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Regional Australia: Making a Difference

Regional Australia: Making a Difference

Overview

Regional Australia: Making a Difference

The Federal Government strongly believes that regional, rural and remote Australia has a bright and prosperous future. Through this Statement, the Federal Government renews its commitment to working in partnership with the people and communities of regional Australia to make `the bush' a better place to live and work.

The Government's objective is to ensure that regional Australia's enormous contribution to national economic and social wellbeing is not only sustained and recognised, but also enhanced by ensuring regional people share in - to the maximum extent possible - the economic and social opportunities open to the nation as a whole.

Australia has long been renowned as a land of opportunity - arguably never more so than today, as our nation captures the benefits of a long period of growth sustained by the Federal Government's commitment to economic modernisation and responsible budgets. Continuing low inflation and interest rates are providing a secure platform for national development as Australia enjoys the fruits of tackling the challenges of economic reform.

It is now widely recognised, however, that the benefits of economic change have not flowed evenly across Australia. While many parts of non-metropolitan Australia are charging ahead, others are struggling to meet the challenges posed by globalisation and industry structural change. The Federal Government is determined, therefore, to work in partnership with country people, business and other spheres of government to help ensure `the bush' has every opportunity to share in national economic prosperity.

The Government comes to this year's Budget with a solid record of achievement in delivering practical initiatives that are making a difference in regional Australia: in improving access to essential services such as health care and telecommunications, in addressing the challenges of sustainable natural resource management, and in improving the competitive advantages of our primary industries.

This Statement outlines the latest developments in a range of policies and programmes the Government has either put in place or enhanced, in response to the needs of regional Australia. It also details a series of new measures being taken in the coming financial year and beyond to help meet the unique challenges of living in regional Australia.

In October last year, the Government convened the Regional Australia Summit. More than 280 delegates met to develop a national appreciation of the challenges facing regional Australia. They discussed and debated a wide range of issues and concerns and, after three days, put a series of recommendations to Government on how to meet regional challenges.

Key challenges that Summit delegates identified as needing to be addressed included:

• the need for governments to be more flexible in designing and administering programmes to meet the unique and varying circumstances of different regions;


• the need for improved access to federal programmes and services as part of a sustained effort to make inroads into the service deficits country people experience in essential areas such as health, education and telecommunications;


• better coordination and cooperation between the different spheres of government and genuine opportunity for country people to have input into government decision-making processes;


• the improvement of physical infrastructure in regional areas to stimulate community and/or local industry development; and


• identifying opportunities for leadership development and community capacity building so communities are empowered to find solutions to the challenges they face.

Delegates to the Summit also examined and identified the roles that government, business and community sectors could each be expected to fulfil to achieve a better future for regional Australia. In doing this, delegates clearly identified that meeting the challenges above was a shared responsibility.

At the conclusion of the Summit, a Steering Committee was established, chaired by Professor John Chudleigh, to advise the Government on implementation strategies to deliver the outcomes from the Summit.

In its interim report, released in April, the Steering Committee recommended the adoption of an aspirational, guiding vision for the future development of regional Australia to have as a national goal:

A strong and resilient regional Australia which, by 2010, has the resources, recognition and skills to play a pivotal role in building Australia's future and is able to turn uncertainty and change into opportunity and prosperity.

The Federal Government embraces this vision and reaffirms its commitment to working to realise it in partnership with regional communities, the private sector and State, Territory and local governments. We do not pretend that this can be achieved overnight. We agree with the Steering Committee's view that making significant inroads into regional disadvantage must be a priority for the Government over the next 10 years.

The Government has already laid the foundations for this approach through its Regional Australia Strategy and has built on it through initiatives announced during the Summit and subsequently. Details are outlined in this Statement. In this Budget, the Government has announced major new initiatives tailored specifically for the regions in health, communications, education and for agricultural industries. They reflect the Government's agreement with the Steering Committee's assessment that there are three strategic areas that require action: equity of services in regional communities; economic and business development; and community empowerment.

Equity of services

Disparities in programme and service delivery in regional Australia are being addressed through a range of existing programmes discussed in this Statement. The recently announced Stronger Families and Communities Strategy, with a key emphasis on regional Australia, will play an important role in improving services in regional areas. Other examples include Regional Health Service Centres and measures to attract doctors to regional areas; the Rural Transaction Centres Programme; and major telecommunications initiatives such as Networking the Nation.

In this Budget, the Government has outlined a major new regional health strategy. There are also initiatives in the Budget to improve access to Youth Allowance for the children of farmers and small regional business operators, as well as boosting financial support for people in isolated areas educating their children. Recently, the Government announced enhanced support for families in regional areas with new initiatives in marriage and relationship support and counselling, and in-home childcare. These initiatives together represent a major contribution towards the shared responsibility of improving access to services in regional areas.

Economic and business development

Support measures to help communities meet the challenges of industry structural change and to help diversify their economic base are receiving particular attention. The Agriculture - Advancing Australia package is being extended and enhanced, while Invest Australia is taking a lead in helping regions develop their own investment strategies and promote themselves to international investors. The major project facilitation process is bringing new investment to the regions. Area Consultative Committees have substantial resources at their disposal to implement employment-generating projects at the local level, including through business incubators.

In addition, the Government has, budgetary circumstances permitting, increased investment in key strategic infrastructure to improve regional economic performance. Finally, the Government is currently considering its position on natural resource management, beyond the current life of the Natural Heritage Trust. This will be the subject of a Statement later this year.

Community empowerment

The Government is committed to helping regional communities develop and enhance their capacity to determine their own future. This is being achieved through support for community/industry planning and innovation and leadership development under existing programmes such as Rural Plan, the Rural Communities Programme and the Regional Assistance Programme. The Stronger Families and Communities Strategy will also play an important role in community empowerment. In addition, the Government is also working to improve the delivery of its programmes and information services, with better coordination and less duplication between agencies and between governments. Provision has also been made for a new focus on regional areas experiencing economic stagnation and/or decline. The details of this programme are still to be finalised, and will be announced later in the year.

Commonwealth role

The Federal Coalition Government has built, and will maintain, a significant role in regional issues. We have already implemented a whole-of-Government approach to delivering programmes and services through the Regional Australia Strategy. Earlier this year, the Prime Minister made the commitment that the Government would maintain key individual services in regional Australia and ensure the overall level of Commonwealth services provided to regional areas was not diminished.

Recognising the diversity of regional communities, the Government has become more flexible in its approach to addressing regional issues. It is working towards developing partnerships that engage all spheres of government, communities and business to meet the challenges that face people living in regional Australia.

One partnership announced at the Summit was significant financial support to underpin the establishment of the Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal (FRRR). The Foundation provides an opportunity for business, government and communities to work together through a philanthropic foundation to improve the capacity of communities to respond positively to the challenges facing regional, rural and remote Australia. Through this partnership, support will be given to communities to develop and diversify their activities, whether it is through a regional capacity-building programme, through information and training initiatives or through the provision of grants for rural development projects. All activities supported by the Foundation will work towards improving the social, cultural, environmental and economic wellbeing of regional and rural Australia.

Partnerships between the Federal Government and State and local governments are also being developed. The Federal Government hosted a meeting in March 2000 of Federal and State ministers with responsibility for regional development, and the Australian Local Government Association. Ministers strongly held the view that regional and rural Australia needs the sustained support of all spheres of government to help create opportunity and prosperity.

Outcomes from the ministerial meeting included agreement to develop a clear framework for cooperation between governments in relation to regional development. Ministers also agreed to explore opportunities to work together in areas such as shopfront service delivery, one-stop shops and regional leadership development. The emphasis will be on streamlining the provision of government services and processes through better coordination and less duplication. A Taskforce has been set up to report mid-year to ministers on how to implement the agreements reached at the meeting.

Through this renewed emphasis on partnerships and building on models already used, such as the partnership agreements under the Natural Heritage Trust, the Government aims to:

• improve access to, and delivery of, programmes and services in regional areas;


• foster employment and business initiatives;


• enhance regional infrastructure;


• improve family and community lifestyles; and


• achieve sustainable natural resource management.

Summary

The Regional Australia Summit has been instrumental in focusing attention on issues of concern in regional Australia. People in regional Australia want governments to work cooperatively with communities and with each other to achieve better results. They want genuine opportunities for input into government decision-making processes and they want government programmes and services to be flexible enough to meet local needs. People in regional Australia have made it clear they want long-term commitments from governments, and inroads made into the service deficits in essential areas such as health, education, telecommunications and infrastructure.

The Federal Government acknowledges that there is a clear role for the Commonwealth in encouraging regional development and coordination beyond ensuring the national economic fundamentals are sound.

The Government recognises it is in the national interest to help regional Australia be prosperous and viable. The Government is forging new partnerships for growth between regional communities and all spheres of government. It will be a time to address regional disadvantage, but without risking the fiscal discipline that delivers budget surpluses.

During the course of this decade, the Government is determined to see significant progress made in reducing the gap in economic opportunity between the city and the country. By the end of the decade, we aim to have achieved greater equity in service delivery for people living in regional Australia.

This Ministerial Statement provides the framework for the Government in fulfilling its role in helping to build a better future for regional Australia.