BULLETIN

• Cabinet submissions to include LG Impact Statement: In accordance with the Victorian State-Local Government Agreement signed by the Minister for Local Government and the MAV, a new process has been implemented by the State to ensure future Government policy and legislative proposals that go to Cabinet will include a local government impact statement. The MAV welcomes confirmation from Local Government Victoria that this process has been adopted following ongoing advocacy to ensure a holistic assessment of impacts on councils’ roles, responsibilities and resourcing capabilities when government proposals are being considered by Cabinet.

• President’s Update: The latest update from our President was issued this week with news about our LG Act Review Taskforce, our MA Act and Rules Review Taskforce, news about our rate capping work, National Twitter Day and more.

• New shadow ministry: Opposition Leader Bill Shorten has announced a major reshuffle of his Shadow Ministry. While Anthony Albanese retains his roles as Shadow Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Cities and Regional Development, he gains a junior minister with Stephen Jones taking on regional services, territories and local government responsibilities, as well as regional communications. Other major changes include Tanya Plibersek becoming the new Shadow Minister for Education and Women, Penny Wong taking over the foreign affairs shadow portfolio; and Tony Burke moving from finance to environment, water, citizenship and multicultural Australia, and the arts.

The valued contribution of long-serving councillors will again be recognised and celebrated by the MAV as the current term for elected representatives draws to a close.

Applications are now open for our 2016 Councillor Service Awards, with all nominations due by 5pm on Friday 19 August.

There are six award categories: 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 years’ service and the Mayor Emeritus Award, which recognises councillors who have served three full terms or more as mayor.

Application forms for the Councillor Service Award and Mayor Emeritus Award can be downloaded from the MAV website and awards will be presented at the MAV Annual Dinner on 8 September. For further information, please contact Julie Saylor-Briggs.

This year’s MAV annual conference and dinner will take place on 8 September at the Sofitel Melbourne on Collins. With a theme of Leading teams – motivate, lead, succeed conference speakers will explore business transformation and leadership – how councils can innovatively move forward, addressing the demand of constricting budgets and the digital age while maintaining a high quality of services.

Confirmed keynote speakers include Emma Alberici, presenter, ABC1's Lateline; Peter Ryan, General Counsel for the Victorian Managed Insurance Authority; and Carolyn Miller, Managing Director of The Honeycomb Effect. Other invited speakers include the Hon. Daniel Andrews, Premier of Victoria; the Hon. Matthew Guy, leader of the Victorian Liberal Party; and Ahmed Fahour, CEO of Australia Post.

Registrations are now open for both the MAV annual conference and our annual dinner, where we will present the 2016 Councillor Service Awards.

The MAV President, Board and staff are saddened by the passing of Mike Hill, a passionate community leader who was highly respected in local and State government circles and in the community.

Mike was a Mayor of the former City of Brunswick in the early 1990s and following amalgamations, was the first Mayor of Moreland City Council. He was a strong and influential advocate for local government during the council amalgamation process, and a key founder of the Victorian Local Governance Association, where he was Chief Executive for eight years.

Intelligent and inspiring, Mike’s unwavering commitment to local democracy and the environment helped to achieve significant wins during his councillor years and beyond. He lived his passion for achieving better building standards, through development of an urban environmental village in Brunswick. Mike’s ideas were also influential in the subsequent work of our Council Alliance for a Sustainable Built Environment program.

We send our condolences to Mike’s family at this sad time. He will be very sadly missed, but the legacy of his work will live on.

VicHealth’s Alcohol Strategy and $1.3 million in new grant funding will be launched by Martin Foley, Minister for Mental Health on 9 August.

Councils are invited to the launch to learn about VicHealth’s approach to preventing harm from alcohol over the next three years, and their new Alcohol Culture Change Grants, which will seek applications from councils to work with researchers, community partners and others to design, implement and evaluate initiatives to reduce harm from alcohol.

The launch will start at 12 noon with a networking lunch to follow from 12.50pm at Victoria University Convention Centre, Level 12, 300 Flinders Street, Melbourne. Register online by 5 August to attend.

• Councils are encouraged to advise your local volunteer groups that applications are open for the Volunteer Emergency Services Equipment Program which is providing $12.8 million to help fund equipment for volunteer emergency services organisations.

• Applications to the Public Safety Infrastructure Fund (PSIF) close on Friday 2 September at 4pm. Councils can apply for grants between $10,000 and $250,000 to develop public safety and security infrastructure to improve community safety and confidence in public places. The Department of Justice has also published a video about the PSIF, recorded at a recent information forum held for councils.

• Councils can currently apply to VicHealth for grants from their Bright Futures for Young Victorians Challenge, which will provide funding for projects designed to improve the health and wellbeing of young people aged 12 to 25 years. Applications close at 12 noon on Thursday 11 August.

• Nominations are open for LGPro’s 2016 Corporate and Community Planning Award, which recognises and celebrates the individual and team successes in the areas of corporate and community planning. Nominations close on Friday 2 September and award winners will be announced at the LGPro Corporate Planners Network Conference on Friday 21 October.

• The Regional Australia Institute has released a new report, Talking Point: The Missing Migrants, which offers insights into international migration trends and why proactive, locally-led strategies to attract migrants to regional areas need to be a top priority.

• The Victorian Government has announced a $6 million two-year subsidy scheme for farmers to make their quad bikes safer. A rebate will be available to eligible farmers to either fit rollover protection devices on existing quad bikes or help them purchase an alternative safer vehicle.

• The Queensland Government will introduce an electronic real-time political donation disclosures system at the state and local levels by the end of this year.

• The Victorian State Trauma System & Registry annual report for 2014/15 has been released. It found that 459 people – mainly aged over 64 – died from falls from a height of less than a metre over the year, compared with 301 deaths from transport-related accidents. Deaths from low-height falls have been higher than fatal transport accidents for the past five years.