MEMBER for Northern Victoria Tania Maxwell has requested the minister for regional development attend a meeting with herself and the state’s cross-border commissioner to discuss red tape affecting border communities.
Ms Maxwell extended the invitation to the minister, Jaclyn Symes, as an adjournment matter in parliament last week.
The Derryn Hinch’s Justice Party MP said she wanted to discuss the many cross-border issues and problems impacting on her constituents, including the “myriad differences in laws, regulations and conventions across state borders”, especially for those living close to New South Wales and South Australia.
“Naturally, the effect of these differences varies from case-to-case, but some of the many fields in which people near the borders experience such discrepancies include further education, health and mental health services, licensing for trades and various other professions, public holidays and opening hours, and L-plate and P-plate driving requirements, to name a few,” she said.
Ms Maxwell said she appreciated these anomalies were “difficult” to resolve.
She added she was aware of “considerable work” being done on matters such as liquor licensing, building licensing and taxi and ride sharing arrangements through a potential memorandum of understanding between Victoria and NSW.
“Cross-border issues are not front of mind when most forms of legislation and regulation are contemplated by governments and are typically only directly addressed, if at all, when the adverse consequences have already emerged,” she said.
Ms Maxwell flagged some preemptive options for identifying cross-border issues she planned to raise with the minister.
“The action I seek from the minister is an indication of whether she would be prepared to attend a meeting in the near future with Victoria’s cross-border commissioner and me,” she said.
“This meeting would be held to discuss, in particular, the possible incorporation of a mandatory cross-border impact component in Victorian regulatory impact statements and a mandatory cross-border issues section in Victorian funding guidelines documents.
“I believe both those changes have considerable potential and merit to pre-preemptively avert at least some future, legal, regulatory and service inconsistencies across our borders.
“I would be keen to know if the minister agrees, or if not, why not.”
