News

Media releases

View past and current media releases from the Minister for Local Government.

Local Government Ministerial Forum 2008 - 14-15 May

The Minister for Local Government has invited Mayors and CEOs of Victoria’s 79 councils and peak body representatives to the 2008 Local Government Ministerial Forum to be held on Thursday 15 May at Central Pier, Docklands, Melbourne. View the forum agenda (Word 292 kb).

There will also be a pre-forum dinner hosted by the Minister for Local Government to provide additional opportunities for networking. The Victorian State-Local Government Agreement will be signed at this dinner on Wednesday 14 May 2008. This will also be at Central Pier. This is an invitation only event. View the forum dinner program (Word 283 kb) and the venue information (PDF 105 kb) or (Word 283 kb).

The forum will also feature a roundtable discussion session where the attendees will discuss topics such as climate change, the forward agenda of local government, planning and people and community advocacy (PACA) issues. Read the discussion questions (Word 433 kb).

Local Area Planning Support Program

The Local Area Planning Support Program has been specifically developed to encourage local councils to develop new skills, resources and processes to enhance evidence based decision-making for local area planning. Councils are invited to attend a Local Area Planning Support (LAPS) - End of Program Conference (Word 57 kb) on Thursday 1 May 2008. Read more about the LAPS program.

Councils Reforming Business

Work is underway to progress the Councils’ Reforming Business (CRB) $4.6 million partnership with the Municipal Association of Victoria (MAV) announced in the 2007-08 State Budget. Find out more about the Council's Reforming Business.

Local Government and Community Planning

Nine local governments that reflect diversity in demographics, approaches and planning considerations were selected to participate in the Local Government and Community Planning project.

Read about the council's community planning experience.

Local Government (Kensington Boundary Review) Panel

The Minister for Local Government, the Hon Richard Wynne MP, announced on 12 December 2007 that the municipal boundary between the Melbourne City Council and Moonee Valley City Council be altered so the that the balance of the suburbs of Kensington and North Melbourne are brought under the Melbourne City Council. The realigned boundary will also see both north and south sides of the Racecourse Road shopping centre remain within the Moonee Valley City Council.

More information on the Review.

Better Local Governance

A framework to address issues of councillor conduct has been proposed in a consultation paper (PDF 299kb) on Better Local Governance. Submissions are invited by 29 February 2008. A template (Word 172 kb) is provided to assist submissions. Email Local Government Victoria for further information.

Local Government (Councillor Remuneration Review) Panel

The Minister for Local Government, acting under section 220A of the Local Government Act 1989, on 8 May 2007, appointed a Local Government (Councillor Remuneration Review) Panel to advise on remuneration of Victoria’s locally elected leaders through a review of current allowances and to provide advice and recommendations to the Minister on allowances and guidelines on the appropriate reimbursement of expenses and provision of resources support for the mayoral and councillor role.

More information and information on submissions to the Panel.

Latest news

Read the latest news on the Local Government Victoria Home page.

Web Site Updates

DPCD's websites are progressively being updated to reflect the changes following the establishment of the department. This means you will continue to see some references to the Department for Victorian Communities (DVC) as changes are being made.