NGA motions: ALGA board set to assess proposals for action

The Australian Local Government Association (ALGA) has received than 160 motions for possible inclusion in the 2021 National General Assembly Business Papers.

The motions cover topics such as the lack of local government representation in National Cabinet, funding for local governments, and the role of councils in economic development and job creation.

ALGA President Linda Scott thanked those councils that answered the Call for Motions in what has been a trying year for local government.

“It’s a year that many organisations and individuals, including councils, would wish to forget,” she said this week.

“However, Covid-19 and a string of natural disasters have shown yet again the tremendous capacity of councils to adapt to difficult circumstances and to ensure their communities get the support and services they need.”

She said the 163 individual council motions that ALGA received were as broad and as varied as the communities each of them represented and ranged across topics such as climate response, sustainability, and inclusiveness.

The motions will now be considered by an NGA sub-committee of the ALGA Board and included in the NGA Business Papers according to whether they reflect issues of direct relevance to local government.

The motions to be selected for debate at the National General Assembly in Canberra on 20-23 June will, in all likelihood, canvass:

  • ALGA’s inclusion in National Cabinet;
  • The restoration of Financial Assistance Grants to a level equivalent to 1 percent of Commonwealth taxation revenue; and
  • Adequate funding to enable local governments to support community recovery from Covid-19 and to withstand future natural disasters.

Council motions are critical to shaping ALGA’s national advocacy agenda, and their debate is an eagerly anticipated aspect of the NGA.

Visit the 2021 NGA webpage to view the program, accommodation options. and more. Early bird registration will be available until 7 May.