Emma McBride

Our community needs overlooked

 EMMA MCBRIDE

WHAT is alarming about the 2020 Budget is that, despite the size of the deficit and the resulting debt so many needs important in our local community have been overlooked.

Many people on the Coast are fearful of what the future will bring as support through Jobseeker and JobKeeper is wound back and there is litt le of substance to take its place.

Th ere is no proper jobs plan. While JobMaker will provide some support for businesses taking on younger staff , everyone over 35 will be excluded.

In a competitive job market on the Coast with an older population and 20 job seekers for every vacancy (as of August 2020) too many people will be left behind.

Labor has been pushing for investment in manufacturing for years and our plan was outlined by Anthony Albanese in the Budget reply.

Th e Government has promised investment in food manufacturing-an important industry on the Coast and I will be pushing to make sure the Coast gets its fair share.

Th ere have been no major infrastructure projects for the Coast funded in the Budget which is extremely disappointing as we have again been overlooked by this Government.

Some additional funding for local roads has been announced and again I will be pushing to make sure the northern suburbs of the Coast get their fair share of this funding.

Th ere are clear winners and losers in this Budget, and I was disappointed not to see: • Greater investment in repairing existing social housing and building new social housing, to provide

jobs for local builders, plumbers, electricians and other trades and improve the quality of life of our neighbours. Tradies could be ordering from suppliers today, and on-site tomorrow. • A plan to make early childhood education affordable for all families.

A barrier to Working for many people, particularly women is the cost of childcare. Right now, instead of childcare supporting families where both parents want to work, the costs and tax system, actively discourage it. • Increased funding for home care packages for older Australians-23,000 new packages over four years, while welcome will not substantially reduce the current waiting list of over 100,000 or be of much comfort to the 1226 older people waiting on the Coast. This is a missed opportunity to create good local jobs and look after our seniors • More support for carers. Carers have faced greater responsibilities and costs during the pandemic.

Formal support has fallen away, but carers have received little by way of additional support. The additional $500 over six months announced-less than $20 a week-is not enough to meet the extra costs they have faced.

As Anthony Albanese said in the Budget reply: “If we’re going to come out of this recession stronger and fairer, then our country needs a plan to ensure no-one is left behind, and no-one is held back.

Our plan to take Australia from recession to recovery is this: “Rehire our workers, rewire our economy, recharge workforce participation of women and rebuild our nation.”

“Tradies could be ordering from suppliers today,

There have been no major infrastructure projects for the Coast funded in the Budget which is extremely disappointing as we have again been overlooked by this Government.”

– Emma McBride.

Emma McBride is Federal Member for Dobell.

Handbrakes and Accelerators WHAT WENT WRONG AT CCC

 EXCLUSIVE COMMENT BY

CR BRUCE MCLACHLAN

CENTRAL coast may have previously lost the Super Cars bid to Newcastle, but the losses didn’t stop there.

Th e Central Coast should be coming out of the bocks with all cylinders fi ring as a new Regional Council status, taking advantage of new scale and economy. Using the increased political infl uence of Region of 330,000 residents as the second largest Council in NSW and the 6th largest in Australia.

Finally given the opportunity to come out behind the curtain of North Sydney or the Hunter, and be a standalone Region, pursuing increased Grants funding in our own right.

Instead the newly amalgamated Central Coast Regional Council hit the political speed bumps, with majority block Labor Council pulling on the handbrakes, hellbent on derailing the NSW Liberal initiative of merging the two lesser Councils.

Fast forward three years on, the new Regional Council Is potentially facing the largest losses in Local Government History and staring down the barrel of being placed back in Administration.

So why bother amalgamate in the first place?

Well most people would agree as a Region, the Central Coast compared to other

We were the forgotten coast as John Singleton described it, and unable to attract major industry and government funding.”

– Bruce McLachlan.

JohnSingleton. Bruce McLachlan.

competing Regions, had stagnated, and was being left behind. Gosford had become almost ghett o like aft er decades of inaction and neither Councils were performing at a Regional level.

We were the “Forgott en Coast “ as John Singleton described it, and unable to att ract major industry and government funding.

In some Departments, if the Hunter or Nth Sydney received government grants, then that was ticked off against funding for the Central Coast. So a new Hornsby Police Station, or roadworks in the Hunter, would be considered as funding for the Central Coast.

Something had to change, Gosford CBD was decaying, the Coast was becoming an increasingly litt er strewn, dumping ground of Sydney’s aff ordability issues. Our unemployment and low income social and economic problems were growing.

So the NSW Liberal Government decided to fi nally inject major economic support into the Region, with the new Gosford Medical Precinct, and backed it up with appointment of the NSW Gosford Architect, and CBD Revitalisation program.

With that it merged the two lesser Councils, in order to bring a Regional approach to the Central Coast.

Th e Coast was fi nally moving forward, and we now aft er decades of stagnation, we saw cranes in the sky in Gosford.

An Administrator was appointed and the Councils came together to start the lengthy (approx eight years) process of merging the two organisations, to try and bring savings and effi ciencies and remove the duplications.

Despite the loss of Councilors, your bins were still emptied, and water still fl owed from your taps under the Administration, under a new Central Coast Council blue dot logo.

In reality the Central Coast doesn’t need two Council administrations. Two CEOs on 500,000 PA each, two Mayors on 130kpa plus vehicle and expenses, and fi ve extra councilors.

We don’t need two Council Chambers, two IT systems, duplicated Council depots. We still mow same amount of parks and gardens, empty same amount of bins, regardless what logo is on the Council truck.

Our water services were already shared, we don’t need a duplication of admin, whilst potholes grow and roadside verges remain overgrown.

A well run Regional Council can bring status and pride to the area, yet still recognise our diff ering local villages amenities. However it needs Clrs to want that to happen, and not just do the bidding of their party, who may not benefi t if the Central Coast was to progress.

So what went wrong?

Well from outset the same party politics that have crippled the Coast for decades took hold.

As it was a NSW Liberal amalgamation, so Labor in opposition must pull it apart. Regardless of any benefi ts the amalgamation could bring or the massive tear up costs to the community of going backwards.

Instead of bringing the Central Coast together, it was to impede progress at any opportunity, with the view to run a divisive demerger campaign.

Except Labor councilors were not telling the community that any demerge must be paid by a Special Levy Rate Rise. An absolute tear up of ratepayer monies, to simply go back to where we were.

So why would Labor be opposed to a Regional Council?

Well it has the potential to bring change and prosperity, an improved local economy, and a lift in household incomes. With a change in economic standing, brings about a change in voter demographics.

Labor benefi ts politically from the low socio-economic economy with high percentage of welfare voters. If the Coasts economy progresses, with more local jobs, then it becomes aspirational voters, and that welfare vote decreases.

It’s just not in Labor’s political interests to see the Coast economy improve. Next minute Toukley will be voting like Terrigal and Labor seats would fall to the conservatives.

DA approvals that should have been passed we sent off to

Land and Environment

Court, including a well landscaped Killcare Colour bond fence, that cost the community 30k, and still stands today.”

– Bruce McLachlan.

Continued on page 9

Council batt les to save itself from itself

 DALLAS SHERRINGHAM

THE broken and broke Central Coast

Council has made its final submission to save itself from being sacked after two Liberal councillors sensationally resigned at Monday night’s meeting.

Cr Troy Marquart and Cr Rebecca Gale have consistently batt led to get council on track fi nancially but were regularly voted down by the alliance of ALP and Independent councillors led by Mayor Lis Mathews and Deputy Mayor Jane Smith.

It has been three years of bitt er fi ghting between the fi ve ALP and three independent councillors versus four Liberal and three independent councillors. Cr Greg Best has led the charge of the minority brigade with regular calls for bett er fi scal responsibility from staff .

In short, Council has massive assets of $9.6B but in an accounting disaster found itself unable to pay its $3.5M staff last week and had to be bailed out by the State Government.

It is a complex situation, with noone able to point to why council ended up $89M in debt, raiding restricted developer accounts and with no cashfl ow. A forensic analysis by auditors will discover where it all went wrong.

Th e Minister for Local Government Shelley Hancock fi nally had enough of the shenanigans and gave council seven days to show cause why it shouldn’t be sacked.

In scenes befi tt ing of the Titanic on Monday night and with two councillors missing, the band played on discussing and passing grand schemes of Aff ordable Housing and dismissing a plan to create potentially hundreds of jobs at the new Kangy Angy rail facility.

Meanwhile, to ensure Council’s workers were paid, the NSW Government advanced Council $6.2M to meet payroll expenses and overdue payments to suppliers.

Minister Hancock said given Council’s abject failure to address the consequences of its own fi nancial mismanagement, the Government had no alternative but to arrange for funds to be paid to meet these urgent expenses.

“It’s hard to think of a more fundamental failing of a Council than to pay its own staff ,” Ms Hancock said.

“Th e local community is sick of excuses from Council. In the two weeks since Council’s fi nancial dire straits came to light, all Council has done is write lett ers, issue media releases and set up a fi nance committ ee.

“Council reached a new low last night by deciding once again to approach the Government for a bailout at the risk of council staff not being paid.

“To use its own staff as bargaining chips is reprehensible from a governing body that has failed to address its own fi nancial failings.

“Th ere is no question that Council needs to be held responsible for these failures. Th at’s why today I will begin the process of suspending the Mayor and councillors for their role in this sorry state of aff airs.”

Minister Hancock issued Council with a notice of intention to suspend it and appoint an interim administrator.

Under the Local Government Act, the Minister is required to provide the Council with the opportunity to make any submission before making a fi nal determination on suspension.

Th e Council had seven days to make a submission as to why it should not be suspended and an independent administrator appointed. By law the Minister must consider any submission before making a fi nal decision.

Suspension would apply to the Mayor and councillors. It would not aff ect council staff and daily operations. An interim administrator would perform the functions of the Mayor and councillors.