THE Victorian Government has been urged to correct the “scandalous injustice” that has adversely impacted Mildura ratepayers.
Member for Mildura Ali Cupper told State Parliament this week that rural and regional ratepayers had been constantly required to shoulder the burden of inescapable upward cost pressures caused by geographical isolation and sparse population.
Ms Cupper said that while there was a review under way, “we have seen this many times before and nothing changes”.
“My community needs this parliament to get serious about regional rate reform,” she said.
“It is a scandalous injustice that a ratepayer in Mildura with a modest house in a region that has been economically devastated by COVID-19 should have to pay twice the rates of the owner of a million-dollar mansion in Geelong,” she said.
Ms Cupper said that for many years highly respected former local government chief executive, commissioner and inspector Merv Whelan had urged successive governments to act on rate reform.
“He has produced highly sophisticated modelling and systems to show how it can be done — there is a way to fix this.
“The impact on city ratepayers would be negligible, but it would be truly game-changing for rural and regional ratepayers.
Ms Cupper said the experience of COVID-19 had highlighted the unique vulnerabilities of Mildura’s isolated region.
“It made me understand the gravity of my responsibility in the next two years to maximise my electorate’s role in statewide policy development.
“It brought home to me the importance and the urgency of having a more central place at the table.
“It was the issue that inspired me to join the Reason coalition and I look forward to changing the game again in 2021.”
