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Mildura Weekly : Friday June 27 Vol 8 No 34
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Mildura Weekly – 27/06/14 3 www.milduraphonebook.com.au By BEN PISCIONERI MILDURA Rural City Council’s finances were once again in the spotlight this week following the release of a new external report on its financial health. The report was commis- sioned by Council and prompt- ed by an earlier investigation by prominent La Trobe Univer- sity accounting academic, Larry O’Connor. Mr O’Connor’s 5000-page report, Reading the Signs, was re- leased last month, painting a pic- ture of a Council with debt levels that were too high and held over terms that were too long. The report also stated Coun- cil’s cash reserves were danger- ously low and that Council was “spending more than it was earning,” with a heavy reliance on rates and charges, which were among the highest among simi- lar-sized municipalities. Council defended its finan- cial practices at the time and has since appointed experienced Local Government consultants, Merv and Rohan Whelan, to conduct an external review of its financial sustainability. The results of the review were released this week ahead of last night’s monthly Mildura Coun- cil meeting. Some of the key findings of the Whelan report were: • That Council’s relative spending ratio “approximates” the State average. • Its use of rates and charges was higher than most councils. • That Council was projected to achieve a balanced operating position and that its 2011 operat- ing result compared favourably with more than 60 percent of councils. • That Council’s level of asset renewal and upgrade was ranked 22nd out of 79 councils. • That Council’s borrowings would drop from 43 percent to 27 percent in the 10 years to 2017 and that its borrowings complied with legislation and satisfied the financial criteria set by authorities. • That rates and charges on assessable properties would in- crease by about 4.5 percent and that the “portrayal” of a 5.8 per- cent total increase previously publicised was misleading. • That Council’s spending in the wake of the 2011 major flood event had skewed the perception of its spending levels which were “misleading described as haem- orrhaging.’ The man who triggered the Whelan report, Larry O’Connor, responded to the report’s find- ings this week, saying that 21 of the reported 36 findings were consistent with his own work. However, Mr O’Connor was critical of the fact that the con- sultants acknowledged they had not read his entire Reading the Signs report, had only reviewed 16 of 943 findings in the report, and that Council’s use of exces- sively long debt terms had not been addressed. He added that much of the data used to evaluate Council’s performance was based on the 2007- 2011 period despite more recent data being available, which was included in his report. Another issue raised this week was the fact the reviewer’s authors are related to Council’s manager for Corporate Services, Mandy Whelan. Mildura Mayor Glenn Milne said the relationship did not rep- resent a conflict of interest and that Council had thoroughly in- vestigated its obligations. “We’ve spoken to the Gov- ernment Inspectorate about our procurement process and all the measures that were taken,” Cr Milne said, adding that Ms Whelan was precluded from be- ing involved in the report pro- cess. “That process has been dis- cussed with the Inspectorate and it is all correct and above board. “At the end of the day, we wanted the best person for the job. We knew it would be raised as an issue, so we followed the process strictly and correctly and there is no conflict there. That has been checked and double checked, and we instigated that before anyone else raised the is- sue.” Cr Milne said Merv Whelan was selected to complete the re- port because he was the “most experienced, most trusted and listened to analyst of local gov- ernment in Victoria, if not Aus- tralia.” He said the Whelan report showed Council had met its re- quirements under the Local Gov- ernment Act, and that Council was in a good financial position. “We’ve addressed what we needed to and it wouldn’t mat- ter what we did, you’d still have knockers out there who don’t believe anything that’s positive about Council,” Cr Milne said. “We’ve got internal auditors, we’ve got a highly respected and trusted expert in local govern- ment saying Council’s sitting where it should and compared to a whole number of councils we’re sitting line ball. In the midst of that, we’re better off than a lot of councils.” City’s finances under scrutiny • FINANCED: Mildura Rural City Council Mayor Glenn Milne, left, said the Whelan report vindicates Council’s financial strategy. Meanwhile, La Trobe University accounting academic Larry O’Connor was critical of some aspects of the Whelan report this week. FEDERAL Member for Mallee Andrew Broad voiced his opposition in Parliament this week to his government’s plans to eventu- ally raise the pension age to 70. Describing the move as “a fairly blunt tool to address what is a significant struc- tural problem right across our country,” Mr Broad said the increase would unfairly im- pact on manual workers in particular. He said studies had shown one in three manual workers don’t live to 65, meaning many workers would die before they were able to access the pension. “It would be remiss of me not to defend the people I have worked with in shearing sheds and in manual works right across the country,” Mr Broad said in Parliament. “I know the physical toll that work takes on people. I think we need to be smarter in how we look at issues to do with retirement benefits into the future.” Mr Broad said increasing the pension age to 70 would return Australia to the 1920s, when the retirement pension was first introduced at 65, when life expectancy was 63. “I hold the firm view that people believe that Australians work hard and that those whose bodies have given up and who do not have retirement savings should be able to access the pension at 67, and not 70,” he said. Mr Broad said while he agreed reform was needed to better fund Australia’s ageing population, the government needed to look at other measures. “I think 67 years is adequate. I do stand by and defend all the manual workers in my electorate, and I have been one,” he said. Broad stands firm on pension age Your Business Specialist Make YOUR BUSINESS STAND OUT IN THE CrOWD Printing, Publishing, Signage, Promotion, Packaging & Design Prices start at ~ 5 cents PALLETS JUST ARRIVED IMPORTED UK SWEETS BOILED SWEETS JUBES CHOCOLATES LICORICE LOLLYPOPS RASPBERRY UMBRELLAS ROSEY APPLES HUMBUGS NZ LINES Lots of luscious chocolates Silver or Foil Hearts $4.40 @160g Bags Cheap as Chips and Great for Weddings & Christenings 227 Tenth Street MILDURA Call 0400 017 387 FOR ALL YOUR CANDY BUFFET NEEDS Our premises are currently undergoing Renovations. 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