Mid West shires express range of concerns with Local Government Minister Hannah Beazley following meeting

A number of shires across the Mid West have had an informal meeting with Local Government Minister Hannah Beazley, with rates flagged as one of the main issues. On Wednesday, July 17, the Shire of Morawa hosted a NAIDOC Week event where Ms Beazley attended, as did representatives of neighbouring shires including Mingenew, Perenjori, and Three Springs. In-person discussions revealed some shires felt they needed assistance with finding revenue, claiming rate rises were not an option. Data from WALGA’s local government directory showed residents in Mingenew paid $5427 per head in rates in 2022-23. Meanwhile, in the city of Stirling in the Perth region, residents paid $688 in rates per person during the same period. Mingenew shire president Gary Cosgrove said councils continuing to raise rates was not a viable solution. “As a source of income, we think rates has reached its peak and we need other sources of income,” he said. In their 2024-25 budgets, Mingenew council raised its rates by 10 per cent (a 5 per cent general rise and 5 per cent rise for upgrading roads), while the shires of Morawa, Perenjori and Three Springs increased their rates by 4.72, 5 and 0 per cent respectively. “Roads are one of the biggest costs. Per head of population in Mingenew is about 1.5km of road where in the city it’s a couple of metres,” Cr Cosgrove said. Cr Cosgrove explained gravel for roads was becoming more scarce, and it needed to be transported to the area from further away, which was increasing costs. He said the application for the roads had also changed, with more heavy vehicles being used with oil and gas exploration in the area. Other issues included local governments needing to employ workers to perform tasks imposed by higher levels of government. Meanwhile, Three Springs shire president Chris Lane said there were discussions around the lack of housing and the difficulties that came with attracting skilled workers to the region. Discussions also took place regarding training and education. While Cr Lane said it was pleasing to see the minister visit the regions, she said the conversation “didn’t fill me with confidence”. A spokesperson for Ms Beazley said the minister was aware of the burden ratepayers can face due to increases in fees, with proposed reforms set to make increases more transparent in the future. “The State Government is progressing significant reforms, including a proposed requirement for all local governments to adopt a Rate and Revenue Policy,” she said. “This proposed new policy will enable ratepayers to have a clearer picture of likely future rates by illustrating the link between the cost of services and maintenance of assets to the setting of rates.”