To Whom It May Concern,

RE: Submission to Senate Economics References Committee inquiry into the indicators of, and impact of, regional inequality in Australia

Edward River Council thanks the Senate Economics References Committee for the opportunity to make a submission.

Edward River Council is located in NSW a short drive from the , approximately 700km south-west from and 300km north of Melbourne. Council represents a community of approximately 9,000 permanent residents across a region covering 8,881 square kilometres, including the town of and the six rural villages of Blighty, , , Mayrung, Pretty Pine and Wanganella.

The Edward River region is one of the most productive irrigation areas in , and the local economy is driven by a strong and diverse agriculture industry spanning a variety of sectors. The agriculture sector is well supported by strong retail, tourism, professional services, manufacturing and construction industries. Edward River’s Gross Regional Product (GRP) at 2016 is estimated at $566.7 million dollars, constituting 4.1 per cent of the GRP for the wider -Murray region.

In making this submission Council have considered the Terms of Reference of the Committee and will directly address three of the points of emphasis highlighted on the review website.

Experiences of individuals and localities of unequal access to opportunities and unequal outcomes in non-metropolitan areas

Council frequently witnesses the impacts of unequal access to opportunities and services:

− Health: Shifts in health policy at both a State and Federal level have reduced the services that are able to be delivered from rural/regional hospitals. Specific 1 | P a g e

examples are frequently seen in Deniliquin where changes to Policy mean that a person aged under 16 with a broken arm is unable to be treated at the Deniliquin hospital. This results in a parent, assuming they have one that is able to do this, to have to travel either two hours to for treatment or one hour to Echuca to access the hospital there. For people that don’t have access to suitable travel arrangements, it becomes incredibly difficult to access these services. For people that do have access to travel, it can still create several issues with parents having to take substantial amounts of time off work to take their children to access health services that are quite basic and should be able to be dealt with in the local community.

The ability to attract and retain Doctors in rural and remote areas is also becoming increasingly difficult. Within the Edward River region, we are constantly fluctuating between just having enough doctors and not having enough doctors. Unfortunately, the gap and cost to subsidise doctors so that they are willing to relocate to rural and remote areas are falling on to Local Government. As an example, in Deniliquin, our Council took out a significant loan and constructed a medical centre to attract doctors. Additionally, we provide financial contributions from time to time to attract doctors. Other locations even more remote than ours are having to pay for houses and vehicles just to attract doctors into their communities.

− Education: For young or old people from the Edward River region, getting access to University means having to relocate and leave town. The closest University is in Bendigo or Albury, both of which are over two hours away. Attending University is increasingly a step that most young people take once they leave School. This ‘hollowing out’ of young people in our community has significant social and economic impacts. It creates situations where whole families leave town to be based closer to education opportunities and creates a gradual reduction in people available for playing sport and reduces money in the local economy to support the retail and hospitality sectors.

Council would like to note in the NSW TAFE sector the positive steps of the NSW Government in currently constructing a ‘Connected Learning Centre’ in Deniliquin. This facility will allow local young people to access TAFE courses anywhere in Australia through a centralised and connected hub based in Deniliquin.

Access to childcare and pre-school teachers in rural and remote areas is also significantly more difficult (supported by anecdotal evidence in Deniliquin and

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through the recently completed Regional Australia Institute Pillars of communities: Service delivery professionals in small Australian towns 1981 – 2011 report). This creates further difficulties for families who if unable to access childcare are unable to have both parents working and in turn have a reduced income to live off. This creates difficulties for the local economy as it reduces the percentage of the population who can work and take up employment opportunities. It also reduces the amount of money available in the local economy to support other businesses.

− Public Transport: Living in rural and remote areas naturally creates longer distances to travel to access services outside of your immediate town or village. The community are accepting of this and understand it will result in a lesser service to that available in metropolitan areas. Unfortunately for our region, accessible public transport even at a basic level is not available outside of Deniliquin. Within the township of Deniliquin there is a bus service and taxis available, however, in the more remote areas of our Local Government Area, there is no access to these services at all. As our community continues to age and with the increased emphasis on ageing in the home as opposed to via health services it becomes increasingly difficult for people to access services and survive in rural and remote areas.

As highlighted in the earlier section regarding health services, public transport to link our community to the nearest health service where residents are continuously referred is also quite poor. Again, this creates a situation where we have community members who desperately need access to quality health services but with their inability to travel they are not getting the help they need. This has further flow-on effects to the local community but also the broader health care sector. For instance, an issue that could have been fixed at a relatively cheap cost is not being resolved and as a result, is only being treated when it is an emergency and the cost to the community and government is significantly higher.

− Connectivity: Mobile and internet connectivity are a further area of unequal access and disadvantage to regional, rural and remote areas. This impacts both economically and socially. From an economic perspective, increasingly to be productive in any industry a stable and fast connection is required for both mobile and internet. Unfortunately, in rural areas, this is often not available. This impacts on the ability of businesses to maintain productivity and efficiency with businesses that do have access to these services.

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Whilst from a social perspective, living in rural areas is far more isolating than metropolitan areas. Often a mobile or internet connection is the only link that some people will have to ‘life outside the farm’. With poor and often no connectivity this can further enhance rural isolation and remove the positive benefits that neighbours and country communities can provide.

Views on the causes of inequality between regions, especially between capital cities and other areas

Everyone who lives in a regional, rural or remote area understands that access and ease of access to services diminishes the further away you choose to live from Capital or Regional Cities. Unfortunately, there have been a few factors over a number of years that continue to widen this gap over and above what the community expect:

− Government Policy: Increasingly at both a State and Federal level service delivery in rural and remote areas is being consolidated to Regional Cities. In the case of Deniliquin over the previous 10-15 years a number of government departments (CSIRO, Primary Industries, Health, Police and Water NSW) have all reduced their presence in Deniliquin and either completely removed their services from our location or their services have been diminished with all management and decision- making roles moved to Albury or Wagga. Every time this happens it removes a well- paying position and usually a strong local family from our region. Every family that leaves naturally reduces enrolment at the school, number of young people playing sport, parents who were involved in community committees etc. This focus on centralising to Regional Cities is still happening constantly. Most recently the Deniliquin Police Station was downgraded and the four ‘top’ roles were relocated to Albury with the subsequent loss of good families. While this example is specific to Deniliquin, the same examples are happening right across rural and remote Australia.

− Population: Rural and remote locations generally have smaller populations than metro or regional areas. These populations are continuing to reduce in the face of centralisation of government services and departments and centralization of private industry. Additionally, the shift in the agricultural industry and move towards less employment within this industry mean that population is on the decline. Unfortunately, with declining population, it means that many of the amenity type services (restaurants, cafes, cinemas etc.) are also reducing. This negatively impacts in a couple of ways. Firstly, it means that more and more people travel to

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larger towns to access these services and whilst there spend money on other essential services e.g. supermarket shopping.

The second impact is that it makes it harder and harder to attract new and qualified people and families to relocate to rural and remote areas. Community amenity and services are important factors in every family decision to relocate somewhere and the reduction in amenity and services available is having a significant impact.

This drain on qualified professionals impacts negatively on the services that are able to be delivered cost-effectively and also erodes the resilience and capacity of the local community. Often you would find that local accountants/school teachers/lawyers etc. would populate the board of the local School or sporting club. Unfortunately, the drain on qualified people also flows on to these community groups and impacts on their ability to function at a high level.

Policy settings which could help address inequality between regions.

Council believes the most significant policy setting that could assist is decentralisation. The submission by the Regional Australia Institute to the Select Committee on Regional Development and Decentralisation highlighted that 83% of Australian Public Service (APS) jobs are based in Capital Cities. Council are of the understanding that while different, similair levels of centralisation are occurring at a State level as well. In NSW there are numerous examples of reducing employment in rural/remote areas and locating them in larger rural cities e.g. Wagga or Albury.

A policy which aimed to decentralise agencies across Australia and progress towards a 50/50 split between APS jobs in Capital Cities and in rural/remote areas would be a great initiative and go a long way to assisting rural communities.

Another Policy position that would assist in rural and remote areas is the establishment between Federal, State and Local Governments, and subsequent funding, of what are fundamental services and access that every Australian should be provided regardless of whether they live in a metropolitan, regional, rural or remote location. Buloke Shire Council in Victoria has been advocating for this type of policy. Highlighting that regardless of where you live access to a number of services should be standard e.g. an all-weather road, meals on wheels, immunisation services, transport for frail people etc. Suitable funding contributions from Federal and State Governments to allow all Local Governments to meet

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these base level services would be required and welcomed by all communities and Local Governments.

Council thanks the Senate Economics References Committee for the opportunity to make a submission. If you have any further questions or would like the additional information we would be happy to respond.

Yours Sincerely,

Cr Norm Brennan Mayor Edward River Council

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