regional and rural disadvantage submission · effective and efficient road, rail, air and port...

Inquiry in to the Extent and Nature of

Disadvantage and Inequity in Rural and

Regional Victoria

Submission March 2010

Regional Cities Victoria

2

26 March 2010

Mr Damian Drum MLC

Chairman

Regional and Rural Committee

Via: [email protected]

Dear Mr Drum,

RE Inquiry into the Extent and Nature of Disadvantage and Inequity in Rural and

Regional Victoria

Regional Cities Victoria (RCV) represents Victoria’s 10 largest regional cities – Ballarat, Greater

Bendigo, Greater Geelong, Horsham, Latrobe City, Mildura, Greater Shepparton, Wangaratta,

Warrnambool and Wodonga.

Please find enclosed our submission to the Inquiry into the Extent and Nature of Disadvantage

and Inequity in Rural and Regional Victoria.

Thank you for providing RCV the opportunity to provide comment on this issue. We look forward

to the release of your report.

Yours sincerely,

Cr Judy Verlin Chair, Regional Cities Victoria Mayor, City of Ballarat


3

Introduction

Regional Cities Victoria (RCV) are the municipalities of Ballarat, Greater Bendigo, Greater

Geelong, Horsham, Latrobe City, Mildura, Greater Shepparton, Wangaratta,

Warrnambool and Wodonga; the 10 largest municipalities in Victoria.

In its 10 year history, RCV has demonstrated a commitment to seeking solutions to the

issues that matter in regional Victoria. RCV has consistently worked to increase the

liveability of its regional centres; so the population continues to grow and economic

investment in regional centres remains strong.

Challenges of population growth

Australia continues to experience high population growth. Figures released by the

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) March 2009 Quarter show Australia’s growth rate

has almost doubled in the past five years, reaching 2.1 per cent.

These figures also show that Victoria’s 2.1 per cent growth rate matched the Australian

average. The state is well on its way to reaching a projected population of 8.5 million

people by the year 2056.

This means that an additional 2.7 million people will need to be accommodated and

serviced in our state’s largest city, which is already feeling the effects of a growing

population on its infrastructure and services.

The latest Victoria in Future data projects that regional Victoria’s population will almost

double by the year 2056. Regional Victoria will have an additional 700 000 residents

and more than 50 per cent of these people will live in a regional city.

Population growth of this magnitude will be a difficult task to manage.

It poses challenges and opportunities for maintaining Victoria’s liveability.

Regional cities as service hubs

As highlighted in the Regional Strategic Planning Initiative (May 2009), most of Victoria’s

population growth will be concentrated around regional cities.

Victoria’s regional cities act as hubs for the smaller surrounding towns. As the

population in smaller regional towns decreases, so does the critical mass required to

support the existence of many forms of infrastructure and services. These towns

increasingly rely on regional cities to access healthcare, arts and culture, recreation,

retail centres, and government offices. RCV understands that this is a two-way

relationship that benefits both the regional city and the small town, each supporting the

other in the continued demand for service.


4

Regional Cities are a solution to Victoria’s population challenges

In 2009, RCV commissioned Essential Economics to undertake an assessment of future

infrastructure and resources required for Victoria’s 10 largest regional centres.

The report clearly showed that even with the current population projections Victoria’s

regional cities still have the capacity to accommodate an increased share of the state’s

population growth.

The report also highlighted the financial benefits of investing in regional cities, rather

than Melbourne, to encourage and support this growth.

Improved infrastructure and resources will be required to support growth in the

regional cities, however RCV also believes this investment can be improved to

encourage additional growth in the cities.

Strong investment in the regional centres will improve the economic and social

development of these areas. This investment will create resilient regions, making them

a true alternative to metropolitan Melbourne. An outcome of this kind would relieve

metropolitan Melbourne of some of the pressures and costs associated with population

growth over the coming decades.

This requires a partnership approach from all levels of government, based on a policy

that regional cities are the future drivers of growth and prosperity, coupled with sound

regional planning and a long-term commitment to funding.

RCV believes that with projected population figures – substantially increasing in

Melbourne and decreasing in small regional towns – the role that the regional cities

pays in helping Victoria to increase its productivity and grow sustainably must be

formalised. The State Government must move beyond just acknowledging the role of

Victoria’s 10 largest regional cities and provide a clear strategic path to manage their

growth.


5

Planning for the future

Significant additional infrastructure and resources are required in the regional cities to

support population expansion, business growth, employment and liveability.

RCV has identified three objectives to achieve these aims:

1. Increase the productivity and efficiency of the regional cities;

2. Increase workforce participation in the regional cities; and

3. Attract and retain a greater share of a growing population to the regional cities.

RCV has identified 5 priority policy areas that Governments at all levels need to address

so meet these objectives:

1. Broadband and information and communication technology;

2. Public and freight transport;

3. Lifestyle infrastructure;

4. Workforce planning, employment and skills development; and

5. Land-use and planning.

The following pages highlight RCV’s position on each of these areas.


6

Position Statement

Create competitive regional cities where broadband access and speeds are equal to

any major urban centre.

Priority areas

Broadband and Information and Communication Technology (ICT)

Context

The use of broadband increases at a rate of 90 per cent per annum world-wide.

Broadband and information and communication technologies (ICT) are enabling

infrastructure that can have a significant impact on the productivity, innovation and

sustainability of an economy, as well as the liveability of a community. They boost

capacity to deliver more efficient and effective services to people and generate new

ways of supporting and connecting businesses and communities.

As the world-wide workforce is becoming more ‘knowledge-based’, inadequate or poor

quality ICT infrastructure creates a digital divide between the have and the have-nots.

Data sourced from Multimedia Victoria indicates wide variations in the level of

broadband coverage across the regional cities. It was estimated that coverage in the 10

regional cities ranged from 55 to 85 per cent. On average, broadband coverage across

Victorian regional cities was 72 per cent.

Why is this a priority area?

Broadband and information and communication technologies provide the mechanics

that ‘open’ the regions to population, business and industry development.

Victoria’s proud history of being the economic engine for Australia, and the need to

accommodate the state’s rapidly increasing population, is making it increasingly

essential and viable to push investment into the regions.

Maintaining the competitiveness and liveability of the state means ensuring the regional

cities have the enabling infrastructure, such as ICT as a high priority.


7

Regional cities need to meet the demands of current and future population growth and

to position the cities as attractive and viable locations for business and living.

Evidence shows that broadband access is a factor when considering relocating from a

capital city to a regional area. Businesses in the capital cities are accustomed to high-

speed broadband; before they consider a move they seek assurance that access to the

same level of technology is available in the regional areas.

Increased ICT capacity provides an opportunity to change the mix and structure of

businesses that can be attracted into the regional cities. Companies are changing to a

modular structure that allows for staged growth in new areas, the availability of ICT in

regional areas increases the opportunity for this growth to happen outside of metro

areas.

The presence of this world-class enabling infrastructure aids in the attraction of global

knowledge workers (GKW) – educated professional people who own or work in

organisations that conduct business outside the regional city. Living in a regional city,

the GKWs inject new money into the local economy but are reliant on access to enabling

infrastructure such as high-speed broadband to work from home. The attraction of

GKW has been acknowledged as a key factor in offsetting an ageing population and

youth migration out of regional areas.

The most basic of services, health and education, are becoming increasingly reliant on

internet-based activities for their delivery. The regional cities are often home to health

and education hubs for smaller towns, so it is imperative that all community members

are able to access broadband and ICT infrastructure, so they may take advantage of the

full capacity of these services.

Challenges

• Victoria’s rapidly expanding population is creating inefficiencies that are leading

to expensive congestion costs for the state, discouraging business investment.

• Victoria is competing with other Australian states for Federal Government

infrastructure investment.

• Regional Victoria ICT capacity is coming off a low-base. There is a need to

expand on the services that exist, while ensuring scalability. In order to improve

the competitiveness and liveability of the state, an ‘ahead of time’ approach is

required.


8

• The geographical diversity and settlement patterns of the regional cities creates

issues in ensuring the Australian Broadband Guarantee meets the stated

commitments to provide access to 90 per cent of the population.

• There is a clear lack of understanding of what the actual ICT service and

scalability gap is in the regional cities.

Opportunities

• Encouraging growth and investment in the regional cities has clear social,

environmental and economic benefits for the state. Providing affordable, quality

ICT infrastructure to encourage and support this growth will lead to a more

liveable Victoria.

• ICT infrastructure is proven internationally to increase diversity of industry as it

allows for a modular approach to industry development and attracts industries

in to regional areas.

• ICT infrastructure allows for a more equitable delivery of education and health

services improving the connectivity and social welfare of regional city residents.

• The Federal Government’s new National Broadband Network (NBN) will connect

90 per cent of all Australian homes, schools and workplaces with broadband

services. It is estimated that the rollout will take about eight years. There is an

opportunity for RCV to leverage off the project’s policies by making the strong

economic and social arguments that pushes NBN to the regional areas first.


9

Transport

Context

Efficient public and freight transport networks are needed to support economic growth.

Facilitating the establishment and expansion of new businesses in regional cities will be

heavily dependent on the availability of transport. A key location factor for businesses is

access to markets. Regional cities that have efficient links to ports and airports will be

highly sought after as businesses seek new locations in response to population growth.

Employment creation will drive population growth in regional cities as individuals are

attracted to regional lifestyles complemented with employment choices. However,

employment opportunities will not be sufficient to attract individuals and families to

regional cities. Relocation decisions of individuals will also be made in relation to

transport options in both intra and inter-regional areas. Transport options that include

frequent passenger services to Melbourne that are affordable, easy to use and efficient

will be a key contributor to the sustainable growth for regional Victoria.


Effective and efficient road, rail, air and port links from regional cities are vital to

achieve improved liveability and the increasing productivity of the state.

A key issue for transport investment in regional cities is the variation in the standard,

the type and connectivity available within each city. Regional cities that have received

significant transport infrastructure funding have also reported significant increases in

productivity.

For regional cities to be able to accommodate a share of Victoria’s population growth,

and to continue to be able to increase their contribution to gross state product, world-

class transport infrastructure investment must exist in all regional cities.

Victoria’s regional population is expected to grow by an additional 325,000 persons in

15 years. Growth of this size is like creating an additional Victorian city the size of

Geelong, needing all the services and infrastructure to support that population.

Position statement

Create competitive and connected regional cities that have world-class

integrated, intra-regional transport networks that meet current and future

needs.


10

Whilst the Melbourne centric focus of the current public transport system is very

important for regional cities, greater connectivity between the regions is also

imperative. This is a consequence of the current trend to centralise employment

opportunities, education and community services in regional cities.

Transport options that include frequent passenger services to Melbourne that are

affordable, easy to use and efficient, will be a key contributor to the sustainable growth

of regional Victoria.

In addition to the movement of people, the Victorian freight task is expected to grow by

97 per cent between now and 2030. This will increase pressure on the metropolitan

transport network, which is expected to have to cope with an estimated eight million

containers by 2035, quadrupling today’s volumes. These containers will head to and

from the ports with much of the movement emanating from or through regional cities.

Reliable and well connected access to the major ports of Melbourne and Geelong, play a

critical role in the prosperity, economic growth and stability for regional Victoria.

Regional Cities have the land capacity to accommodate an increased population and

freight task. There is a need to build upon established infrastructure to support growth

in the regions, ensuring Victoria remains competitive, while increasing its productivity

and liveability.

Challenges

Public transport

• The variance in reliable public transport that connects regional cities to their

regional towns and Melbourne increases the community’s reliance on personal

transport. This has shown to create inefficient bottlenecks in the State’s freight

transport network.

• To achieve fast passenger rail services state-wide, rail standardisation of 100 per

cent of Victoria’s rail network needs to be undertaken.

• There is a clear lack of understanding of the specific public transport service gap

across the regional Victorian cities.

Freight transport

• Regional produce and freight is almost entirely moved by road transport,

resulting in rapidly deteriorating road networks, increased emissions, road

trauma and congestion through regional cities. Moving freight on to rail will

help with these challenges, but this requires:


11

− access charges to encourage private providers;

− re-investment in the State in rolling stock;

− strategically located intermodal freight facilities/logistic hubs providing

coordinated linkages to port facilities; and

− highway bypasses of regional cities to separate trucks from CBD’s and

residential areas.

• Until Freight Action Plans are complete for each regional city it will be difficult to

ascertain the level of freight transport investment required in each regional city.

Opportunities

• Regional cities have the land capacity to accommodate an increased population and

freight task over and above what is being currently forecast. The cities have

established infrastructure which can be built upon to support the state’s growth.

• Investment in transport infrastructure has proven to increase investment

opportunities and the efficiencies of that regional city.

Freight transport

• Providing a standard of world-class transport across regional cities ahead of time

provides an opportunity to relieve the pressure on Victoria’s transport network,

particularly in metropolitan routes.

Public transport

• Providing affordable, efficient public transport across regional cities ahead of time

encourages growth in the regional cities, reliving population pressures on

Melbourne.


12

Position statement

Create regional cities with high quality services and lifestyle infrastructure, so they

are considered liveable alternatives to metropolitan Melbourne.

Lifestyle

Context

Australia continues to experience high population growth. Figures released by the

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) March 2009 Quarter show Australia’s growth rate

has almost doubled in the past five years, reaching 2.1 per cent.

These figures also show that Victoria’s 2.1 per cent growth rate matched the Australian

average. The state is well on its way to reaching a projected population of 8.5 million

people by the year 2056. This means that an additional 2.7 million people will need to

be accommodated and serviced in Melbourne. Population growth of this size will be a

difficult task to manage.

Research shows that Victoria’s regional cities have the capacity to accommodate an

increased share of the state’s population growth over and above what is being forecast

for the regions. Encouraging growth in the regions will ease the pressure of population

growth in Victoria’s largest city Melbourne.

The provision of modern lifestyle infrastructure is an essential element in attracting and

retaining people to regional areas.

Why is this priority area?

Regional Victoria has the capacity to be the liveable alternative to Melbourne.

Victoria’s regional cities provide access to jobs, health care, transport networks,

education, land availability and a vast supply of natural amenity. However to become a

true alternative to metropolitan Melbourne, a vibrant culture, modern community

infrastructure, facilities and services are required.

Metropolitan residents who may consider the move to a regional city have become

accustomed to high quality lifestyle infrastructure such as arts and culture centres,

entertainment and shopping precincts, a culture of food and wine and efficient public

transport networks. Regional cities must offer these lifestyle benefits and choices.

The revitalisation and modernisation of a regional city, however, is costly and beyond

the capacity of one or even two levels of government to fund alone.


13

Investment of this nature will require a partnership approach from all levels of

government that is based around a policy of regional cities being the future drivers of

growth and prosperity, coupled with sound regional planning and a long-term

commitment to funding.

Challenges

• Agreement from the three levels of government that regional cities are the

future drivers for growth and prosperity.

• Obtaining a whole-of-government approach to infrastructure and service

delivery in regional areas.

• Securing long-term funding to support lifestyle development in regional cities.

Opportunities

• Regional cities have the capacity to accommodate growth over and above what

is currently being forecast.

• Regional cities have established services and infrastructure which can be built

upon to accommodate population growth.

• Investing in the economic liveability and community liveability of regional cities

will attract people to the regions relieving the strain on an overcrowding

Melbourne.


14

Position statement

Create liveable regional cities with a diverse range of employment and training

opportunities that generates innovation and drives economic growth

Workforce planning, employment and skills development

Context

Australia’s ageing population will produce a high level of skill shortages in the next

decade as the baby boomer generation moves into retirement. The health, engineering,

construction, transport and agriculture sectors have been identified as areas where this

shortage will be felt most prominently in regional areas

Investment attraction plays an important role in maintaining and building economic

prosperity in regional cities. A diverse, innovative, skilled workforce is crucial to an

expanding economy.

In Victoria’s regional cities the skills shortages are already creating employment

pressures. Skills shortages reduce investment opportunities and can send a regional

economy into decline.


Regional areas are projected to be impacted severely by an ageing population as

demographic profiling shows there is a trend for youth to migrate out of regional areas,

to pursue their professional and education opportunities.

Skilled overseas workers, through skilled migration programs, will play an increasingly

important role in developing a sustainable labour force and growing the population of

regional cities into the future. New residents often bring a diversity of skills currently in

short supply to many regional cities. Improved university and TAFE facilities located in

regional cities have shown to increase local skills advancement as well as the retention

and attraction of skilled labour.

As Australia’s growth rates continue to climb, increased population will create

congestion and inefficiency pressures in metropolitan Melbourne. These pressures

highlight a strategic opportunity for the regional cities to accommodate an additional

share of our state’s growth while easing regional skills shortages.


15

Regional cities must have high levels of liveability to aid in attraction and retention of

skilled workers and their families. The importance of: café culture, cosmopolitan dining,

and diversity in culture and the arts as well as access to health, education, transport and

communication technologies cannot be underestimated in a person’s decision on where

they will live.

Challenges

• Regional Victorian youth often have to move away from their homes to pursue

tertiary education, trades and professional employment opportunities in

metropolitan areas. This often pushes regional residents with the aptitude to

drive innovation and growth into metropolitan areas.

• Changes to Government policy since the Global Financial Crisis have altered

skilled migration policies to reduce general skilled migration intakes. This has led

to an increase in enquiry from regional employers to the Global Skills for

Regional Victoria program across the State.

• The biggest issue in retaining skilled migration workers in regional areas is

spousal unhappiness. Connecting the whole family to the services and

community within a regional city is very important. These settlement issues are

consistent with non-migrant newcomers to regional area.

• While regional cities have established services and infrastructure, competing

with those available in metropolitan areas is a difficult task.

Opportunities

• All levels of Government are committed to increasing the availability of skilled

labour in regional areas through policy intervention.

• Increasing the liveability of regional cities through infrastructure and services will

help to attract and retain a skilled population.

• Strong partnerships with education providers, peak business and industry

groups, will ensure training is relevant to each regional city.


16

Position statement

To have land-use planning frameworks and funding streams that enable a response to

growth to create attractive, affordable, sustainable and well-serviced regional cities

Land-use and planning

Context

Long-term planning for transport, housing, infrastructure and employment is central to

effective growth in Victoria’s regional cities. Planning is vital to deliver liveable,

productive, and sustainable regional cities.

Population growth has social, economic and environmental implications that need to be

considered and balanced when deciding the most desirable land-use and planning

outcomes.

There is the need to develop appropriate planning mechanisms to deal with more

intensive land-use while balancing heritage, environmental and community perceptions,

and securing adequate land for future residential and industrial growth.

Why is this a priority?

325, 000 additional people will be living in regional Victoria in the next 15 years. This is

equal to creating a new city the size of Geelong, with all the infrastructure and services

required to support that population. Even with these projected figures, Victoria’s

regional cities have the land availability to attract an additional share of the state’s

expanding population. Increased population growth however, needs to be matched with

increases in infrastructure and service investment.

Population growth creates changes in land-use; this impact needs to be understood in

order to provide appropriate services, housing and employment infrastructure. To

maintain regional centres as attractive places and achieve higher housing density,

greater attention to urban design is required.

Challenges

• No funding for regional areas exists to undertake structure planning, design

guidance or set infrastructure provision standards. There is a provision for this in

the Melbourne 2030 Strategy.


17

• Regional cities do not have a large rate base to provide for the future requirements

of a growing population. Growth areas require major infrastructure upgrades which

are also timed with key infrastructure planning and investment from government.

The lack of Development Contribution Plans flat charge per hectare only increases

these pressures.

• Regional cities face complex planning issues with limited staff and budgets, coupled

with limited assistance from state authorities. There is acknowledgment of the

limitations and confusion of the current planning scheme in regional Victoria

however, this issue has not been addressed.

Opportunities

• The vast supply of land in regional areas can be used to address growth challenges.

• An efficient and effective planning scheme for regional areas can address

bottlenecks and increase the state’s productivity.

• A collaborative working relationship with all levels of government can address

population challenges.

What is needed to achieve these requirements?

• Work collaboratively with State and Federal governments to plan future land-use.

• Ensure there is State government funding and staff involvement in regional cities

structure planning.

• Provide funding assistance for the provision of key infrastructure required for

growth.

• Improvement of online access to planning information.

• More facilitated planning processes including the ability to develop regional

planning policies.

• Simplification of Development Contribution Plans and flat charge per hectare.

• Resources to respond to key environmental challenges in areas experiencing growth

such as coastal vulnerability assessments, flood studies, landscape and

environmental assessments.


18

Summary

Established infrastructure and services already exist in regional cities; building upon

these will meet the needs of a growing Victorian population. RCV believes this

submission demonstrates an exciting planning opportunity for Victoria. Supporting and

funding policies that encourage regional growth will disperse investment, employment

and prosperity across Victoria.

RCV recommends that the Government continue its record of making Victoria’s regions

a priority for investment and policy intervention programs. This investment will ensure

our regional cities are true liveable alternatives to Melbourne, allowing Victoria to grow

sustainably and continue our strong history as an economic powerhouse.

regional and rural disadvantage submission · effective and efficient road, rail, air and port...

Documents