THE HON RICHARD MARLES MP Parliamentary Secretary for Pacific Island Affairs Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs

Member for Corio

GEELONGS NEW MAYOR CONSTITUENCY STATEMENT

Parliament House 29 October 2012

Today is a noteworthy day for Geelong. With the weekend vote counting nearing completion, the city will soon have its first directly elected Mayor. Keith Fagg looks the likely winner and Id like to congratulate him on this result and his fantastic campaign. If events unfold as we expect he really will be a very deserved winner. I'd also like to take this opportunity to thank John Mitchell for his four wonderful years of service as Geelong's Mayor which provided stability and progress. I wish him the best for the future. This was a closely fought contest from a high calibre field. The campaign gave the Geelong community welcome insight into what each candidate believed they could bring to the role their skills and vision for our city. Our new mayor now has a unique opportunity to translate those campaign pledges into action into a future for

Geelong. Its for that reason, I believe, Geelong stands at a critical point in its history. For the first time, the Mayor has a direct mandate from the people to lead our city and this mandate has invested the position of Mayor with unprecedented authority. And this represents a new beginning for Geelong. First, it provides the Mayor with far greater authority over the Council organisation than has previously existed. This authority will enable the Mayor to lead the agenda of the organisation in a qualitatively different way. Second, there is now an opportunity to redefine the relationship with the Victorian Government. Local government exists as an act of the State Government but that doesnt mean the two cant work as equals. With a direct mandate every bit the equal of State - and for that matter Federal - Members of Parliament our new Mayor should expect more from his relationship with the Victorian Government. For that reason the State Government should now establish a Geelong Ministerial Dialogue. This would involve regular, perhaps quarterly, meetings between Geelongs Mayor, his/her deputy and the COGG CEO on the one hand and on the other, the Premier, the Treasurer, the Minister for Regional Cities, the Minister for Local Government and Geelong Government MP, David Koch. These meetings would be an opportunity for the Mayor

and his/her team to secure the best outcome for our city: to drive the change, grow the economy and ensure our prosperity. It would be the key forum between the two tiers of government. Being a mayor of a regional centre of the size and strategic importance of Geelong is about taking the city and the region in which it sits - forward. It is a job that should focus on driving the agenda that will secure jobs for our workers, the well-being of our families and hope for our future. It is a significant and substantial role. Geelong has come a long way in the past two decades. We are a city proud of our heritage and optimistic about our future. We have every right to feel that way. Our new Mayor can play a significant role in ensuring our optimism is fulfilled.