Moorabool council will call on the state for increased support to rapidly growing councils, including those in peri-urban areas.
During the June 4 council meeting, councillor Rod Ward called for council to write to Premier Jacinta Allan requesting the implementation of growth funds specifically for councils experiencing rapid growth – like Moorabool – and including peri-urban councils, to support timely delivery of infrastructure through works in-kind agreements and additional financial contributions.
His notice of motion also called for the state to reintroduce the Council Planning Flying Squad initiative to help alleviate planning backlogs for peri-urban councils, partner with universities and TAFEs to establish traineeships and apprenticeships in high demand professions, update disaster recovery funding arrangements to include ‘betterment’ funding.
Additionally, it called for simplification of the grant application process to ensure peri-urban councils can compete fairly for funding and for the provision of additional grant writing support for smaller and less-resourced councils – including those in peri-urban areas.
“I read with detail the recently released state government budget, and I was particularly disappointed in the lack of funding for peri-urban councils … in particular, the Moorabool Shire,” Cr Ward said.
He said that the Legislative Council’s Economy and Infrastructure Committee examined the sustainability and efficiency of local government and service delivery in Victoria and found there were “major concerns” and identified “particularly large concerns for those growth councils in the peri-urban area, including Moorabool and Golden Plains“.
“There is an absolute gap in funding, and the challenges facing councils such as Moorabool is the rapid expansion and increase [in] demand for infrastructure and community services, often outpacing revenue growth,” he said.
“[There are] infrastructure backlogs, there’s environmental pressures managing the green wedges … significant financial shortfalls due to the limited rate raising capacity.
“I put this notice of motion forward expressing our disappointment in what was a lack of funding announced. The state government has recognised the need to support local government – in particular peri-urban councils – and the lack of support in this budget was of great disappointment.“
A state government spokesperson said that the government’s budget estimates that its financial support to councils will increase by $186 million in 2025-26.
“This builds on $875 million delivered to Victorian councils in 2024-25 … we will continue to work with local councils to identify and support priority projects through our dedicated grant programs,“ the spokesperson said.
