MEMBER for Mildura Ali Cupper said she was delighted that Independent candidate for Mallee, Sophie Baldwin, has committed to taking the RateGate campaign to Canberra if elected in May.
Ms Cupper said regional rate reform is a matter of basic economic justice and that regional MPs of all political persuasions should be making it a top priority.
“So many regional and rural councils are financially unsustainable for reasons beyond their control, and the current methods used to support those councils are grossly inadequate,” she said.
“There are things that the State Government must do to fix the system, and we are not letting them off the hook, but there are things that the Federal Government must do too.
“This includes increasing the quantum of the Federal Assistance Grants which have been decreasing as a proportion of GDP for decades.
“It also means changing the criteria for how the States are allowed to distribute the grants, by giving them the ability to allocate more on the basis of need.
“Though the solutions are clear, both the Federal Coalition Government and Labor Opposition have ruled out committing to any structural changes ahead of the election.”
Ms Cupper said she believes the major parties are trying to keep rich metropolitan councils happy, at the expense of councils and ratepayers in country areas who are disadvantaged by the current system.
“This is a prime example of how the big parties are failing us in Canberra and Mallee voters need to have regional rate reform top of mind when they cast their ballots in May.
“If the big parties are hellbent on sitting on their hands, we need a strong crossbench voice like Sophie’s to pressure them to action.
“As they say, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.
“The National Party has had 73 years to go into bat for us on rates and failed. Maybe it’s time we gave someone else a turn.”

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