At its meeting on Tuesday August 28, the Greater Geelong Council released a draft Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plan for community consultation. The following is an edited extract of councillor Pat Murnane\u2019s speech during the meeting:<\/p>\n
There is an urgent need for this Council to consider the plight of the disadvantaged in our community.<\/p>\n
In recent years we, and councils before us, have done a magnificent job focussing on some real challenges.<\/p>\n
Just to name a couple: the revitalisation of the Geelong CBD, developing some fantastic subdivisions to cope with rapid population growth, and building and upgrading sporting facilities, including Kardinia Park. These are major achievements.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s now time for this Council, including myself, to apply the same skills that we applied to those projects, that same influence, certainly the same passion, and also some finance, to address the challenges raised in this plan.<\/p>\n
If you look at the statistics in the report: 32 per cent of adults in our community have anxiety and depression; 49 per cent are classified as obese or pre-obese; and half of adults in our community don\u2019t meet the minimum guidelines for physical activity.<\/p>\n
In the past 12 months, four per cent of this community ran out of food, and didn\u2019t have enough money to be able to buy any more.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s 8000 people.<\/p>\n
Are we really a lucky city and a lucky country when we think of those things?<\/p>\n
Tonight is not the night to be talking about solutions \u2013 that will come in the future.<\/p>\n
But I wish to make the point that what we\u2019re doing is not necessarily working. We need to do more, and we need to try different things.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s the time to be bold. We need to come up with some new initiatives that haven\u2019t been tried before, and we definitely need to invest in this area.<\/p>\n
And importantly, we need to start listening to new voices.<\/p>\n
There are homeless people in our streets, and there are children starving in their homes.<\/p>\n
We need to do something about that, and Council needs to take the lead.<\/p>\n
I want to see some action come out of this plan. I want the Council officers to feel confident that they can bring suggestions to us and we will listen, and where possible we\u2019ll act on those suggestions.<\/p>\n
To the officers, you have my commitment, and I\u2019m sure the commitment of my fellow councillors: if you can bring good solutions to us, then we will certainly act.<\/p>\n
We have used the phrase in this Council, \u2018Community First.\u2019 I think that\u2019s a good way to look at things, but let\u2019s not leave people behind any longer.<\/p>\n
I\u2019d be very happy, and very proud, if what we do in this space defines this Council at the end of its term.<\/p>\n
That would be a worthwhile goal for us all.<\/p>\n
Footnote: The draft Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plan sets out four aims for 2018-2021:
\n\u2022 Improve mental health through social connections
\n\u2022 Increase public participation in physical activity
\n\u2022 Improve access to safe and healthy local environments, services and food
\n\u2022 Increase community safety and prevent violence and injury.<\/p>\n
Read the draft in full and have your say at geelongaustralia.com.au\/yoursay.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
At its meeting on Tuesday August 28, the Greater Geelong Council released a draft Municipal Public Health and Wellbeing Plan for community consultation. The following is an edited extract of councillor Pat Murnane\u2019s speech during the meeting: There is an urgent need for this Council to consider the plight of the disadvantaged in our community. […]<\/p>\n