A Property Council of Australia growth plan for the South-West of WA has been condemned by Planning and Infrastructure Minister Alannah MacTiernan as lacking financial accountability.
A Property Council of Australia growth plan for the South-West of WA has been condemned by Planning and Infrastructure Minister Alannah MacTiernan as lacking financial accountability.
A Property Council of Australia growth plan for the South-West of WA has been condemned by Planning and Infrastructure Minister Alannah MacTiernan as lacking financial accountability.
According to the report, too many competing strategies have resulted in a lack of overall planning, and accessibility to the region is poor.
It recommends fast tracking the Perth to Bunbury highway, the creation of a long-term South West highway strategy, the extension of metro rail from Mandurah to Bunbury and the early construction of a railway spur between Kemerton industrial park and Picton Junction."
Property Council (WA) executive director Joe Lenzo said the report indicated a South West regional planning authority should be created to implement an integrated regional infrastructure plan for the next 25 years.
"Tourism in the South West should be branded under a single banner and administered by a regional tourism authority," he said.
"There are too many local governments in the South West and we are recommending significant amalgamations and as few as four super local authorities to be established.".
Other initiatives of the report included affordable housing strategies and the establishment of another tertiary education campus.
While the Minister welcomed the idea of fast-tracking the highway, redeveloping central Bunbury and planning for future passenger rail services to the South west, she said the report held some glaring omissions.
"Most obvious of these is a total lack of financial accountability - the discussion paper calls for State Government and local government expenditure which appears to total billions of dollars and, at the same time, calls for cuts in State Government taxes and charges," she said.
"Don't tax but spend, spend, spend!"
The Minister said that investment from the private sector and Federal Government could play a larger role.
Ms MacTiernan also labelled the report Bunbury-centric, saying it was ignoring Busselton, Augusta Margaret River, Collie, Harvey and Manjimup, instead calling for the abolition of their local governments.
"All in all, it is good that the Property Council has joined the discussion, but it has a lot more work to do before it can be taken seriously," she said.