The President of the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA), Felicity-Ann Lewis, will meet with Federal Minister for Local Government, Simon Crean, to lobby the Government on the ‘steps necessary for a referendum on constitutional recognition of local government’ to be held at the same time as the Federal election on 14 September.

Last month, the Joint Select Committee investigating the likelihood of a successful 2013 referendum to gain financial recognition of local government in the Constitution issued a preliminary report, which included a number of recommendations requiring immediate action by the Federal Government.   

"The Committee's preliminary report, issued on 24 January, conveyed a sense of urgency in light of the limited timeframes available for the Government to put in place the preconditions identified for a successful referendum if it were to be held at the same time as the federal election," ALGA President Felicity-ann Lewis said.

"The announcement of the election date means that there are now just over seven months until polling day in which the Government can put in place the measures required for a winnable referendum on constitutional recognition of local government.

"Minister Simon Crean has announced that he will not be responding to the inquiry's recommendations until a final report is handed down at the end March.

"We have strong concerns that a delay in the Government's response to the Committee's recommendations will not leave enough time for actions necessary to put in place the preconditions for a successful referendum and will substantially impact on local government's ability to run a successful campaign.

The recommendations of the Expert Panel recognised four preconditions for referendum success: the need for strong bipartisan support; the Commonwealth negotiating with state and territory governments to achieve their support for financial recognition; a public education campaign to achieve informed and positive community engagement; and changes to the referendum process to allow public funding of referendum campaigns.