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Inquiry
into Regional Centres of the Future by the Rural and Regional
Committee of the Victorian Parliament
GENERAL
STATEMENT
To
achieve its potential Victoria must become a vibrant, integrated
community with its various sectors contributing positively, the
rural areas able to grow strong and make a varied and positive
contribution to the life of the whole State. Melbourne is growing
too quickly, suffering significant congestion problems, all the
while drawing many of the brightest and best out of country areas.
Rural areas must be enabled to play an increasingly important role
in our State’s development.
REGIONAL
CENTRES
Targeting
existing significant regional centres for future development is
necessary if we are to provide critical bases for growth in
industry, health, tourism, and lifestyle generally. These centres
should be chosen for being geographically appropriate for their
surrounding community and the following five existing large centres
Bendigo, Ballarat, Geelong, Latrobe City and Albury-Wodonga are
appropriate. If adequate support is to be provided for growth, the
number of chosen centres must be limited. Other significant but
smaller cities such as Mildura, Shepparton, Horsham, Portland and
Warrnambool can be encouraged to build on their present achievements
and potential, but receive second tier support.
High
standard facilities such as health services, transport, education,
housing, sporting arenas, and arts centres must be present at each
of these centres. The centres must have the infrastructure to cope
with significant increase in population, and adequate water supply
is currently an issue that must be addressed at the five proposed
major growth centres. The aim would be to make the regional centres
strong, able to attract investment and migration in their own right,
thus taking the stress off Melbourne by delivering a lifestyle at
least as attractive as that offered by the capital.
All of these centres are currently growing but
they need assistance to increase this growth. A special effort must
be made to increase the popularity of these centres by ensuring they
meet the needs of a modern society. They can become centres of
support for their surrounding regional areas, providing
sophisticated and general employment opportunities, and giving
support in areas such as health and education to outlying areas.
The
possibilities and needs of Latrobe City are examined below, but much
of what is noted also applies to other regional centres.
ðEconomic
Base
If a regional city is to
be viable its economic base must be strong and diverse to cater for
the varied needs of a growing population. Latrobe City has its
electricity generation base but it also has many other thriving
enterprises. This is a good start but it needs to increase the
number and variety if it is to become attractive to potential new
enterprises and provide adequate employment opportunities for an
increasingly varied population base. A substantial increase in
professional, technical and semi-skilled jobs is needed to offset
the losses following the privatisation of the electricity industry
in the 1990s. Current unemployment rates of up to 10% in Morwell
and Moe must not be allowed to continue. The former Pro Vice
Chancellor of Monash University Gippsland, John Anderson, stated
that he had spoken with a number of high-tech industry people who
would have been prepared to start up in this area provided the
required number of high quality graduates were available. The
university could not provide the very large number required, and as
a result the prospective enterprises moved to where the staff would
be available - most likely to Melbourne.
At present there is no chance Monash Gippsland
alone can supply the high-level staff numbers required. A solution
must be found: Can we recruit those required from other areas
including Melbourne? If this were attempted the infrastructure of
Latrobe City including housing would have to be built up to
accommodate the extra numbers. In the past the SECV attracted large
numbers – could this be done again?
The local power industry does not employ the
large numbers it once did, but there is the opportunity to take
advantage of the demands for clean energy. Research on uses for
brown coal other than for steam generation must be accelerated. The
vast deposits in the Latrobe Valley represent a high value carbon
source which must be utilised in the national interest, but existing
tension between protection of known untapped coal deposits and
residential land requirements must be resolved. Reduction of
greenhouse gas emissions is a critical issue for the Latrobe
Valley. Concentrated research and development effort is needed to
identify effective carbon capture measures. Siting the State Clean
Coal Authority in the Valley is strongly supported, as is Latrobe
City’s recommendation to site the Federal arm of the Global
Institute on Carbon Capture in this area. Monash University
Gippsland is a leading player in clean energy research and, with
appropriate government and industry support, can play a vital role
in meeting the challenges facing our nation.
ðTransport
Latrobe City is reasonably
well served by rail and road, and has an airport, but there is a
crying need for the long-awaited intermodal transport centre to be
established. Latrobe City bus services are extensive but there is a
need for improvement especially to give service to outlying areas
and at weekends.
ðEducation
Quality education
services are essential if a regional centre is to meet the varied
needs of a vital, attractive regional centre.
Latrobe City is
adequately served at the primary and secondary level by a good range
of Government, Catholic and Independent schools, but considerable
expansion in number and quality would be required to serve a
significant increase in population. Monash University Gippsland,
GippsTAFE, Gippsland Group Training, and i-Gain are the major
tertiary providers and they cooperate well with the secondary
sector. This is exemplified by the Kurnai College Precinct located
in the grounds of Monash Gippsland and served by the University,
GippsTAFE, and Gippsland Group Training. It is essential that both
Monash University Gippsland and GippsTAFE receive the necessary
support to expand their current course provision. Monash University
is ideally placed to be the leader in research connected with
Climate Change issues.
The learning needs of
retired people must be catered for. The LV U-3-A Inc., a branch of
a worldwide organisation, provides interest classes for over 250
people no longer in the workforce. U-3-A and other organisations
such as Neighbourhood Houses will have to be able to extend their
programs and staffing to cater for a large population with varied
needs.
ðTourism
A successful regional
centre must be attractive to its own community and to visitors.
This requires a sophisticated range of services. Included in these
services would be first class and adequate accommodation for
visitors, a convention centre, good transport, and a first rate
tourism advisory service. A successful regional centre must ensure
its cultural and heritage icons are well presented and
enthusiastically promoted by local people who take pride in them.
Latrobe City has made a
start in addressing these issues but much more needs to be done.
All regional centres can learn from the best of what is done in
other places in Australia and overseas.
ðHealth
Without
the provision of high-level health services no regional centre can
hope to succeed. A major hospital with the required range of
services is essential. Latrobe Regional Hospital provides this
range of services, but even now is struggling to cater for the
needs of our current population, and an urgently required
significant expansion of services has been recently announced. Maryvale Private Hospital provides
supplementary services. Latrobe Community Health coordinates a
wide range of health initiatives.
It is difficult to
attract high level staff to regional hospitals, but this problem can
be alleviated if the physical facilities are of high standard and
the range of sophisticated procedures offered is extensive.
Major regional areas can
provide support for smaller towns in their area by catering for
serious health problems and by providing support and advice for
areas with limited health provision. An example is that a doctor in
a small neighbouring town could live in Latrobe City and commute
daily to he is in practice. Doctors from Latrobe could spend
extended periods working in regional towns.
ðArts
and Entertainment
A
wide range of leisure provision is necessary. People will not
relocate to regional areas if they perceive them to be cultural
deserts. The lack of quality facilities and an inadequate range of
interest clubs and leisure activities are widely seen as a feature
of existing regional centres resulting in their being compared
unfavourably with Melbourne in this regard. Latrobe City has the
Regional Arts Centre, fine sporting fields and facilities, and a
Performing Arts Centre. In addition there is a wide range of events
each month. This is a start, but when compared with what can be
offered by Melbourne, it falls short. We cannot match Melbourne but
if we are vigilant in identifying the needs and then meeting them,
we will be able to satisfy most. An excellent public transport
service for those who wish to attend events in Melbourne would
encourage people to live in our area and still have good access to
what Melbourne offers.
ðCatering
for Youth
Regional areas have had
increasing difficulty in retaining their young people. They move to
Melbourne for a range of reasons – education, work, and lifestyle.
As a result many country areas are overwhelmingly inhabited by older
people.
To prevent this exodus
major regional centres offering the advantages provided by
Melbourne, must be developed to retain existing young residents and
attract young people from Melbourne. Although many young people go
to Melbourne many of them would prefer to remain locally if the
required facilities were available.
ðAction
Program
The Commonwealth and State
Governments must commit to the policy of promoting specific regional
growth centres and put in place significant policies to ensure their
well-balanced continuing growth. An example of this effective
targeting is the choice in the 1970s of Albury/Wodonga as a growth
centre.
The local Municipal Council
must accept responsibility for identifying the needs of a growing
community, provide the local necessary community services, and work
with governments and industry to ensure growth and lifestyle meet
the varied needs of a growing society.
The community must be
alert to its own needs. A wide range of community clubs, societies
must exist to meet the interests of citizens and promote the
attractiveness of the area.
Appropriate businesses and
industries must be targeted to come to the area. Successful
existing local businesses can be cited as examples. AKZ is an
example of a major successful local business that once contemplated
moving to Dandenong, but after examining all factors decided its
interests were better served by remaining in Morwell. The targeting
of businesses specifically related to existing power and clean
energy is an obvious task for Governments, Council, existing
businesses, GippsTAFE, and Monash University.
ðConclusion
For its own sake and
for the good of the rest of Victoria Melbourne must not be allowed
to grow at its present rate. Because we cannot expect small
regional centres to provide the range and quality of facilities to
attract the drivers of growth and lifestyle such as industry,
health, education, arts and entertainment, well-resourced existing
major regional centres can be promoted as equal or superior areas
for work and living.
Attached
is an article by David O’Brien published in the “Age” on
Tuesday September 16, in which he states that Ireland offers a model
for taking pressure off Melbourne while still allowing the state to
develop and the population to rise.
This Submission was presented on behalf of
Advance Morwell
P O Box 1061
Morwell 3840
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