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Ingram Questions Rating Inequity In ParliamentThe impact of local government rates was highlighted in a question to the Premier asked by the Member for Gippsland East, Craig Ingram, in Parliament last week. By news@gippsland - 31st May 2004 - Back to News Mr Ingram asked the Premier to explain why the three regional cities of Greater Bendigo, Ballarat and Greater Geelong pay $86 million more in local government rates and six Gippsland municipalities pay $66 million more than the City of Stonnington, which has almost an equal total property valuation.
"Grants Commission figures show that the valuation of all private property in the City of Stonnington, which encompasses the land between Dandenong Road and the Monash Freeway from Warragul Road to Punt Road, is roughly equal to the valuation of Greater Bendigo, Ballarat and Greater Geelong combined," Mr Ingram said.
"It is almost the same as the valuation of six shires in Gippsland."
In his reply, the Premier confined his comments to the effect of the Commonwealth government’s assistance to local government and the difficulty in getting all governments to agree to change the current format.
Mr Ingram said today that the Premier’s reply was typically evasive.
"The fact is that the rates are high in country areas despite the Commonwealth funds that are supposed to be ‘equalising’ differences between municipalities.
"The big question is why is this 20 square kilometres of land so sought after that it is valued more than the entire cities of Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo combined or alternatively the six Gippsland shires.
"The factors that make the land so valuable are that a freeway, two railway lines, nine tram routes and 14 bus routes service the City of Stonnington, all heavily subsidised by taxpayers at an average of over $400 per head of its population.
"There is any amount of evidence that it is the land, not the buildings, that attracts the high prices paid for real estate. Commonwealth and State government spending on facilities also boost property values.
"Commonwealth and State governments’ financial assistance to local government needs to be based on need, not winning votes in the marginal seats that fringe all of our capital cities," Mr Ingram concluded.
Source: http://gippsland.com/ Published by: news@gippsland.com
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