Local governmentin the Australian state ofVictoriaconsists of 79local government areas(LGAs).[1]Also referred to as municipalities, Victorian LGAs are classified as cities (34), shires (38), rural cities (6) and boroughs (1). In general, an urban or suburban LGA is called a city and is governed by a City Council, while a rural LGA covering a larger rural area is usually called a shire and is governed by a Shire Council. Local councils have the same administrative functions and similar political structures, regardless of their classification.[2]
They will typically have an elected council and usually a mayor or shire president responsible for chairing meetings of the council. TheCity of Melbournehas aLord Mayorand Deputy Lord Mayor, who are directly elected, and in the other councils a mayor and deputy mayor are elected by fellow Councillors from among their own number. Since 2017, the mayor of theCity of Greater Geelonghas not been directly elected. There are alsounincorporated areas,consisting of small islands or ski resorts, which are administered either by the state government or management boards.[2]
Council elections are held every four years on the fourth Saturday in October.[3]The last council elections were held on 22 October 2016.[4]An election was not held for the City of Greater Geelong, which was under administration until council elections were held on 27 October 2017.[5]In 2016, 637 local Councillors were elected in the 78 Councils contested.[6]Casual vacancies of councilors are filled bycountbackof the last ballots,[7]except for the Lord Mayor of Melbourne, which is filled by aby-election.
History
editLocal government has existed in Victoria since before its separation fromNew South Walesin 1851. TheTown of Melbournewas established by an Act of the NSW Governor and Legislative Council in 1842[8][9]and theBorough of Geelongwas established in 1849.[10]Both bodies continued after the creation of Victoria as a separate colony, and both later became cities.Road districtswere established under legislation passed in 1853. From 1862 many road districts became shires pursuant to theDistrict Councils Bill 1862.To become a shire, the road district had to be over 100 square miles (260 km2) in size and have annual rate revenue of over £1000.[citation needed]There were 96 road districts or shires created by 1865.[11]
The first Victorian general Act dealing with local government was theLocal Government Actof 1874. The act empowered shires to be established in territories that could financially support them, and boroughs to be established in areas not exceeding 9 square miles (23 km2) with a population of at least 300.[citation needed]Promotion to town or city status was dependent upon the gross revenue of the council. Promotion was not automatic, but it was granted often.[citation needed]
Local government has been referred to in the Victorian constitution since 1979 (sec. IIA). It does not operate as to make Victoria a federation or protect the borders or powers of local government from amendment by executive order or act of parliament. Today, the constitution recognises it "a distinct and essential tier of government" and prohibits a council being dismissed by executive order, but grants significant powers to the state parliament in respect of local government. The clauses have been amended many times by parliament, but since 2006 theConstitution Acthas required a referendum to further alter them.
The currentLocal Government Actdates to 1989 and eliminated administrative distinctions between cities and shires, introduced the category of rural city and removed the possibility of declaring any further boroughs or towns (existing boroughs and towns were retained, although only one, theBorough of Queenscliffe,remains today, the others being abolished with the 1994 restructure). Five shires became rural cities but were dissolved with the 1994 restructure.
In 1992, there were 65 cities in Victoria. In 1994, theJeff Kennettgovernment restructured local government in Victoria. His reforms dissolved 210 councils and sacked 1600 elected councillors, and created 78 new councils through amalgamations.[12][13]In suburbanMelbourne53 municipalities were reduced to 26. The new local government areas (LGAs) were headed by commissioners appointed by the State Government. Democratically elected councils returned in 1996.[14]
The 79th LGA was created in 2002 when theShire of Delatitewas split into theRural City of Benallaand theShire of Mansfield.[12]A newCity of Sunburywas proposed to be created from part of theCity of Humeafter the 2016 council elections, but this was abandoned by the Victorian Government in October 2015.[15][16]
General characteristics
edit
All local government areas (i.e. cities, rural cities, shires and boroughs) are governed in a similar fashion, with an elected council, one of whom is the mayor (in shires the mayor may use the title "president"; the City of Melbourne has the title "lord mayor" ). TheCity of Melbournehas a directly elected Lord Mayor and Deputy Lord Mayor, whereas other councils elect a mayor from one of their number. TheCity of Greater Geelonghas not had a directly elected mayor since 2017.
Some LGAs are divided into wards for the purpose of electing Councillors. Where a ward elects a single councillor, it is by preferential voting. Where it elects multiple councillors, it is by proportional voting using theSingle Transferable Vote.Voting is in all cases compulsory for enrolled voters. Elections for all councils now happen on the same day every four years—on the fourth Saturday in October two years after state parliamentary elections.
The average area of a municipal district within the Melbourne metropolitan area is 285 square kilometres (110 sq mi); the average area of the remaining municipal districts is 4,545 square kilometres (1,755 sq mi). Despite this area being comparable to the average area of a US or English county, there are no administrative subdivisions such as American towns and cities or English parishes; suburbs (a part of an urban area), towns and rural districts, although legally defined, have a purely geographical existence.
According to theLocal Government Act 1989,the term "city" must be used for a municipal district which is predominantly urban in character. "Rural city" must be used for a rural district which is partly urban and partly rural in character. The term "shire" must be used for a municipal district which is predominantly rural. In practice, this is understood as referring to the population distribution between urban centres and rural areas.
The term "borough", used in theBorough of Queenscliffe,is not defined by the Act but has been retained for the single borough which survived the reforms of the 1990s. Under the repealedLocal Government Act1958, boroughs, towns and cities were defined on the basis of area, population and rateable property. In practice, boroughs were and are small towns.
Political composition
edit
In contrast to ones atfederalandstatelevels, local government elections in Victoria are a generally non-partisan affair. Major political parties typically do not endorse candidates at the council level.[17]This has resulted in a situation where councillors may hold political party affiliation, but instead contest the election as anindependent.These nominal independents have attracted controversy, with their affiliation being branded as insufficiently transparent.[18][19][20]As theVEC,unlike in jurisdictions such asNew South Wales,provides no way for party affiliation to be listed for council elections, candidates appear without any party label on ballot papers.
As a result, the overwhelming majority of councillors in Victoria are independents. The prevalence of independent councillors is generally larger in regional and rural areas, with metropolitan LGAs having a greater number of party-affiliated councillors. Nonetheless, recent trends have seen greater party involvement within local government politics. This participation has been large among smaller parties such as theGreens,with the major political parties subsequently indicating a potential change to their approach to council elections.[17]Variousresidents' associations,community alliances and independent groups also sporadically contest elections.
The political composition of Victorian LGAs following the2024 local electionsis as follows:
| Party | Councillors | |
|---|---|---|
| Independent | 594 | |
| Greens | 28 | |
| Labor | 20 | |
| Libertarian | 2 | |
| Liberal | 1 | |
| Socialist Alliance | 1 | |
| Victorian Socialists | 1 | |
| Total | 647 | |
Municipalities of Greater Melbourne
editThirty-one of the municipalities form the Greater Melbourne area, each being wholly, or partly, within the Melbourne metropolitan or urban area. All Melbourne suburbs lie within these municipalities. The outer of these municipalities such asCardinia ShireandYarra Ranges Shirehave much of their area outside Melbourne's urban area. Greater Melbourne and regional municipalities are sometimes treated differently by state government legislation, for instance the Public Holidays Act permits non-metropolitan councils to replaceMelbourne Cup Daywith a local public holiday.
Unincorporated areas
editIn addition to the LGAs, there are also 9 smallunincorporated areaswithin the state. These comprise both coastal islands and alpine resorts. The coastal islands are:
- French IslandandSandstone IslandincorporatingElizabeth Island[21]
- Gabo Island
- Lady Julia Percy Island
These coastal island unincorporated areas are directly administered by the state of Victoria.
Six alpine resorts are excised from the surrounding shires by declarations made under theAlpine Resorts Act1983 and administered by Alpine Resort Victoria under theAlpine Resorts (Management) Act1997. The alpine resorts are considered to be municipal districts for the purposes of theEmergency Management Act1986 and theEnvironment Protection Act1970.[22]The alpine resorts are:
- Falls Creek Alpine Resort(surrounded by theAlpine Shire)
- Lake Mountain Alpine Resort
- Mount Baw Baw Alpine Resort
- Mount Buller Alpine Resort(surrounded byShire of Mansfield)
- Mount Hotham Alpine Resort
- Mount Stirling Alpine Resort
They are rarely included in lists of local government areas and are not considered to be LGAs by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, with their population included in the unincorporated areas section of such lists,[23]but are occasionally listed alongside municipalities.[24]
See also
edit
References
edit- ^Local Government Act 1989(Vic)
- ^ab"Local Government Areas and Statistical Local Areas – Alphabetic".Australian Standard Geographical Classification (ASGC), Jul 2008.Australian Bureau of Statistics. 26 September 2008.Retrieved31 January2011.
- ^Local Government Act 1989(Vic.), s.31
- ^Municipal Association of Victoria,Council elections
- ^"Geelong Council officially sacked, elections to be held in 2017, as bill passes Parliament".ABC News.Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 14 April 2016.Retrieved28 April2016.
- ^"2016 local government election result trends"(PDF).Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 22 April 2017.Retrieved21 April2017.
- ^"Victorian Electoral Commission v Municipal Electoral Tribunal (No 2) (Review and Regulation) [2017] VCAT 375 (14 March 2017)"(PDF).VCAT. 16 March 2017.Retrieved5 May2017.
- ^Act 6 Victoria No. 7 of the Governor and Legislative Council of New South Wales.
- ^Victorian Municipal Directory.Brunswick:Arnall & Jackson. 1992. pp. 275–278.Accessed atState Library of Victoria,La Trobe Reading Room.
- ^Geelong Incorporation Act(NSW), 13 Vic. No. 40.
- ^The progress of Victoria: A statistical essay (Intercolonial Exhibition essays, 1866–67)by William Henry Archer. ASIN: B0008BRIUG
- ^abRoyce Millar & Jason Dowling (25 April 2004)."Kennett's blitz a decade on".The Age.theage.com.au.Retrieved24 July2010.
- ^"Information Paper: Victorian Local Government Amalgamations 1994-95: Changes to the Australian Standard Geographical Classification"(PDF).Australian Bureau of Statistics.1 August 1995.
- ^"Municipal Government".eMelbourne – The Encyclopedia of Melbourne Online.www.emelbourne.net.au.Retrieved24 July2010.
- ^"Overview of the Sunbury Hume Transition Audit".Sunbury Hume Transition Audit.State Government of Victoria. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016.Retrieved13 July2016.
{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^"Independent Sunbury Hume Advice Accepted".Premier of Victoria.Retrieved13 July2016.
- ^ab"Melbourne council elections: Strong Greens vote poses questions for Labor, Liberals - ABC News".ABC News.24 October 2016.
- ^https://myaccount.news.com.au/sites/geelongadvertiser/subscribe.html?sourceCode=GAWEB_WRE170_a_GGL&mode=premium&dest=https://www.geelongadvertiser.com.au/news/opinion/socalled-independent-candidates-running-thin-in-geelong/news-story/f46575a2074cd72e772266d3e2fb9e81&memtype=anonymous[bare URL]
- ^"Archived copy".Archived fromthe originalon 2 December 2018.Retrieved2 December2018.
{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^https://myaccount.news.com.au/sites/geelongadvertiser/subscribe.html?sourceCode=GAWEB_WRE170_a&mode=premium&dest=https://www.geelongadvertiser.com.au/news/opinion/peter-moore-i-would-much-prefer-candidates-to-be-upfront-about-their-political-affiliations/news-story/4ade19b186c93246aabbe2d2ea004417&memtype=anonymous[bare URL]
- ^Department of Planning and Community Development, Government of Victoria, Australia (19 April 2013)."French Island and Sandstone Island Planning Scheme Home Page and user's guide".Planningschemes.dpcd.vic.gov.au. Archived fromthe originalon 10 April 2013.Retrieved25 April2013.
{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^"Download Menu".www8.austlii.edu.au.
- ^Australian Standard Geographical Classification, July 2010.2010?OpenDocumentAccessed 22 March 2011.
- ^For example,VicNames databaseArchived19 May 2009 at theWayback Machine
External links
edit- "Shires of Australia".Statoids.