Amalgamate the councils,make them accountable and get rid of the State Govts.We cannot afford them and even less so as Kevin puts us into more debt.

Interest rates will rise and Govt taxes will create more poverty.There comes a time when individuals must take responsibilty and stop hiding behind the veil of victim status.

And please tell us exactly how you would make amalgamated councils "accountable", in the "real" world. In other words, not theoretically on paper, but real world, WORKABLE accountability.

And why would that same "accountability" not work with present councils that are NOT amalgamated?

Out here in Broken Hill we are under "administration". The old council was pretty hopeless. But the fact that we're under administration has nothing to do being amalgamated or not amalgamated. Amalgamated councils can be just as hopeless as non amalgamated councils.

I do not trust at all the local counsils. I heard bad stories about the the buildings, extensions etc even may be I have this kind of experiences!
Because the elections for local authorities are not compulsary only a small number of people vote for the City councelors and most of them do not have many experiences, knowledges or abilities. Council beaurocracy knows the weakness of the councils and I am afraid they are the real bosses in the city councils. I heard, I do not know, some stories for corruption etc, may be the land developers and construction companies have big influence on the city councils or on the beaurocracy of the councils!
I prefer the federal and state governments!

AAP report, December, 2010 : Nine months after the federal election, the government has moved to
---rationalize the health services
---arranged for laptops to be delivered to the 99% of schools, who still have not received them, and
---put in place proper water management of the Murray system.

In other moves, president Malcolm Turnbull has called an emergency meeting of heads of government to address :
1) Australia’s 16 Trillion dollar debt ( 10 trillion of which is owed in compensation payments to the developing world, arising from our signing of the Copenhagen climate change agreement)
2) Current interest rates of 24%
3) Unemployment rate of 50%, and .
4) The new Fitzgerald Commission is understood to be seeking Wayne Swan’s extradition from Nicaragua regarding funding irregularities . Authorities are also searching for Anna Blight & Kevin Rudd who have not been seen since the night of the federal election.

In related news: a coalition of social justice rights groups. –which have till now have enjoyed 100% employment – are charging the new administration with being racist, mean, horrible ,ugly and a real fun-spoiler, due to funding cuts, and threatened to take it to one or other of the international courts over violating section 131.5v of the UN Social Justice Convention , signed in the latter days of the previous Rudd administration – the ABC has suspended all normal programming to provide round the clock coverage of this development.

And, in local news, the Ugllaga Times reports that long term union stalwart Belly has applied to join the Liberal party

Thanks Horus but not even close.
2 silly ideas here Costello? come now the bloke is unlovable and gone, forever.
He could not win a raffle if he bought every ticket.
And for two more terms nor could his party.
Councils, few are any good, look to northern NSW and the idiots behind the glass house in port Maquarrie, or in Sydney the lunatics behind that lefty rubbish that did not want to fly our flag at Bondi.
AS you may not like me, but please try to address questions I and others have raised.
Bet your last dollar the election[it may yet be this year] is to be a lesson learned for the Turnbull team, if you can call it that.

Malcolm won't be leading the Liberal party into the next election. He's already a dismal failure.

The current Labour Government is currently enjoying a MAGNIFICENT honeymoon, which will continue for at least another 1 to 2 years. This is thanks to the MAGNIFICENT surplus left to them courtesy of the good work begun by Mr Keating, followed by the even better work of Australia's most successful treasurer, Mr Costello. Australia has a LOT to be grateful for, because of the great work of Paul Keating and Peter Costello.

Peter Costello will be out of parliament. The Liberals will be decimated at the next election. Mr Costello will return within several years to lead the Liberal Party to an easy victory. Why? Two reasons - - - - - firstly there's absolutely nobody in the Liberal party who comes even near his ability to make Labour look like amateurs; secondly when Labour has to finally stand on it's own two feet (instead of being propped up by the fantastic Liberal surplus) they will do what almost ALL Labour Federal govts. have done, SPEND, SPEND, SPEND with borrowed money and steer the country towards financial oblivion. Thus unemployment and inflation will QUICKLY rise to untenable levels. The country will get VERY restless. Peter Costello will be recalled, elected, voted into leadership and then lead the Liberal Party to victory in order to clean up (ONCE AGAIN) Labour's financial MESS!