Australia Population Growth and Regional Development

Regional Development and Population

 

Tax to trigger release valve for choking cities. THE Rudd Government is uniquely placed to solve this country’s perennial failure to develop and service major population and commercial centers outside of capital cities, the National Farmers’ Federation (NFF) advanced today, releasing its Issues Paper Population Policy: A Taxing Issue.

“With the release of the Henry tax review imminent, it’s time to seriously deal with population policy in Australia and pull the tax trigger to re-energize and grow the under-developed 97% of the country that is regional Australia,” NFF President David Crombie declared.

“It’s an investment long overdue, but it’s also a solution to Australia’s unsustainable coastal city-centric population headache, with our major cities already suffocating under the weight of a national population of just 22 million people.

“In fact, about 88% of our total population is crammed into and around small coastal recesses, mainly Sydney and Newcastle, Melbourne, Brisbane and the Gold Coast, Adelaide and Perth – that’s just 3% of the landmass.”

This is perhaps one of the few reports highlighting the real issue i.e. lack of planning, regional development and related incentives from state and federal governments. This is also ignored by the media so most Australians believe the only solution is to lower population growth through cutting immigration, which followed to its logical conclusion would preclude Tourism Australia attracting backpackers, education sector recruiting fee paying overseas students and employers attracting employees with skills not available in Australia e.g.  health care.

From afar Australian seem terrified of the inland and hug several major cities and the coastline.