Q1 Full Name

Tony Mulder

Q6 What do you think councils will be responsible for in the future?

Not planning, local infrastructure, (roads, parks), community support through local activity centres, cultural and sporting activities.

Q7 What council activities should be driven or determined by communities?

road infrastructure needs to be decided on the common good, not subject to local veto

Q8 Given the varying sizes of councils, what consideration should be given to costs of services and the councils'capacity to deliver these?

placing planning in the same category as building approval (i.e technical assessment only), councillors can focus on community issues, does

Q9 What is vital to good governance in local government?

transparency, accountability.

Q10 What aspects of good governance should be prescribed in a legislative framework?

1. Fiscal responsibility, balanced budget2. Auditor General's role provides most other guidance

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Page 1: Your Details (Optional)

Page 3: Overview of Local Government

Page 4: Council Governance and Powers

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Discussion Paper: Review of Tasmania's Local Government Legislation Framework

Q11 What statutory powers do councils need to deliver the services that communities require, or expect to receive,from councils now and into the future?

curent situation is about right

Q12 How are the strategic decisions of councils best made?

Developed in workshops, consulted with community then adopted on in open council

Q13 What mechanisms best support strategic, operational and technical decisions and actions?

strategic by elected councillorsoperational (eg annual work plan) by councillorstechnical by Council staff

Q14 What is the best way to engage Tasmanians in voting for local government?

non-compulsory postal voting is good - allows anyone to contest at low cost with 100 words in ballot pack. 3 week ballot is too long, one week sufficient, with another week for late returns.Advertising seems to work

Q15 Who should be allowed to participate in local government elections?

General managers role ok, but not 2 votes. Non citizens use services and pay rates (often through rent) many from anon-democratic companies welcome the opportunity to participate and helps bring democracy to home countries.

Q16 How can local government attract skilled, diverse and representative electoral candidates?

you can't. People are either keen or they are not. Diversity is reflected by the community, and skilled at what? anti-democratic to set standards for community representation. Quotas are discriminatory, the people should decide who they want.

Q17 What should be required of candidates in local government elections before, during and after elections?

accountability. Performance will be judged at next election. Convictions for violence or harassment should be a bar, lift ban on naming so that candidates are accountable for past behaviours

Q18 What decisions should councils continue to be able to make during an election period?

Only planning (DA and subdivision), or none if planning is removed from councils. Strategic and major decisions should be put on hold.

Q19 In what ways should councillors engage with, and represent, communities in the digital age?

Councillors be given a social media allowance to engage with community, but not in election year

Page 5: Democracy and Engagement

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Discussion Paper: Review of Tasmania's Local Government Legislation Framework

Q20 On what matters should councils engage with communities?

all matters. Councillors should be active in their communities, and not leave engagement just to council staff.

Q21 How can community engagement be strengthened and measured?

can't force engagement, most wont care until it directly affects them. Annual Electors Polls on divisive issues would assist

Q22 How can councils ensure transparency in funding decisions; both how it is raised and spent?

all part of quarterly and annual reports. Rate rises should be compared like with like, not % change on base, as bases vary between councils, making % rises meaningless

Q23 How can councils determine how best to raise revenue for specific purposes?

user charges, eg differential rates depending on services delivered.

Q24 How should councils engage communities when raising revenue?

fees and charges on website, comparisons with like councils (mix of commercial/residential) and in rates notices. DA charges, (car park cash-in-lieu etc), to be declared prominently, and not used to disadvantage Small to medium enterprises.

Q25 How should councils determine the services they deliver to their communities in exchange for rates andcharges?

through workshops, community consultation and the annual work plan

Q26 How should councils decide where to make trade-offs (more or less rates vs more or less services)?

rates based services, but little wriggle room as standards determine level of many services.

Q27 How can the right balance between autonomy and accountability be delivered?

Auditor Generals reviews. Autonomy and accountability are not opposites to be balanced!!

Page 6: Council Revenue and Expenditure

Page 7: Performance Transparency and Accountability

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Discussion Paper: Review of Tasmania's Local Government Legislation Framework

Q28 Who should have oversight and regulation of councils' performance and how should it occur?

Councils are responsible to the citizenry. Poor performance by councillors results in non re-election. Council admin judged by Auditor General Reviews

Q29 What mechanisms should there be to respond or intervene when a council is not performing as required?

Suspension, by Minister (on objective failures of governance. Disruptive Councils not dysfunctional (eg Question Time in House of Assembly). Walk outs to remove quorum is dysfunctional, as is failing to agree on a motion. Mayors to have casting vote where question is tied.

Q30 What information should councils make available to the public and how should they be able to access it?

All information, bar private and commercially sensitive. Accessible on web, or over counter without RTI charges.

Q31 What information would be useful to councils to drive performance improvements?

'my council websites', with comparable data on performance

Q32 What is one thing you would change about the current local government legislative framework, and why?

Set minimum rates base for sustainability and merge councils unable to achieve them

Page 8: Other Matters

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Discussion Paper: Review of Tasmania's Local Government Legislation Framework