The Tasmanian Greens today welcomed the package of local government reforms announced by the Minister for Local Government, Bryan Green MP, as positive step forward for accountability in local government.
Greens Local Government spokesperson Tim Morris MP said that compulsory voting, all-in and all-out elections, and a ban on duel representation were all long-standing Greens policies.
“These are positive and progressive proposals that would strengthen Tasmania’s democracy and ensure Tasmanians receive value for money from their elected representatives,” Mr Morris said.
“These reforms would be a big step forward, but Tasmanians should not be getting too excited just yet because they may be resisted by some Upper House members.”
“Putting an end to dual representation will improve accountability and address potential conflicts of interest that arise from elected members holding two paid positions at the same time.”
“All Members of Parliament are paid a good salary to do a full time job, and they should be focusing one hundred per cent of their energy on that job.”
“The Greens support compulsory voting in municipal elections because we regard it as the single best way to address the low participation rate in local government ballots.”
“We would strongly encourage all municipalities to opt-in to compulsory voting, which would cost nothing to implement and would encourage greater interest and involvement in local government.”
“All-in, all-out elections would effectively halve the cost of local government elections, which is money that will be freed up for councils to deliver vital services.”
“Extending the local government term to four years will allow councils to get on with the important job of delivering services without constantly being in election mode,” Mr Morris said.
• Bryan Green: All about the reforms, here
