2012 Local Government Elections – the wrap…
The VLGA followed the results and trends in our Tally Room over the weekend, and we had a wide audience for our blog posts. We are delighted to announce that our President, Cr Samantha Dunn, and Vice President, Cr Heinz Kreutz have both been returned to their respective councils, Yarra Ranges and Boroondara. Other VLGA Board members who have been re-elected are Luba Grigorovitch at Hobsons Bay and Collin Ross at Cardinia. Cr Christine Richards did not stand for re-election at Frankston. Sadly, John Doull lost his tilt at a new ward in the City of Greater Geelong. Other significant results are that Lord Mayor of Melbourne, Robert Doyle has been returned, and for the first time, Geelong residents have had the chance to elect their own Mayor and the results should be known by tonight. Much has been made of the need to review the 2012 Victorian local government elections and anecdotes that this has been the ‘dirtiest’ campaign in many years. The media emphasis and commentary on the 2012 local government elections left many wondering if voters would be disconnected and disenchanted. In many campaigns that were seen as ‘dirty’ or difficult, voters have seen through negative messages that played the person and not the policies and in fact, our analysis of voter turnout suggests people have been well engaged. It would be wonderful if we could all see these elections as a true celebration of democracy. A record number of people – 2003 – stood as candidates for local government in Victoria. At the VLGA, we are looking at another trend, namely the number of uncontested wards across the State. This is perhaps a more telling sign of a lack of engagement with local government. It is not a reflection on those who have been elected unopposed – in fact we hear from many unopposed councillors that they would prefer a contest and to feel they have won on merit. We also believe there is a need for a wider community debate about postal versus attendance voting. Most local governments moved to postal voting in Victoria at the time of amalgamations. There has been speculation that postal voting may lead to more ‘dummy’ candidates. In contrast, it can be a more efficient process for local governments, and enables a greater number of people to participate in voting. We plan to do some comparative research on this issue. We have also heard from a number of people that they have been frustrated with the number of authorities governing the election process, depending upon the issue. Finally, we hope that many new and returning councillors will join us this Thursday evening for our special Leading Edge Forum with the Minister for Local Government, The Hon Jeanette Powell. Further details can be found below.
Maree McPherson
Chief Executive Officer
Keeping you up to date
VLGA’s Think women for local government campaign a success
While final local government elections figures are still being assessed, analysis by the VLGA reveals that the number of women elected to councils across Victoria has increased on the 2008 election. There was a woman standing for election in every council in Victoria. Overall, at this stage it looks like 34 per cent of successful candidates in this year’s elections are women, compared with the elections in 2008, when close to 30 per cent of candidates elected were women. At least fifteen local governments have improved their overall gender balance – significantly in rural and regional Victoria at this stage. These include Ballarat, Bendigo, Buloke, Gannawarra, Glenelg, Indigo, Murrindindi, Pyrenees, Queenscliffe and Southern Grampians. In the metropolitan area, we note Boroondara, Cardinia, Frankston, Glen Eira, Hobsons Bay, Knox, Kingston, Manningham and Moonee Valley have increased their numbers of women councillors. Hindmarsh stands out as having gone from zero to fifty percent women with even distribution across their wards. Congratulations to Linda Bennett for her outstanding work in this project. You can see our media release here.
Metropolitan Planning Strategy discussion paper launched
Planning Minster Matthew Guy launched the Melbourne, let’s talk about the future discussion paper at the Metropolitan Planning Strategy Symposium held on Friday. Prepared by a Ministerial Advisory Committee, the paper is designed to prompt debate about the challenges Melbourne faces and ideas for the future. The Discussion Paper sets out nine principles to inform the Metropolitan Planning Strategy. Five of these principles identify the outcomes the Strategy needs to address and the remaining four principles outline how these outcomes can be achieved. The VLGA will work with members and supporters in the coming months to develop a response to the discussion paper. Please contact Toby Archer, our Director Policy, via email if you would like to contribute.
Draft Victorian Waste and Resource Recovery Policy released
Yesterday, Minister for the Environment and Climate Change, Ryan Smith released the Draft Victorian Waste and Resource Recovery Policy. With Victoria’s current waste policy Towards Zero Waste ready to end in 2014, the Victorian Government has undertaken a review of the existing waste policy settings and practices. Earlier this year, the Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE), in conjunction with environment portfolio partners, ran extensive consultation with industry, government and community. The draft draws on insights, priorities and issues identified throughout this consultation. From the website you can make a submission to the draft policy as well as find a link to the DSE Yammer online discussion group for the Waste Policy Review. Responses are due by Friday 23 November 2012.
Local Government (Miscellaneous) Bill 2012
Last Thursday night the Victorian Parliament passed the Local Government (Miscellaneous) Amendment Bill, which includes 17 amendments covering decision-making and governance; councillor conduct; rates and municipal charges; and general administration. In the VLGA’s view, the amendments are a mix of sensible improvements and unnecessary interventions. We are disappointed that the Victorian Government is now able to prohibit differential rates which councils have developed in consultation with their communities but we will work with the Multi-party Ministerial Committee to develop the ministerial guidelines on differential rates. Election donation returns will now be published on council websites. This is an important step toward improving transparency in local government.
VLGA submission to the Vision for Citizenship in a Multicultural Victoria
Last week, the VLGA made a submission to the Victorian Government’s Vision for Citizenship in a Multicultural Victoria. In our submission, the VLGA strongly supported the development of a comprehensive whole-of-government strategy to enhance voting accessibility, electoral knowledge and communication with individuals and communities of CALD backgrounds.
Tobacco Amendment (Smoking at Patrolled Beaches) Bill 2012
This Bill was moved for a second reading in the Legislative Council on 25 October. While the VLGA welcomes the Victorian government taking action to prohibit smoking in public places, we believe the proposal to ban smoking at patrolled beaches is unnecessarily modest. We strongly believe the Victorian government should adopt a comprehensive approach to prohibiting smoking in public places similar to the approach adopted by the Queensland government in 2005. In order for bans on smoking in public places to be effective, they should be comprehensive and consistent across the State. Reliance solely on the local government sector to reduce smoking in public places will result in a patchwork of local laws that will not benefit from the self-enforcement of a state-wide ban. We are also concerned that enforcement responsibilities will fall to local governments. We strongly recommend the provision of additional financial resources to those coastal local governments required to enforce the proposed ban.
Congratulations to Ballarat
The Ballarat City Council Community Charter for the Prevention of Violence against Women, designed to make it easy to endorse, has been launched and looks very impressive. Congratulations to retiring councillor Cheryl Bromfield and the Ballarat team on this initiative.
Events for your diary
VLGA Events
November Leading Edge Forum: Meet the new councillors
Thursday 1 November, 6-9pm
Carlton
Join us and our special guest The Hon Jeanette Powell MP, Minister for Local Government, who will welcome newly elected councillors to their four-year term. Register online or phone (03) 9349 7999.
2012 VLGA Essential Councillor Weekend – ‘Year one… here we go!’
23-24 November
The Wyndham Resort, Torquay
Numbers are limited – so get in quickly. You can download the program and registration form from our website. These two days will feature a number of expert-led practical workshops and networking opportunities relevant to how councillors approach the first year of the new council term. To find out more contact Sarah Colgan, Member Resources Officer via email or telephone (03) 9349 7983.
Other Events
Beyond Behaviour: Social Theory and Climate Change Policy seminar
15 November, 4.30-6pm
RMIT City Campus, Emily McPherson Building, Cnr Russell & Victoria Sts Melbourne
The Centre for Design and the Sustainable Urban Regional Futures (SURF) Program, Global Cities Research Institute, would like to invite you to the upcoming Beyond Behaviour: Social Theory and Climate Change Policy Seminar presented by Prof Elizabeth Shove. See more here. To register, email by Thursday 8 November. Places are limited.
VEOHRC Local Government forums
November-December
Melbourne, Wangaratta, Ararat, Mildura
The Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission (VEOHRC) is holding a series of human rights forums for local government in November and December. Local governments have asked for more support, training and information to help in their efforts to implement the Charter so these forums are geared towards developing skills to put human rights into practice in governance and service delivery roles. The four forums will be held on:
* 23 November in Melbourne
* 28 November in Wangaratta
* 5 December in Ararat
* 12 December in Mildura
Sustainability Accord Showcase
30 November
The Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) is holding an event to showcase recently completed Victorian Local Sustainability Accord (Accord) funded projects, and provide an opportunity to build knowledge and foster connectivity across sustainability and climate change driven projects. The event will feature presentations and displays hosted by those directly involved with Accord projects. Local and State Government staff, and industry professionals from across Victoria are invited to attend. In addition, a live stream of presentations and Q&A sessions will be available. For more information about the live stream and to register for the event, go here.
Inaugural National Rural Women’s Conference
18-20 February 2013
National Convention Centre, Canberra
The inaugural National Rural Women's Conference – an initiative of the National Rural Women's Coalition – is being held in Canberra in February 2013. While many states have their own Rural Women's conferences and gatherings, this Conference stands out as it aims to bring all of these individual groups together to network, learn and share. Registrations have opened and early registrants can take advantage of an early bird rate.
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