Local Government Association of the Northern Territory response to Labor and CLP council pitches for the 2024 election

Mayors have warned parliamentarians against using local government as a ‘political football’ amid a clash over the appropriate number of councils for the Northern Territory.

Labor NT Local Government Minister Chansey Paech and CLP opposition spokesman Steve Edgington.

Territory mayors and councillors could become a “political football” among politicians eyeing control of the NT parliament, with the major parties clashing over a proposed expansion of the number of councils.

In a battle between the second and third layers of government, the Local Government Association of the Northern Territory has called out proposed policies from Labor and the Country Liberal Party ahead of the August Territory election.

LGANT president and Darwin Mayor Kon Vatskalis criticised a controversial proposal by the CLP to expand the number of local councils, saying it would jeopardise the financial sustainability of the already under resourced sector.

Opposition Local Government spokesman Steve Edgington said the CLP was “actively engaged” in consultation to expand the number of councils under a “new model of remote local community government”.

While Mr Edgington did not disclose how many more local government bodies were proposed, he said the expansion would be an opportunity to empower remote Aboriginal communities, restore local control, improve job and leadership opportunities, and access to resources.

Local Government Association of the Northern Territory president and Darwin Mayor Kon Vatskalis. Pic: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

Cr Vatskalis said given many council’s large geographic footprint and small rate bases, only larger council structures could provide the “economies of scale from both a governance and financial sustainability perspective”.

He warned against parties using local government “as a political football to win votes in regional and remote areas”.

“The solution for empowering communities is sensible evidence-based improvements and much better resourcing,” Cr Vatskalis said.

Local Government Minister Chansey Paech said the CLP proposal was reviving the “failed policies of the past”, stating the 2008 move to scale back more than 60 local councils into 17 supershires created an “improved, more manageable model”.

“We continue to empower our remote communities through tailored Local Decision Making agreements, placing decision-making power into the hands of communities over matters far broader than simply roads, rates and rubbish,” he said.

However Cr Vatskalis said parliamentarians should give the council’s Local Authorities framework more credit, saying since 2014 the 67 bodies within nine regional councils had become a “vital role” in community development and local decision making.

In the wake of several council scandals across the Territory, Cr Vatskalis said the councils had been advocating for the current “toothless tiger” code of conduct to be ripped up and replaced well before the 2025 local government elections.

“In the NT the sector is tightly regulated but governance and integrity of elected members are issues facing the sector across the country,” Cr Vatskalis said.

Cr Vatskalis said every council was “continually trying to balance compliance requirements” — such as audits, regulatory requirements and government red tape — with the communities expectation for the council to manage roads, rates and rubbish.

However to ensure greater local transparency and accountability, Mr Edgington has promised “robust local government reform”, including “regular audits and independent oversight bodies”, stronger whistleblower protections, mandated meetings and accessible financial data.

Mr Paech said the Local Government Act 2019 had improved administration and probity, with work continuing to implement a new regulatory framework.

• The bullet point summary was created with the assistance of AI technology (PaLM2) then edited and approved for publication by an editor.