Local government: leading job recovery in the bush to ensure a lasting regional renaissance

20 June 2021

A national forum will today look at how
rural and regional councils are successfully delivering jobs and economic
leadership to ensure the COVID-inspired bush renaissance of 2020-21 is enduring
and widespread.

Convened by the Australian Local
Government Association (ALGA), the forum will take the bush’s temperature,
examine economic and political trends, and look at further opportunities for councils
to partner with state, territory, and federal governments on new job-creating
initiatives.

ALGA President Linda Scott said regional
Australia has seen an influx of people looking to take advantage of affordable
housing and new opportunities to work remotely.   

“The pandemic has shown that people can
work from home without any impacts on productivity, and that has helped reverse
the long-term trend of young adults moving from regional to metropolitan
Australia,” she said.

At the same time, however, some
regional economies have been hard hit by coronavirus lockdowns and border
closures.

Local governments have responded
quickly and effectively to COVID’s economic impacts, creating jobs and
partnering with state and federal governments to deliver stimulus measures.

“Councils are investing heavily in
local roads, cycleways, parks, and community infrastructure, which is shoring
up local communities, creating new jobs for skilled workers, and enticing urban
professionals to relocate to the regions,” Cr Scott said

“It’s imperative that local government
be supported with increased funding to build on this success.

“All levels of government need to be
working together to address the critical issues like a lack of suitable housing
options, poor digital connectivity, and transport links.”

Cr Scott said local governments are
leading these efforts because they have the clearest understanding of their
local communities’ unique requirements.

“Providing them with effective
resourcing and partnership opportunities from state and federal governments is
the quickest way to clear the way for our regions to thrive,” she said.

Speakers at the forum include Local
Government Minister Mark Coulton, journalist and author Gabrielle Chan, and Kim
Houghton, the chief economist of the Regional Australian Institute.

Many regional councils have responded
quickly to the rental crisis by opening up new residential lots, selling land,
and contributing to community housing projects via loans.

“Some innovative things are going on in
many places because they [the councils] feel like they’ve got to take some
leadership,” Dr Houghton said.

To encourage more innovative thinking,
Dr Houghton will provide the forum with an overview of the regional housing
market based on the RAI’s data.

ALGA is the national voice of local
government, representing 537 councils across the country. Its Regional
Co-operation and Development Forum will be held at the National Convention
Centre Canberra (NCCC) on 20 June.

The Forum is the curtain-raiser for the
27th National General Assembly of Local Government being staged at the NCCC
from 20-23 June.

ENDS