Borough mayor pushes back on ESVF

BOROUGH of Queenscliffe mayor Di Rule has blasted the Victorian government’s Emergency Services and Volunteers Fund, suggesting the state should do its own “dirty work”.

The new levy, which will be used to raise funds for the state’s emergency services, will be rolled out this month and charged alongside council rates, as councils, including the borough, prepare for blowback from communities already feeling the cost-of-living crunch.

“It’s not a levy, it’s a tax on ratepayers plain and simple … It’s not our job to collect state government taxes. It’s going to provide us with angst and it’s no doubt in a reputational sense but also in an administrative sense,” Cr Rule said at the borough’s June meeting last week.

“Our people at the frontline out there, they will have people complaining about this tax and with good reason, but they’re the ones who are copping it, not the state government.”

The council unanimously agreed to maintain its opposition to the levy and resolved to write to the state government requesting it be repealed, as well as all other Victorian councils and associated bodies to seek their support in opposing its implementation.

The notice of motion, introduced by Cr Donnie Grigau, also called for greater transparency from the state government on how the funds will be used and criticised the “significant administrative and financial impost” the levy’s collection will place on councils, which they have not been provided “adequate compensation” to achieve.

“I would say to the state government: ‘Do your own dirty work. We’ve got more than enough to do. You’re putting more than enough responsibility onto local government without giving us any more to do it with,” Cr Rule said.

A second notice of motion, also presented by Cr Grigau and passed unanimously, called for the borough to “get ahead of the curve” and begin developing a plan to deliver the new housing targets set by the Victorian government.

These targets, released in March, form part of the state’s broader push to build 2.24 million new homes over the next 30 years, and will see the borough grow by 400 dwellings by 2051.

“We’re sea-locked; we’re straining to provide for the people we already have … so, my notice of motion here is actually to help the community get the grips and plan ahead, so councillors can work out how we’re going to budget, provide facilities [and] provide infrastructure,” Cr Grigau said.

“We need to understand which areas that we can protect – we’ve got some very sensitive moonah woodlands, we’ve got some parks that are intrinsic to the liveability of our community – so, we need some certainty, so the community has a fairly good idea of how we’re going to deliver this project.”

The council will now initiate an engagement process to seek feedback from the community on “potential opportunities and constraints” in relation to the delivery of these homes, while council officers will produce a report addressing the borough’s ability to accommodate the new dwellings.