Review to unlock local government investment

The Australian Government will conduct a review of infrastructure financing to identify new ways of unlocking investment dollars to meet local infrastructure needs, Local Government Minister Simon Crean has announced.

Speaking at the first meeting of the Local Government Ministers Forum in Canberra yesterday, Mr Crean said it was important to focus efforts on the areas of greatest need to ensure communities could access opportunities and make every dollar count.

"Its essential with a growing population, the demands on local services and the need to secure our future prosperity that we build on existing local, state and federal programs and leverage all opportunities for funding," Mr Crean said.

"To drive this, the Australian Government is commissioning Ernst and Young to conduct a review of regional infrastructure financing to find new ways to unlock vital investment dollars and enable them to go further.

"Working closely with state, Territory and local governments, the review will identify additional sources of capital for future local infrastructure such as Public Private Partnerships and accessing superannuation capital."

The terms of reference are to assess how effectively and efficiently local infrastructure needs are prioritised and subsequently funded by local government; identify the sources of capital for future local infrastructure needs; and identify the opportunities, best practice models and principles for the regional prioritisation and financing of local government infrastructure.

Due to report back in March 2012, the review will be led by leading expert on infrastructure projects and procurement, Darrin Grimsey.

Mr Crean said the meeting of participating Ministers and the Australian Local Government Association had been a success.

"The forum was an opportunity to discuss and act on local government issues of national significance," Mr Crean said.

"We agreed to a program of reforms focused on strengthening the capacity and skills of local government. This forward plan will address matters of importance including the participation by women in the sector, local government leadership and strengthening long-term planning and vision."

The Local Government Ministers' Forum agreed to a range of other actions and reforms, including:

• harnessing the opportunities for local government in a low carbon future, including from the Governments Clean Energy Future package;
  
  
• endorsing a recent review of the Inter-Governmental Agreement and continuing the agreement which sets out a framework to prohibit cost-shifting between levels of government;
  
  
• continuing reforms to underpin the financial sustainability of local government including  a national framework to more rigorously assess local government performance and sustainability, and
  
  
• discussing with the Honourable James Spigelman AC QC his panels work on the Constitutional Recognition of Local Government, with the panel due to present its findings in a report to Government in December.

The forum was attended by State and Territory ministers with responsibility for local government matters and the President of the Australian Local Government Association, Cr Genia McCaffery.