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Media releases

View past and current media releases from the Minister for Local Government.

Councils Reforming Business

Councils Reforming Business (CRB) is a $4.7 million Victorian Government funded initiative announced in the 2007-2008 State Budget to support councils to improve services, reduce costs and reduce red tape. Find out more about Councils Reforming Business and Local Government Procurement Training Program.

Release of Annual Community Satisfaction Survey Results for Local Governments 2009

On 1 June 2009, Local Government Victoria (LGV) coordinated the release of participating councils’ annual community satisfaction survey results. Read the Survey Results.

Councillor Training Program

The Minister for Local Government, Richard Wynne MP, has launched a training program to ensure Victorians enjoy effective, responsive and accountable local government services.
Find out more information about Supporting and Promoting Accountability and Responsibility for Councillors (SPARC).

Bushfire Forum

The Minister for Local Government, Richard Wynne MP and Christine Nixon, Head of the Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction and Recovery Authority hosted a forum on 2 April 2009 for bushfire affected councils to discuss reconstruction and recovery issues, share information about how councils are assisting their communities and obtain a shared understanding of policy decisions.

The Premier, Hon John Brumby MP announced on behalf of the Victorian Bushfire Appeal Fund Panel, a grant of $9 million to assist communities in their recovery activities through their councils.

Approximately 70 people attended with 15 out of the 19 affected councils represented. In addition, there were representatives from State Government departments, the Victoria Grants Commission and Australian Services Union. Ben Hardman MP, Member for Seymour and Danielle Green MP, Member for Yan Yean also attended.

The Forum concluded with an address from Dr Robert Gordon, Clinical Psychologist about the effects of trauma on communities and how to mitigate their impact.

2009 Model Financial Report

The Model Financial Report 2009 is now available to assist local government finance practitioners with the preparation of the year end financial statements and associated notes. This year CPA Australia has worked with LGV to update the Model (Excel document) and provide more detailed guidance. A checklist to assist councils in the preparation of their financial statements can be found at the front of the model financial report. Read the 2009 Model Financial Report.

Measuring Up : linking planning and performance

The new guide MEASURING UP: linking planning & performance provides guidance to councils on how to integrate their accountability framework through key documents required under the Local Government Act. Read the Measuring Up guide.

Conflict of Interest Guide

The Local Government Act 1989 was amended in 2008 to include new conflict of interest rules for Councils. The new rules provide clearer and more comprehensive definitions of what is a conflict of interest as well as extending the rules to cover additional meetings of Councillors. The new conflict of interest rules apply to Councillors, Council staff, members of Council committees and, in some cases, Council contractors.

A new guide, Conflict of Interest in Local Government (PDF 962 kb) or (Word 752 kb), has been prepared by Local Government Victoria to help people to apply the new requirements. It explains the nature of conflict of interest as well describing the new rules in detail. It also provides a number of examples to help understand conflict of interest procedures.

Ensuring Unbiased Democratic Council Decision Making

The recent decision of the Supreme Court of Victoria (Winky Pop Pty Ltd & Anor v Hobsons Bay City Council) has important ramifications to all councillors in highlighting their obligations to observe and comply with the common law rule of bias when making decisions affecting people’s rights, interests and legitimate expectations.

Local Government Victoria, with the assistance of the Municipal Association of Victoria, has produced a booklet Ensuring Unbiased Democratic Council Decision Making: Principles to Guide Good Practice (PDF 233 kb) or (Word 179kb) to assist councillors in understanding the rule of bias as it relates to their role as decision makers. The guide also provides advice on how to ensure that councillors' actions are free from bias, and offers suggestions on steps to take if bias may be relevant to a proposed decision.

2009 Local Government Ministerial Forum – 29-30 April 2009

The Minister for Local Government invited Mayors and CEOs of Victoria’s 79 councils and peak body representatives to the 2009 Local Government Ministerial Forum. The theme of this year’s Forum – Tough Times, Good Governance – addresses the diversity of issues faced by councils and their communities. The Forum is an excellent opportunity for Mayors and CEOs to share their experiences and ideas through panel discussions and to catch up with colleagues working in the local government sector.

The two-day event will be held at Sofitel Melbourne, 25 Collins Street, Melbourne from Wednesday, 29 April to Thursday, 30 April. There will also be a Forum Dinner hosted by the Minister for Local Government providing further opportunities to network.

For more information about the Local Government Ministerial Forum 2009, contact Robin Matthews, or tel: (03) 9651 7074.

Council Elections

Congratulations to all Victorians who took part in the council elections, which concluded with attendance voting on Saturday, 29 November 2008. For the first time, elections for all 79 Victorian councils took place at the same time, making these elections the biggest electoral event in Victorian history. Summary of results:

The elections attracted 1975 nominations to fill 631 councillor vacancies.
Of the 630 vacancies currently filled, 51% have been filled by sitting councillors, while new candidates fill 309 councillor positions (49%).
In 2004 and 2005, 53.9% of positions were filled by sitting councillors.
Of the 462 councillors who re-nominated, 321 have been returned to council.
All sitting councillors who re-nominated were returned in 16 councils.
A total of 615 women stood for council election across the state, with 188 (29.8%) women voted to council. There were 195 female councillors before the elections.

Local Government Victoria welcomes elected mayors and councillors to the local government sector, and looks forward to working with councillors to help them make a positive contribution to their communities. Visit Find your Council to find out who the Councillors are in each Council. Read the Victorian Electoral Commission for election results for each Council.

New Allowances and Entitlements Package to better support Councillors

On 10 April 2008 the Minister for Local Government Richard Wynne announced the new policy Recognition and Support: the Victorian Government's Policy Statement on Local Government Mayoral and Councillor Allowances and Resources (PDF 142 kb). Read Minister Wynne's media release (PDF 79 kb).

The Local Government (Councillor Remuneration Review) Panel Report (PDF 273 kb) was completed on 25 January 2008. The Panel's recommendations were considered by Government and the majority of the recommendations were endorsed. Read the Government's Response to recommendations of the Local Government (Councillor Remuneration Review) Panel Report (PDF 53 kb).

The new package and policy took effect immediately after the 29 November 2008 Local Government general elections following an Order in Council published on 27 November 2008.

An Information Guide on Mayoral and Councillor Entitlements (reimbursement of expenses and resources support) is available. Read more.

Councils Reforming Business

The Minister for Local Government, the Hon Richard Wynne MP, officially launched the 2008-09 Councils Reforming Business (CRB) initiatives on 16 September. These initiatives include:

Find out more about Councils Reforming Business.

Victorian State-Local Government Agreement

The Victorian State-Local Government Agreement (VSLGA) was signed by the Minister for Local Government, Hon Richard Wynne MP and on behalf of councils by the Municipal Association of Victoria, President Cr Dick Gross on 14 May 2008.

The VSLGA provides a basis for continued improvement in the relationship between State and Local Government that will promote a more efficient, joined-up approach to local services to meet community needs and provide value for money.

Read:
Victorian State-Local Government Agreement (VSLGA) (PDF 175 kb) or (Word 98 kb)
VSLGA - Communication and Consulting Guidelines (PDF 143 kb) or (Word 78 kb)
VSLGA - Negotiating Guidelines (PDF 166 kb) or (Word 84 kb)

Community Satisfaction Survey 2008

The 2008 Community Satisfaction Survey, which is now in its eleventh year, provides participating councils with information about how their performance is rated by the communities they represent. The survey is conducted independently by Wallis Consulting, and is coordinated by the Department of Planning and Community Development.

The vast majority of Victoria’s councils participate in the survey, which offers a valuable benchmarking tool for measuring council performance. The trend in overall council performance since the survey’s inception in 1998 has been positive. The results in 2008 broadly reflect this trend, with 80 percent of respondents rating their councils’ overall performance as “excellent, good or adequate”, compared to 81 percent in 2007.

Town planning, economic development, and local roads and footpaths continue to be the key drivers of community satisfaction. Whilst local councils recognise the Community Satisfaction Survey as a valuable benchmarking tool in performance measurement, it is important that they continue to review and strengthen their own performance measurement systems. This ensures a wide and robust selection of measures is being used to measure council performance.

Read the results of the Local Government Community Satisfaction Survey 2008 (PDF 549 kb) or (Word 297 kb)

Local Area Planning Support Program

The Local Area Planning Support Program has been specifically developed to encourage local councils to develop new skills, resources and processes to enhance evidence based decision-making for local area planning. Councils are invited to attend a Local Area Planning Support (LAPS) - End of Program Conference (Word 57 kb) on Thursday 1 May 2008. Read more about the LAPS program.

Local Government and Community Planning

Nine local governments that reflect diversity in demographics, approaches and planning considerations were selected to participate in the Local Government and Community Planning project.

Read about the council's community planning experience.

Local Government (Kensington Boundary Review) Panel

The Minister for Local Government, the Hon Richard Wynne MP, announced on 12 December 2007 that the municipal boundary between the Melbourne City Council and Moonee Valley City Council be altered so the that the balance of the suburbs of Kensington and North Melbourne are brought under the Melbourne City Council. The realigned boundary will also see both north and south sides of the Racecourse Road shopping centre remain within the Moonee Valley City Council.

More information on the Review.

Better Local Governance

A framework to address issues of councillor conduct has been proposed in a consultation paper (PDF 299kb) on Better Local Governance. Submissions are invited by 29 February 2008. A template (Word 172 kb) is provided to assist submissions. Email Local Government Victoria for further information.

Local Government (Councillor Remuneration Review) Panel

The Minister for Local Government, acting under section 220A of the Local Government Act 1989, on 8 May 2007, appointed a Local Government (Councillor Remuneration Review) Panel to advise on remuneration of Victoria’s locally elected leaders through a review of current allowances and to provide advice and recommendations to the Minister on allowances and guidelines on the appropriate reimbursement of expenses and provision of resources support for the mayoral and councillor role.

More information and information on submissions to the Panel.

Latest news

Read the latest news on the Local Government Victoria Home page.

Web Site Updates

DPCD's websites are progressively being updated to reflect the changes following the establishment of the department. This means you will continue to see some references to the Department for Victorian Communities (DVC) as changes are being made.

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