LGAT Submission – Refreshing Tasmania’s Population Strategy Consultation Paper
At the start of the year, the Department of State Growth released their Refreshing Tasmania’s Population Strategy Consultation Paper, the first update since 2015. We welcome the opportunity to provide our response on behalf of Tasmania’s 29 councils.
New data available shows the scale of unprecedented growth in Tasmania, with our population projected to hit the 2050 population target some 18 years ahead of time, as early as 2032. This is double the ambitious target growth rate and the highest population projections at that time. This kind of unanticipated growth presents its own set of challenges and we commend the State Government for revisiting the Strategy.
In the five years from 2016 to 2021, Tasmania has grown by the size of two Devonport-sized cities and doesn’t show signs of slowing down. The Australian Government Centre for Population has predicted that we will reach our target population of 650,000 within a decade, almost 18 years faster than the original target, let alone the relatively modest projections that appeared realistic at that time.
The issues surrounding this level of accelerated growth are already making an impact on our local communities – housing shortages, traffic congestion, accommodation and cost of living pressures. Our submission highlights the need for better growth management actions and tools to manage these impacts and plan for growth. This fundamentally requires greater collaboration with local government who are the major managers of growth in Tasmania.
We believe that a growth management strategy and action plan should:
- Prepare communities for growth and change.
- Provide better infrastructure contributions to unlock development.
- Accelerate planning reforms through to completion.
But to properly plan for future population growth, we need to understand the nature of this growth and asses the driving forces behind it. These could be anything from housing security and environmental factors to Visa fulfilment, all of which will increase the strain on our regional areas and the councils that manage them. Without understanding these factors, we are left guessing.
We urge the State Government to increase engagement with local government to prepare Tasmania for continued growth. Only through effective collaboration will we ensure that local government has the growth management tools it needs to plan for growth and achieve the best outcomes for Tasmanian communities.
We're already assisting those in local government by offering professional development opportunities that focus on how councils can manage their current and future population.