The Minister for Local Government, the Hon. Paul Toole MP, may well have been thinking of JFK’s famous quote lately. “Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.” The Minister has been on the road over the last few weeks as the State Government rolls out a range of initiatives related to the “Fit for the Future” package. This is the local government reform package that started in 2011 when the current government came into power.

To reform 152 disparate Councils across the State is no easy task. I don’t envy the Minister. Most importantly though, as I have said to him on several occasions, is that they have actually made an announcement. Not everyone agrees with every part of the package but at least the process has started. One of my great frustrations is that some organisations hold off making an announcement if they know there is going to be some controversy. Effectively the decision that is made is to make no decision with the logic that they can’t be in trouble when no decision has been made. I see this approach as being fundamentally flawed – the decision to make no decision is actually a decision in itself – and typically a bad one.

Councils across the state are currently performing some navel gazing whilst simultaneously looking over their neighbouring fences. Councils are looking at their own finances and long term sustainability. Will they be able to stand alone? Are they in a better position as a standalone Council? As they look over their neighbouring fences, they want to know what surrounding Councils have to offer. A strong Balance Sheet is a good place to start. Modern infrastructure that doesn’t need large amounts of money spent on it over the short term also helps.

There are two approaches that I have typically seen Councils (and Councillors) take to these range of reforms. The first, and most common approach, is to stick to what has always been done. There is some proud history in local government – the first local Councils in NSW were incorporated in 1842 and just up the road in Bathurst the Council was formed on 12 August 1843. Dubbo was first declared a Municipality on 19 February 1872. Many local governments across the State were in existence before Federation. Many people argue that towns and cities have survived many problems over the years and they will continue to survive. I take a different approach – yesterday’s steps to success can be tomorrow’s path to destruction. The world is changing – you only need to look at the opening of the Rotary Club of Dubbo West Time Capsule last weekend to see how much has changed in a mere 25 years. One person buried a TV guide from 1989 – which was just before TV aggregation. When this capsule was opened, I heard someone ask where the rest of the channels were. In that short period of time we went from just two channels to twenty channels of free to air television and we went from no mobile phones in 1989 to Dubbo connecting our first mobile on 26 July 1990 to now averaging more than one mobile per person.

Other people take the approach that change is coming and the best way to deal with change is to plunge into it, move with it and enjoy the ride. At least if you are on the ride, you have the potential to influence the change rather than the final results of change being foisted upon you. It doesn’t mean you will always agree with the outcomes and it doesn’t mean your ideas will eventually see the light of day but I would certainly prefer to at least try and participate in the process.

It is a challenging time for local government – but I would suggest there have been many other challenging times in the 172 years of local government in this state. Ultimately, local government needs to ensure we are staying true to local values and being governed by locals for locals. I have often said that local government is about as pure as democracy can be – and it would be a shame to lose that.

Tell me your thoughts – do you think dramatic change is needed? Do you think Councils – like Dubbo – are already “Fit for the Future” or do we need to take some drastic action? If only I had my DeLorean handy to see how this all turns out – but then that would spoil the fun of the ride! Send your comments to mayor@dubbo.nsw.gov.au

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