CHRIS THOMSON

Twenty-eight months into its tortuous council reform process the Barnett Government has tried to revive it – by forming a committee headed by an academic.

Local Government Minister John Castrilli – who first announced the reforms in February 2009 – today said a new panel would draw up council boundaries to slash the number of local authorities across metropolitan Perth.

Perth has 29 city, town and shire councils. This is 29 times the number of local authorities in each of metropolitan Brisbane, Canberra and Darwin which each have just one council.

The panel – upon which Mr Castrilli has pinned his metropolitan reform hopes – will be chaired by University of Western Australia vice chancellor Alan Robson. Other members are former University of Notre Dame Australia vice chancellor Peter Tannock, and Leadership WA boss Sue van Leeuwen.

The threesome will identify regional, social, environmental and economic issues likely to affect Perth in the next 50 years.

Recommendations resulting in the drawing of new local government boundaries are due by June 2012 – 40 months after Mr Castrilli first announced his reforms.

Shadow local government minister Paul Papalia noted the panel’s deliberations would be pushed beyond next year’s State Budget.

“Without any funding in next year’s budget it is not possible to have reform before the next election,” Mr Papalia said.

“This is clearly designed so Minister for Local Government John Castrilli can avoid admitting he has failed to reform local government.

“In an embarrassing admission, the minister said he was not bound to act on the recommendations of the panel.”

Mr Papalia said this showed the panel was merely set up to further delay the reform process which he said had already cost more than $7.2 million.

“The forced amalgamation process has been a costly failure and embarrassment to Minister Castrilli and this panel will ensure there is no action before the next election,” he said.