COMMENT
Professor David Adams
LAST week the prospective Launceston
Mayors met at a forum at Boags sponsored
by the Chamber of Commerce and the
Examiner.
Andrea Dawkins, Tim Walker, Alan
Harris, Matthew Garwood and, George
Razay all came across as very committed
people genuinely aiming to improve the lot
of Launceston. They all engaged as if they
really wanted the job.
Tim Walker and Andrea Dawkins present-
ed as the most experienced hands. Matthew
Garwood despite the L plates was articulate
and confident as was George Razay who
looked in his element in front of an audi-
ence. Alan Harris highlighted his focus on
small business and being the all-round local
guy. The candidates all played it safe with
the majority of their claims appealing to
voters to trust them because of their various
trackrecords. The responses to the six
questions were varied but predictable with
Tim Walker's idea to resurrect tramways a
notable creative exception.
Economic development was not explored
and key economic words such as produc-
tivity, innovation and growth were few and
far between. Globally the trend for local
government leaders is towards people have
high adaptive capacity, able to pivot and
lead when a shock like COVID 19 comes
along. Such leadership capabilities were not
part of the discussion.
The candidates danced around local
government reform. All the scenarios being
proposed for our region involved Launces-
ton 'consolidating' with various urban
and regional communities and essentially
making the Tamar Valley and Kalamaluka
the centrepiece. No one discussed this in
their main 'pitch'. Most of the conversation
was very Launceston centric.
The candidates also did a quick step
around the biggest issue for business, plan-
ning reform. Local government is all about
allocating scarce resources between many
competing wants but none of the candidates
explained how they would deal with the
inevitable trade-offs for example between
heritage and development.
There was minimal focus on the role of the
Council in cultural development a passion
of the previous Mayor Danny Gibson.
The candidates all seemed strongest on
social issues and had a variety of sensible
comments to make on homelessness
challenges. Refreshingly the candidates all
seemed willing to learn from best practices
elsewhere around the world.
The Examiner 4th July Page 14
Professor David Adams
LAST week the prospective Launceston
Mayors met at a forum at Boags sponsored
by the Chamber of Commerce and the
Examiner.
Andrea Dawkins, Tim Walker, Alan
Harris, Matthew Garwood and, George
Razay all came across as very committed
people genuinely aiming to improve the lot
of Launceston. They all engaged as if they
really wanted the job.
Tim Walker and Andrea Dawkins present-
ed as the most experienced hands. Matthew
Garwood despite the L plates was articulate
and confident as was George Razay who
looked in his element in front of an audi-
ence. Alan Harris highlighted his focus on
small business and being the all-round local
guy. The candidates all played it safe with
the majority of their claims appealing to
voters to trust them because of their various
trackrecords. The responses to the six
questions were varied but predictable with
Tim Walker's idea to resurrect tramways a
notable creative exception.
Economic development was not explored
and key economic words such as produc-
tivity, innovation and growth were few and
far between. Globally the trend for local
government leaders is towards people have
high adaptive capacity, able to pivot and
lead when a shock like COVID 19 comes
along. Such leadership capabilities were not
part of the discussion.
The candidates danced around local
government reform. All the scenarios being
proposed for our region involved Launces-
ton 'consolidating' with various urban
and regional communities and essentially
making the Tamar Valley and Kalamaluka
the centrepiece. No one discussed this in
their main 'pitch'. Most of the conversation
was very Launceston centric.
The candidates also did a quick step
around the biggest issue for business, plan-
ning reform. Local government is all about
allocating scarce resources between many
competing wants but none of the candidates
explained how they would deal with the
inevitable trade-offs for example between
heritage and development.
There was minimal focus on the role of the
Council in cultural development a passion
of the previous Mayor Danny Gibson.
The candidates all seemed strongest on
social issues and had a variety of sensible
comments to make on homelessness
challenges. Refreshingly the candidates all
seemed willing to learn from best practices
elsewhere around the world.
The Examiner 4th July Page 14
LINKS
LOCAL GOVERNANCE IS FUNDAMENTALLY
ABOUT PLACEMAKING
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