|
Hornery, Sonia to the
Minister for Local Government, and Minister for the North Coast
|
- When will the Minister's office be undertaking an audit of Newcastle City
Council and Lake Macquarie City Council?
- How will the Minister inform the local community of the outcomes of the
report?
- Will the Government then be providing financial support to councils to
address any infrastructure shortfall?
|
|
Answer -
|
I provide the following details in response to your questions:
- The Division of Local Government is currently undertaking an
infrastructure audit on all councils that were in Group 1 for integrated
planning and reporting purposes. Lake Macquarie City Council was in Group 1. It
is expected that the infrastructure audit will be completed by late August
2011.
Newcastle City Council is in Group 2, and it is anticipated that the
infrastructure audit for all Group 2 councils will be completed by December
2011.
- The information being gathered in the audit is for information only. All
councils in NSW are required to report on infrastructure maintenance and
backlogs in their annual reports. Councils' annual reports are publicly
available.
- The management of local infrastructure is the responsibility of each
council.
Councils, in consultation with their communities, are
expected to take necessary action is to address the backlog. This may include
seeking approval from IPART to increase rate revenue, borrowing additional
funds or seeking grants.
The Government is committed to ensuring
local communities have appropriate infrastructure and will use the audit
information to assist in meeting that aim.
The Government will
establish a Local Infrastructure Renewal Scheme, which will provide interest
subsidies to councils. This will unlock up to $1 billion in funds that councils
can borrow for infrastructure upgrades.
|
|
|
Question asked on 2 June 2011 (session 55-1)
and printed in
Questions & Answers Paper No. 16
|
|
Answer received on 4 July 2011
and printed in
Questions & Answers Paper No. 25
|
