CAPITAL CITY MAYORS CALL FOR PERMANENT CITY BUILDING AGREEMENT TO MANAGE SURGING POPULATION AND MAXIMISE LONG TERM INVESTMENT IN LIVEABILITY
The Council of Capital City Lord Mayors met in Hobart on Friday 15 March. Lord Mayors discussed current and emerging issues affecting cities, including managing growth through innovation, development of creative spaces and increased investment in housing and public transport.
Australia’s capital cities are home to 16.6 million people – two-thirds of the population. Our cities and those that live, work and visit them deserve the investment and support from Federal government to ensure our cities can endure their growing populations, impacts of a changing climate and an evolving global economy.
The Lord Mayors agreed on their policy platform for the upcoming Federal election, which includes:
- Capital City Lord Mayors are calling for a national agreement between local, state and federal governments to properly and fairly fund city building projects that will improve liveability for the vast majority of our communities, as Australia’s city populations continue to surge.
- Current arrangements are resulting in one off, ad hoc investment across a patchwork of different state and city projects driven by electoral considerations rather than rational, long term planning based on population need. Consequently, some cities and regions receive no investment and no funding certainty for projects of major national importance.
- Capital cities are the engine room of national productivity. Capital city local governments, with responsibility for large city communities that drive the national economy, need to be included in important state and federal discussions determining major city-shaping deals.
- Lord Mayors are deeply concerned that there is no effective tripartite partnership or mechanism to identify and plan for critical infrastructure projects with long term horizons including transport, affordable housing, waste management and climate resilience.
- As the level of government most directly managing the day to day impact of surging city populations, it is critical that capital city governments have a permanent seat at the COAG table to participate in city-shaping decisions that will directly affect our communities for decades ahead.
- Seeking retention of the Federal Government’s National Resilience Taskforce (due to close in June 2019) and development of a National Chief Resilience Officer Fund to support national leadership, governance and policy structures that contribute to resilient cities
- Establishment of a National Active Transport Fund to provide matched funding to cities for active travel infrastructure projects.
- Development of a National Housing and Homelessness Strategy for Australia
- Repairing federal funding to local government and restore the quantum of Financial Assistance Grants to at least 1 per cent of Commonwealth taxation revenue
Following the meeting, the CCCLM Chair and Lord Mayor of Hobart, together with the ACT Chief Minister, Lord Mayor of Adelaide and Chief Executive Officers of Sydney and Melbourne presented capital city climate action to a very well attended public forum at Hobart Town Hall.