Mildura Rural City Councillors will be asked to endorse a list of priority advocacy projects at this week’s Council meeting. The advocacy priorities will form the basis of the Council’s work to lobby both State and Federal governments for greater financial and policy-based support.
Mayor Liam Wood said while the list is certainly not exhaustive, the proposed key priorities are those that will help Council to achieve the goals of the Community Plan.
“The Community Plan outlines what our community has asked us to focus on and the proposed advocacy priorities have been developed with the plan in mind,” Cr Wood said.
“We have also been working closely with both the Murray River Group of Council and Regional Cities Victoria over many years to advocate for projects that benefit regional and rural Councils and it’s important that we continue this work,” Cr Wood said.
“The report proposes three major advocacy projects to focus on – all of which are aimed at ensuring our region receives the funding and support we deserve. In addition to this there are some collaborative goals and local major projects that we are looking for financial support for from the State Government.”
The issues for major advocacy focus proposed in the document are:
- The introduction of a 20% Regional Spend Guarantee to ensure at least 20% of all public and government entity investments are regionally based.
- Continuing to lobby the State Government to allocate more of the Federal Financial Assistance Grants they receive to regional areas.
- Continuing to lobby for a further review of the Rating System to provide a fairer system for disadvantaged regional communities.
In addition to the bigger policy issues, Council is also looking for more support for businesses in our region.
“We’re Australia’s most valuable farming region bringing economic benefit to not only to Victoria but the whole of Australia. We need urgent help to ensure we have the workforce to continue to grow, the infrastructure to support business and the ability to do business in a sustainable way.”
Advocacy proposals in this space includes pushing for changes to immigration policies to overcome worker shortages, infrastructure investment to increase digital connectivity and remove more mobile black spots and increased support for renewable energy and waste recovery projects.
“Advocacy is not something we pull out only at election time,” Cr Wood said. “But is something we do every day in our roles in local government.”
“COVID restricted our ability to meet in person and build relationships with key decision makers. We intend to push hard in the coming years and make sure we are seen and heard at every opportunity.”
“This document will help us to prioritise our efforts and can be reviewed and updated regularly.”
A report outlining the proposed key advocacy priorities will go to the September Council meeting for consideration, discussion and endorsement.
