Final Report of ERRN LG Research Group: Melbourne Democracy - Marvellous? 2015 Page 1 Final Report of ERRN LG Research Group: Melbourne Democracy - Marvellous? TABLE OF CONTENTS Abbreviations and Acronyms .................................................................................................................. iii Preface ....................................................................................................................................................... iv Acknowledgements................................................................................................................................. iv Research Team ...................................................................................................................................... iv Disclaimer Statement .............................................................................................................................. iv Ethics Approval ........................................................................................................................................ v Executive Summary .................................................................................................................................... vi Objectives and Methodology .................................................................................................................. vi Summary of Main Findings, Conclusions and Recommendations ......................................................... vii Report Structure ..................................................................................................................................... ix 1. Introduction to the Report ................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Research Questions ..................................................................................................................... 2 1.2 Research Outputs ........................................................................................................................ 3 2. Literature Survey ................................................................................................................................ 4 2.1 Connectivity.................................................................................................................................. 6 2.2 Inter-dependence ......................................................................................................................... 6 2.3 Feedback ..................................................................................................................................... 6 2.4 Emergence ................................................................................................................................... 7 2.5 Varieties of Democracy and Democratisation .............................................................................. 7 2.6 Franchise in local government ..................................................................................................... 9 2.7 Understanding the Operation of Local Government Democracy ................................................ 10 2.8 Citizens Juries, Citizens Panels or Peoples Panels in Australia ................................................. 13 2.9 Participatory Budgeting in other Jurisdictions ............................................................................. 15 2.10 Participatory and Representative Democracy......................................................................... 18 3. Team’s Methodology ........................................................................................................................ 20 3.1 Data Gathering ........................................................................................................................... 20 3.2 Data Analysis ............................................................................................................................. 22 4. Limitations of the Research .............................................................................................................. 23 5. Understanding the Setting ................................................................................................................ 24 5.1 The City of Melbourne’s Electoral System .................................................................................. 24 5.2 The City of Melbourne’s Historical Background .......................................................................... 25 5.3 Interstate and International Comparisons................................................................................... 28 5.4 2012 Melbourne City Council Election ....................................................................................... 33 Page i Final Report of ERRN LG Research Group: Melbourne Democracy - Marvellous? 6. Research Findings: Franchise .......................................................................................................... 38 6.1 Franchise: Surveys for Individual Stakeholders ......................................................................... 38 6.2 Franchise: Focus Groups ........................................................................................................... 47 6.3 Franchise: Interviews ................................................................................................................. 47 6.4 Franchise: Conclusion ................................................................................................................ 50 7. Research Findings: Participation ...................................................................................................... 53 7.1 Participation: Surveys ................................................................................................................ 53 7.2 Participation: Survey Comments ................................................................................................ 64 7.3 Participation: Focus Groups ....................................................................................................... 65 7.4 Participation: Interviews ............................................................................................................. 66 7.5 Participation: Findings ................................................................................................................ 66 7.6 Participatory Democracy in Melbourne....................................................................................... 66 7.7 Principles of Effective Participation ............................................................................................ 80 7.8 Good Examples of Participation ................................................................................................. 85 7.9 Good Engagement in the City of Melbourne .............................................................................. 87 7.10 Limitations of Participation ...................................................................................................... 89 7.11 Participation and Local Government Interest Groups ............................................................. 92 8. Research Findings: Engagement with Stakeholders ........................................................................ 94 8.1 Relationships in MCC: Findings ................................................................................................. 94 8.2 Influence of Interest Groups in Local Government ................................................................... 109 8.3 Participation and Stakeholder Conclusions .............................................................................. 110 8.4 MCC Relationships With Other Stakeholders ....................................................................... 112 9. Conclusions, Findings and Recommendations ............................................................................... 113 10. Directions for Further Research .................................................................................................. 115 Appendices ............................................................................................................................................. 116 Appendix 1: Individual Online Survey 2 Instrument ............................................................................ 116 Appendix 2: Organisation Online Survey Instrument .......................................................................... 120 Appendix 3: Focus Group Questions .................................................................................................. 124 Appendix 4: Guide for Face-to-Face Interviews .................................................................................. 125 Appendix 5: Varieties of Democracy Project by Numbers .................................................................. 126 Appendix 6: The 12 principles for good governance at local level ...................................................... 127 Appendix 7: Boundaries of City of Melbourne ..................................................................................... 130 Appendix 8: MCC Annual Plan and Budget 2014-2015 - extract ........................................................ 131 References ............................................................................................................................................. 134 Legislation ..........................................................................................................................................