NSW Premier, The Hon Chris Minns MP addressed the May general meeting of the Country Mayors Association of NSW (CMA) and his frank engagement was praised by the 150 mayors and general managers in attendance.
The Premier spoke briefly and then opened for questions from the floor.
“Our Members appreciated the willingness of the Premier to answer questions without notice from the floor, his frank “pull no punches” responses was welcomed by our Members.” CMA Chairman, Mayor Rick Firman OAM (of Temora Shire Council) said.
“This is a Premier, who (as he says) was Sydney born and bred, however he has shown, we believe, a genuine commitment to be Premier for all of NSW. The CMA has seen this firsthand in his willingness to establish in partnership with the CMA the Premier’s Rural, Remote and Regional Advisory Council (PRRRAC) and we’ve seen it reinforced through his earnest engagement with country-based Mayors and General Managers.
Mayor Firman kicked off the Q&A seeking Premier Minns’ reaction to the CMA’s ‘Invest In Us’ campaign to raise awareness of the vital work of councils creating the communities that we all live in, from parks and sporting fields to libraries, art galleries, museums and of course roads, bridges and footpaths. The campaign aims to restore the Federal Government’s Financial Assistance Grants (FAGs) to one-percent of national taxation revenue. “I am and always have been in favour of the one-percent. That would be money well spent,” Premier Minns said.
It was not a one-way street, with Premier Minns also seeking support from Country Mayors. “We need your help regarding the appallingly inequitable GST distribution. We need a statewide campaign.
We (in NSW) now receive 83c for every dollar we send to Canberra. Victoria receives $1.07 – an additional $1.5 billion. The WA Government is rolling cash.,” he said.
The CMA has lodged a submission with the Productivity Commission addressing the inequities with the current GST distribution methodology, which results in NSW, the State with the largest dispersed population in Australia not receiving its fair share.
The Premier also answered questions on the Great Western Highway closure and its impact on local businesses, drought, rural health services, emergency services staffing arrangements, mobile phone coverage and councillor remuneration.
The cessation of the Inland Rail was also raised with the Premier, who expressed his concerns about the proportionately small quantum of the national spend on infrastructure that is going to NSW.
“On behalf of the CMA Board and our 89 Members, I thank our Premier, The Hon Chris Minns MP for on-going engagement with the CMA Board and our Members. We need our Premier’s strong, ongoing support to ensure financial sustainability of our NSW rural, remote and regional Councils – it’s at a critical situation as the status quo cannot continue – and we believe our Premier has heard this loudly and clearly,” Mayor Firman said.