movements and activities that virtually every problem involves a ‘spill over’ between adjoining local government areas.”
The Chamber of Commerce and Industry WA has welcomed the findings.
“The report ... provides clear evidence that the current system is failing business and the community, and urgently needs to be changed,” CCI general manager advocacy David Harrison said, without favouring one of the three options.
“The review panel highlighted many of the shortcomings of the current system, including duplication, inefficiencies, excessive regulation and varying levels of services,” Mr Harrison said
The report was also hailed by the Property Council of Australia.
“Aligning local authorities around activity centres makes sense. Activity centres are the focus of economic and social activity in Perth,” deputy executive director Lino Iacomella said.
The Property Council, which is the leading advocate for Australia’s $600 billion property industry, had previously proposed reducing the number of local authorities to 10.
“The review panel has correctly identified the need for elected members to focus more on strategic leadership and less on operational matters in local government,” Mr Iacomella said.
The WA Local Government Association has been cautious not to endorse any option, but called the assessment objective and independent, giving the state government the opportunity to provide clarity on structural reform.
“The longer there is a lack of clarity from the state government, the greater the risk of a human toll on the state’s 15,000 council staff as they become increasingly anxious about their jobs and futures,” WALGA president Troy Pickard said in a statement.
“In this environment of uncertainty it becomes extremely difficult for local governments to both retain staff and attract new employees which eventually have to impact on services to the community.”
Metropolitan Mayors and Presidents will meet on May 22 to formulate a response to the draft findings.
Meanwhile, Mr Castrilli is waiting for the panel’s final recommendation due at the end of June. Mr Castrilli has been pushing the issue state-wide since he was appointed in 2008.
The panel is asking the Perth community to give their feedback on the proposals. Submissions on the draft findings can be made at www.visitmetroreview.dlg.wa.gov.au until May 25.
