Decision details

Moved by Councillor Scott, seconded by Councillor Miller –

It is resolved that:

(A)        Council note:

(i)          the City of Sydney is one of the most culturally diverse places in Australia, with residents from over 200 nations calling our city home;

(ii)         the City has always highly valued this cultural diversity, including through:

(a)        the establishment of a multicultural communities strategy identifying six key objectives to ensure the city is a happy and safe place for all;

(b)        being a refugee welcome zone;

(c)         support for the ‘Racism, It Stops With Me’ campaign; and

(d)        provision of resources in local libraries in ten languages other than English;

(iii)        the City of Sydney is proud of its diverse, multicultural communities, and welcomes migrants from all walks of life to continue to make their wonderful contribution to our city; and

(iv)       the 2018 National State of the Assets, a report commissioned by the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA), found a $30 billion infrastructure backlog nation-wide;

(B)        Council endorse the initiatives endorsed by ALGA’s ‘All Politics is Local’ campaign to ensure that local government is a valued partner of the Commonwealth and to further encourage a sustainable and multicultural Sydney, including:

(i)          restore the quantum of Financial Assistance Grants to at least 1 per cent of Commonwealth Taxation revenue;

(ii)         fund a Local Government – Higher Productivity Investment Plan starting at $200 million per annum over five years;

(iii)        increase R2R funding to $800 million per annum and make the Bridges Renewal Program permanent;

(iv)       invest in a Local Government Community Infrastructure Program of $300 million per annum over four years;

(v)         fund a targeted disaster mitigation program at a level of $200 million per annum for four years;

(vi)       establish a Local Government Climate Change Partnership Fund of $200 million over four years;

(vii)      invest in a Local Government Place-Based Preventative Health and Activity Program of $100 million over four years;

(viii)     continue to provide at least $5.5 billion over the next decade to address the needs in Indigenous communities;

(ix)       provide a Smart Communities Program of $100 million per annum and a Digital Local Government and Rural / Regional Telecommunications Program of $100 million over four years;

(x)         achieve more cost-effective and equitable funding approaches across all parties involved in a product’s lifecycle; and

(xi)       reinstate a national governance model to address affordable housing and homelessness that includes local government; and

(C)       the Lord Mayor be requested to write to the Prime Minister, the Hon. Scott Morrison MP, and the Federal Leader of the Opposition, the Hon. Bill Shorten MP, expressing this view.

Carried unanimously.

S129266