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Joined: 13 Mar 2011
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 Posted: Wed Mar 16, 2011 8:28 pm Post subject: Overall identified |
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Nevertheless, there were many residents in Canberra who wanted self-government, and there were a number of forces pushing the territory in that direction.[182]
The formation of the Legislative Assembly in 1974 was intended as the significant step towards self-government, but the Whitlam Government, under whose auspices the Assembly was formed, tended to "override or ignore its wishes."[183] Similarly, the subsequent 1975 Fraser Government seemed uninterested in the Assembly. However, in February 1975, Tony Staley accepted the post of Minister for the Capital Territory. Staley had been a supporter of self-government for the ACT, and he proposed a model whereby Canberrans would rapidly gain control of much of the territory's administration. The model found opposition, though, in part because it failed to adequately address the funding arrangements.[183]
Although Staley's plan did not eventuate, the next person to run the Ministry, Robert Ellicott, chose to hold a referendum on the issue.[183] The 1978 referendum provided the residents of the territory with three options:
* That self-government be granted to the Territory by delegating functions to a locally elected legislative body.
* That a locally elected legislative body be established in the Territory with local government-type legislative and executive functions.
* That the present arrangements for governing the Territory should continue for the time being.
A clear majority voted for continuing with the status quo – 63.75%, as opposed to 5.72% in favour of the local government model and 30.54% supporting the "state style" self-government approach.[184]
Overall identified a number of reasons why residents opposed self-government. Along with the previously mentioned fear of increases in taxation or decreases in services, he argued that those living in the ACT would have felt that they already had a voice in the governance of the territory, through federal electoral representation. Canberra also had a high proportion of public servants who felt that they were already a part of the government, and knew how to work with the system.[185]
In spite of the result, the referendum failed to end the debate. There were a number of pressures that continued to push the ACT towards self-government, including:San Francisco Movers
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