Many Australians in recent years have questioned the continued relevance of state governments in the Australian political and government landscape.
Charles Sturt University (CSU) academic Associate Professor Ian Gray will discuss this issue as a key speaker at the Sustainable Economic Growth for Regional Australia (SEGRA) Conference in Albury on the NSW-Victoria border, on Monday 19 August.
“Many Australians see an imbalance in effectiveness among our three levels of government – local, state and federal – with the federal level being the only one to be consistently perceived positively,” says Professor Gray.
“A substantial proportion of Australians, around one-third, have indicated an interest in fundamental change to our federal system. There is no clear direction as to what such change might entail, except that a regionalised form of governance would gain significant popular support.
“While certainly not enough to carry a referendum were one ever to occur, there is a strong suggestion that regional governance should be on the agenda for public debate.”
Professor Gray believes over half of Australians perceive themselves as living in a region.
“Among these people, their sense of belonging to a region is just as strong as their sense of belonging to locality,” he says.
“A similar proportion would consider the creation of a regional government, without necessarily eliminating either the state or local levels, though there is some support for reducing government in Australia from three to two levels.
“The whole federation issue has currency and regionalism has a part to play in the debate,” Professor Gray concludes.
The leader of the Community of Rural Social Researchers in the University’s Institute for Land, Water and Society will deliver his address to the SEGRA Conference at 9.25am in the Albury Convention and Performing Arts Centre, Swift St, Albury.
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