Council to table three motions at Local Government National General Assembly

28 Mar 2019 2:27 PM -

Leeton Shire Council will submit three motions for consideration by the Australian Local Government Association at their National General Assembly (NGA) of Local Government which is being held in Canberra from Sunday 16 June until Wednesday 19 June 2019.

The three motions to be submitted at the National Local Government Assembly relate to the following topics:

• Rural Doctors Shortage: That the Assembly calls on the Federal Government to address the shortage of medical professionals in rural and regional areas of Australia. Council wants the government to encourage students from rural areas to enrol in medical school, to provide training that supports doctors to develop skills to work in rural areas, to help doctors achieve a better work life balance, to support the families of doctors to relocate and settle quietly in rural areas and to provide financial and tax incentives to make it attractive to work in rural Australia.

• Rural Mental Health Access: That the Assembly calls on the Federal Government to increase funding for the provision of and access to mental health services in rural and remote areas of Australia.

• Commitment to Convention on Race Discrimination Elimination: That the
  Assembly requests the Government to honour its intention contained
  within its reservation (1) to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. Council wants it to be illegal to disseminate or financially support ideas that promote racial superiority or hatred or incitement to racial discrimination or violence against any race or group of persons of another colour or ethnic origin.

Further, Council is asking that the Australian Government prohibits a member of parliament from utilising parliamentary resources for the purposes of promoting or inciting racial discrimination.

Mayor Cr Paul Maytom said that the NGA of Local Government brings the local government sector together providing a platform for thought provoking discussion and serious consideration of the development of policies on issues of national significance.

“The NGA provides the opportunity for councils throughout Australia to contribute to the development of national local government policy and receive updates on the major policy issues facing local government.”

At the March Ordinary Council Meeting Mayor Paul Maytom and Councillor Tony Reneker were endorsed to represent Leeton Shire Council at the 2019 Local Government Congress.