Planning for Liveable Communities

MEDIA RELEASE
May 11 2011
Budget 2011:
Planning for Liveable Communities
The Planning Institute of Australia (PIA) welcomes the introduction of important new
programs and initiatives in the Federal Budget 2011 targeted at building more productive,
sustainable and liveable cities and regions.
“The imminent release of the National Urban Policy and associated $181.4 million initial
funding signals the start a new era for planning in Australia, acknowledging that far greater
investment will be needed to create real improvements,” said PIA National President Ms
Dyan Currie.
“PIA supports the Federal Government taking steps towards a more sustainable Australia,
and with sustained commitment and continued investment, the focus on planning for
productivity, sustainability and liveability will pay dividends into the future.
“For too long disjointed approaches to planning for cities and regions across Australia have
been hindering our future capacity to respond to emerging challenges. The new approach is
about establishing a long-term framework for making our cities work better.
“Cities are a significant contributor to Australia’s productivity and economy. More efficient
and sustainable cities can deliver major boosts in GDP, with the bulk of the resultant tax
revenues flowing to the Commonwealth.
“The Commonwealth should share this productivity induced tax dividend with the States to
facilitate faster and more effective action to reshape the cities. The dollars required are
counted in the billions not the inconsequential amounts in this budget.
The Federal Budget is peppered with an assortment of initiatives that are aimed at improving
cities and regions, addressing population growth and boosting employment.
The Liveable Cities and Urban Renewal Program is an important new initiative, seeking
innovative solutions to poor urban design, high levels of car dependency, traffic congestion, a
lack of open space and rising carbon emissions.
“The establishment of a Liveable Cities and Urban Renewal Program is a great start, but is
seriously underfunded, with just $20 million over 4 years to tackle critical issues in our urban
centres.
“PIA understands that this is a start and will advocate that the Government increase funding
over time, working collaboratively with State, Territory and Local Governments to leverage
the additional resources needed for the innovative solutions to improve our cities and
regions.”
Through the Suburban Jobs initiative the Government has recognised the need to get more
jobs into the suburbs and new employment precincts, with $100 million dedicated to help
States and Territories think through and plan for expanded employment closer to where
people live.

“This initiative is another great start, but there are very powerful forces pulling employment
into the centre of our cities – metropolitan areas as a whole have to be restructured if we are
to make progress.
“Metropolitan restructuring requires investment in big ‘city shaping’ infrastructure – passenger
rail, freight corridors and targeted highways.
“PIA hopes that this will be part of the strengthened focus of Infrastructure Australia, and that
the Liveable Cities and Urban Renewal Program and Suburban Jobs initiative will be properly
integrated with the wider Infrastructure Australia effort. Otherwise, Suburban Jobs will be
just another ‘toy’ program.”
Other key announcements include increased funding for Infrastructure Australia, increasing
by 40% to nearly $36 million over four years, and a mandate that includes the recognition of
infrastructure as a catalyst for more sustainable and productive patterns of urban
development.
“Government infrastructure spending must align with the restructuring of our cities and
regions to support sustainable population growth and employment.
“New rail, road and port spending must be clearly linked to productivity, sustainability and
liveability outcomes, consistent with the National Urban Policy.”
Another key feature of the Federal Budget is the tax incentives to support greater private
investment in infrastructure provision, attracting up to $25 billion of additional private
investment nationally.
“The Government’s proposal to clear away some of the tax disincentives to private sector
investment in major infrastructure projects is very welcome.
“Public Private Partnerships (PPP’s) will need to play an important part if we are going to
marshal the infrastructure resources required to reshape the cities.”
While we have been given an insight into the National Urban Policy as part of the Federal
Budget 2011, the other vital pieces of the puzzle are the Sustainable Population Strategy and
the Regional Policy agenda.
“The Federal Budget provides a taste of what is to come, including a focus on outer
suburban areas and regional centres. The release of these further two strategies is critical to
who we must plan for to meet the needs of the community, environment and economy into
the future.”
The Planning Institute of Australia welcomes the Federal Government’s more active
engagement in better urban and regional planning and looks forward to working with all
governments and industry to guide the implementation of these important initiatives.
Planning Institute Australia PO Box 5427 Kingston ACT 2604 | Ph: 02 6262 5933 | Fax: 02 6262 5970 | Web: www.planning.org.au