Australia’s National Local Government Newspaper LGFocus.com.au
NOVEMBER 2024
Lola in the hot seat A submission for an integrated ferry service covering the entire River Derwent saw the author don the Children’s Mayoral robes for this year.
Lola Mennitz in the Hobart Lord Mayor’s chair at the Town Hall Council Chambers. (Supplied)
Children’s Mayor 2024 is Lola Mennitz, a 12-year-old student from The Friends’ School, pictured with Hobart Lord Mayor Anna Reynolds. (Supplied)
Lola Mennitz, a 12-year-old student from The Friends’ School, was this year’s City of Hobart Children’s Mayor 2024. Lola’s submission, titled One side to the other, a matter of time before you decide, proposes a service that links both sides of the river and the northern and southern suburbs, complementing Metro bus services. Joining Lola was Alice Plimpton, also 12, from Lansdowne Crescent Primary School, as the Children’s Deputy Lord Mayor. Alice’s submission, Let’s paint our city with endangered flora and fauna to brighten and educate, calls for the creation of murals around Hobart, showcasing local endangered species to increase happiness, wellbeing, and awareness of Hobart’s unique natural environment. Hobart Lord Mayor Anna Reynolds said this year’s Children’s Week celebrates Article 24 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, focusing on the right to a safe and clean environment. “These young leaders are not only passionate about Hobart’s future but also bring forward ideas that are creative and meaningful,” the Lord Mayor said.
Closer ties needed Local Government Areas will look to provide local solutions to national issues and need to partner more with the Federal Government according to new ALGA president Matt Burnett. By Tania Phillips Councillor Burnett, mayor of Gladstone in Queensland, took over the role a month ago and has since also been voted in as president of the Queensland Local Government peak body. The new ALGA head believes it’s important for the Local Government Sector to work more closely with the Federal Government - something that has happened sporadically in the past but needed to happen more often.
Local councils provide a myriad of services that the Federal Government has no idea they look after, he said. “We provide the largest road network, we provide most of the community infrastructure and a lot of the service delivery of services that might be the responsibility of the private sector in cities but if they’re not doing it in a regional centre then the councils pick up the tab,” he said. “Roads, rates and rubbish – that conversation is long gone. We are far more than that and
have been for a long time now.” One of the major issues facing councils at the present time is financial sustainability or financial assistance. “We obviously have been arguing with the Federal Government for an increase in financial assistance in advance of one per cent and we aren’t walking away from that,” Cr Burnett said. “But what we really need is untied funding. “We need the Federal Government to give us funding, as councils, that we can use to
spend in our communities where we see fit, whether that is to fund the librarian, whether that is to do some maintenance on a road or whether it’s to build a water reservoir or sewage pump. “It’s all well and good to have competitive funding rounds where councils can compete against each other for community centres and other things and nice things people can cut ribbons with. Continued page 3
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