MEMBER for Murray Plains Peter Walsh has condemned the Victorian Government for “blatant cost-shifting” after Swan Hill Council pleaded for more funding in the upcoming State Budget.
Council last week voted to support an advocacy push by Public Libraries Victoria – the peak body representing Victoria’s almost 300 public libraries – in calling for additional funding to support libraries across the state.
Mr Walsh said council was “100 per cent correct – it is the victim of blatant cost-shifting by the government”.
Mr Walsh said this was a conversation he had been having with numerous councils and shires “as they come to grips with the duplicitous reality of trying to work with, and trust, Daniel Andrews”.
Council director of community and cultural services Bruce Myers said “nominal” increases to the Public Library Funding Program had not recognised the price pressures on libraries driven by high inflation, nor the increasing user base driven by Victoria’s population, which had continued to grow despite the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Libraries are welcoming more people through their doors, expanding online services, delivering more lessons, and making more resources available for loan, all with less money,” he said.
Mr Myers told the council that ratepayers chipped in about $1 million per financial year to operate the Swan Hill and Robinvale libraries.
He said going back 30 years, the State Government contribution was 40 per cent and 60 per cent council, but it hadn’t been 50-50 for “some time”.
He said operating costs were now funded about 20 per cent by the government and 80 per cent by councils.
“Increased courier costs have forced the reduction in sharing of library items between library services, thus reducing the access library users have to items that are not held by their own library service,” Mr Myers said.
Council heard the libraries program had quickly expanded from just stocking books and offering free WiFi, and was now a community hub for learning, interaction and engagement.
Mr Walsh said Mr Andrews and his “gang of senior ministers are trying to cut every cost they can to hide the true depth of their financial and economic mismanagement of Victoria that is finally catching up with them”.
“Daniel Andrews is trying to make ratepayers kick the can, and trying to drag money from councils already financially besieged as they wait for the government’s roads and infrastructure funding to fully come through, even though we are now almost seven months out from the floods and hardly anything has been done,” he told The Guardian.
“Once upon a time, governments were serious about funding institutions such as libraries because of their grassroots value to families in general and young people in particular as part of their ongoing education opportunities, but I believe that funding had collapsed from being a majority, or equal partner, with councils, the local government groups have been hit at 60:40 and in many cases, are now confronted by a 20:80 breakdown.
“That’s punitive, and is wrong on so many levels.”
Minister for Local Government Melissa Horne has been contacted for comment.
The State Budget will be handed down on Tuesday, May 23.
