3 years ago
LABOR WELCOMES RELEASE OF REGIONAL REPORT
CATHERINE KING MP
Labor welcomes the recent release of the Recommendations of the Strategic Regional Growth Expert Panel for Investing in the Future of Regional Australia.
Released in response to a Government-opposed Senate order, this report is the latest in a long line calling on the Government to take a consistent, sustainable and bottom-up approach to regional development.
The regions are home to around a third of our population and have continually punched above their weight by contributing half of our nation’s growth since the Global Financial Crisis. But despite these successes, outcomes in health, employment and education are generally poorer for regional Australians.
These problems have been known for a long time, but the Government has failed to develop a coherent regional policy or framework that sets out a vision and pathway to growing and developing regional Australia.
Instead, regional policy under Tony Abbott, Malcolm Turnbull and now Scott Morrison has been focused on little more than pork barrelling and Nationals rorting. This has seen politically sensitive regions and projects showered with commitments, while other regions have been left behind.
Unsurprisingly, by designing regional policy with an eye to electoral outcomes rather than regional growth, the Government has left many regional Australians disengaged and disenchanted.
While the Government’s three ‘pilot’ regional deals could provide a model for bottom-up, long-term collaboration between the three tiers of government, the truth is that only the Barkly Deal in the Northern Territory is underway. Were any other region in Australia interested in signing a deal, they’re out of luck – no funding has been allocated for any further regional deals and no process exists for councils or regional bodies to go about seeking such a deal.
Other funding that is available – such as the Building Better Regions Fund – is described as “a lottery”, with cash-strapped councils made to jump through hoops in the hope of receiving funding. Additionally, this competitive framework drives neighbouring regions apart, rather than encouraging them to work cooperatively to develop projects that pursue common interests and improve the lives of their communities.
As noted by the expert panel, RDA committees can drive cooperative regional growth from the bottom up, but unfortunately the Government has neglected RDAs to such an extent that some regions do not even having committees.
Regional policy is a complicated sphere, with different regions having different needs and requiring tailored approaches. Labor thanks the expert committee for their hard work and recommendations and encourages the Morrison Government to closely consider their findings and make the necessary changes to improve the lives of regional Australians.
Released in response to a Government-opposed Senate order, this report is the latest in a long line calling on the Government to take a consistent, sustainable and bottom-up approach to regional development.
The regions are home to around a third of our population and have continually punched above their weight by contributing half of our nation’s growth since the Global Financial Crisis. But despite these successes, outcomes in health, employment and education are generally poorer for regional Australians.
These problems have been known for a long time, but the Government has failed to develop a coherent regional policy or framework that sets out a vision and pathway to growing and developing regional Australia.
Instead, regional policy under Tony Abbott, Malcolm Turnbull and now Scott Morrison has been focused on little more than pork barrelling and Nationals rorting. This has seen politically sensitive regions and projects showered with commitments, while other regions have been left behind.
Unsurprisingly, by designing regional policy with an eye to electoral outcomes rather than regional growth, the Government has left many regional Australians disengaged and disenchanted.
While the Government’s three ‘pilot’ regional deals could provide a model for bottom-up, long-term collaboration between the three tiers of government, the truth is that only the Barkly Deal in the Northern Territory is underway. Were any other region in Australia interested in signing a deal, they’re out of luck – no funding has been allocated for any further regional deals and no process exists for councils or regional bodies to go about seeking such a deal.
Other funding that is available – such as the Building Better Regions Fund – is described as “a lottery”, with cash-strapped councils made to jump through hoops in the hope of receiving funding. Additionally, this competitive framework drives neighbouring regions apart, rather than encouraging them to work cooperatively to develop projects that pursue common interests and improve the lives of their communities.
As noted by the expert panel, RDA committees can drive cooperative regional growth from the bottom up, but unfortunately the Government has neglected RDAs to such an extent that some regions do not even having committees.
Regional policy is a complicated sphere, with different regions having different needs and requiring tailored approaches. Labor thanks the expert committee for their hard work and recommendations and encourages the Morrison Government to closely consider their findings and make the necessary changes to improve the lives of regional Australians.