If the City of Launceston wants or needs its ratepayers to take its Council seriously the time has come to stop ripping the off and selling them short. When it is reported that the GM/CEO says that councils do not need to make a profit because any losses made can be, amnd will be, passed on to ratepayers.
the Council needs to start managing the city's affairs as if it matters really maters rather than take and make every bureaucratic excuse available. The money manage does not fall from heaven, it is the hard earned money conscripted from ratepayers and make no mistake about that!
THIS STORY APPEARED IN
THE MERCURYJULY 17
Mounting deficits should prompt government action on council amalgamations, says mayor
Widespread deficits being faced by Tasmanian councils, largely due to COVID-19, have reignited calls for amalgamations — but not everyone is on board.
Jessica Howard, Mercury| July 17, 2020 9:26am
Local Government Minister Mark Shelton says if councils were happy to explore their options on amalgamation, the government would work with them on their ideas. Picture: ZAK SIMMONDS
WITH at least 20 of Tasmania’s 29 councils facing deficits this financial year, it is time for the state government to move on amalgamations, says a greater Hobart mayor.
Councils are facing a combined debt of more than $56 million in the wake of the coronavirus crisis.
Last year, almost 80 per cent of Tasmanians in an exclusive Mercury survey said there were too many councils, with an average of one for every 17,000 people.
The state government has held fast on a no forced amalgamations stance for several years.
Kingborough Mayor Dean Winter said with a number of councils in severe financial distress from COVID-19, it was time for the state to intervene.
Glenorchy Mayor Kristie Johnston, Kingborough Mayor Dean Winter, Hobart Mayor Anna Reynolds, and Clarence Mayor Doug Chipman. Picture: NIKKI DAVIS-JONES
“There is always much more opposition at a local level when the proposal is to do away with a specific council — Tasman last year was a good example of that,” he said.
“After five years, it’s time to admit Tasmania’s voluntary amalgamation policy has failed.
“The local government establishment will never agree to the set of reforms that are required because it is in their interest for things to stay the way they are.”
But Clarence Mayor Doug Chipman said his council had previously looked into amalgamating with eastern councils such as Sorell and Tasman as well as those to the west such as Hobart City.
RED INK FORECAST FOR COUNCILS IN 2020-2021
Hobart – $11.8 million deficit
Clarence – zero bottom line – no deficit nor surplus
Glenorchy – $9.6 million deficit
Kingborough – $2.4 million deficit
Brighton – expecting a surplus, could not say how much
Derwent Valley – estimates to be considered next week, but forecasting $1.4 million deficit
Central Highlands – $299,133 deficit
Huon Valley – underlying surplus of $412,182
Glamorgan Spring Bay – $2.4 million deficit
Southern Midlands – $388,000 deficit
Sorell – $1,075,374 deficit
Tasman – $58,426 surplus
Launceston
$11.3 million
[operating] deficit
Burnie – $2.2 million deficit
Waratah-Wynyard – $810,000 deficit
West Tamar – $2 million deficit
Northern Midlands – $1.6 million deficit
Kentish – details not yet released
Dorset – underlying surplus of $550,000
Circular Head – $1.2 million deficit
King Island – statutory operating deficit of $1,392,674
Flinders Island – details not yet released
Devonport – $2.2 million deficit
Break O’Day – $532,705 net deficit
Central Coast – $300,700 surplus
George Town – $534,901 deficit
Latrobe – details not yet released
Meander Valley – $2,064,800 deficit
West Coas t– $895,380 deficit
“At the end of it all — the economics didn’t stack up,” he said. “There’s some obvious savings in overheads in merging councils, but it didn’t result in savings or rate reductions.
“The economics haven’t stacked up in merging in good times so why would they be any better in bad times?”
Ald Chipman said the majority of costs for a council were in providing services and infrastructure to the community, which would remain no matter how many councils there were.
“There are obvious savings like having one general manager instead of two, so that might save $300,000 a year, but in the scheme of things, that’s really not much at all,” he said.
“We looked at merging with Hobart — we’re very lean and mean — we contract out a lot of the work whereas Hobart is all an internal workforce and we’d find the industrial relations climate would probably try to force Clarence into that system, which is less efficient.”
Acting Hobart Lord Mayor Helen Burnet said while there were councils under strain, any amalgamations had to be community-driveHelen Burnet. Picture: ZAK SIMMONDS
“There are many opportunities councils do take to resource share and we all want to make the dollar stretch further,” she said.
Glenorchy Mayor Kristie Johnston could not be reached for comment, but has also previously said the council remained open-minded about reform, but change ought to be led by the community.
Local Government Minister Mark Shelton said on Thursday if councils were happy to explore their options on amalgamation, the government would work with them on their ideas.
“The government’s position remains that local government reforms such as amalgamations stand the best chance of succeeding when they are voluntary,” he said.
He added, despite the challenges the “underlying financial positions of the majority of councils are strong”.
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