Local government to play key part in COAG reforms
April 30, 2009
The President of the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA), Cr Geoff Lake, said he was pleased that agreement had been reached at today's meeting of the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) for local government to play a key role in reviewing Australia's emergency management arrangements and in future planning for Australia's major cities.
"Leaders unanimously supported the inclusion of local government as a member of the COAG working group to improve Australia's coordination arrangements for natural disasters," Cr Lake said. "This decision recognises the vital role that councils have played in dealing with the recent Victorian bushfires and the Queensland floods and in pandemic planning in response to the global outbreak of swine flu."
"Councils all over Australia are at the forefront of disaster mitigation, preparedness and response. This has been recognised by the Prime Minister and state and territory leaders today by their agreement to give local government a key role in future emergency planning.
"Local government supports the development of a telephone based early warning emergency system. However, there are technical issues that still need to be resolved before a system can operate effectively. We think that councils can bring a valuable perspective to how an early warning system might be rolled out effectively at the local level and we are pleased to be able to bring that perspective through the COAG working group."
Cr Lake also welcomed local government's inclusion on the COAG Taskforce to examine future planning for Australia's cities and in developing a best practice approach to shaping city development.
"Local government has for some time advocated for increased Australian Government involvement in planning for our major cities," Cr Lake said. "Our cities are vital to the economic, social and environmental future of our nation and we look forward to developing a smarter partnership between the three levels of government in building a brighter future for Australian cities.
"The formation of the COAG Taskforce recognises the importance of collaboration between all three levels of government in planning for Australian cities into the future."
- Contact
- Cr Geoff Lake, ALGA President - 0411 645 281
- Amanda Lynch, Director, Public Affairs 0419 123 862 / 02 6122 9434
