City versus Country !

The plan to induce city dwellers to move to the country has been tweaked.  That move must now involve a distance of at least a hundred kilometres after it was found that some people were gaining a motza by simply moving to the next suburb.

The criteria requires a worker to move house from the city to a country area and work in a regional job for at least three months to receive a grant of $ 10,000.   People who rent and move to the country receive a lesser sum of $ 7,000.

The objective was to free up jobs and housing in the city and expand the rural workforce to strengthen the viability of country towns.   Unfortunately, it raised the old " chicken and egg " conundrum.   Which comes first ?   The jobs ?   Or the people to do those jobs ?

Unfortunately, two objectives are now competing at cross purposes.   At the same time as we are seeking to strengthen country towns, we are also making our main highways safer by by-passing vast numbers which relied on the passing traffic for sustenance.

The Pacific highway is a case in point.  It's accident black spot reputation has been reduced by a massive upgrading that has by-passed Kempsey, Bulahdelah, Karuah, Merwillingbah, Brunswick Heads, Ballina and Taree.

Travellers no longer stop in these picturesque towns to have a cup of coffee, buy petrol, visit a cafe or spend the small amounts of money that kept people employed and made business viable.   It may be a safer road journey by avoiding the traffic snarls that speed reductions cause, but it comes at the cost of jobs - and the closing of many small businesses which are no longer viable.

The Hume highway is now a divided dual carriageway for it's entire length between Sydney and Melbourne.  Shortly the Pacific highway will gain the same status between Sydney and Brisbane - and waiting in the wings are the country towns that line the Princes highway as it serves the coast between Sydney and Melbourne.

So far there has been no magic formulae to create jobs by way of introducing new industries to towns that previously relied on passing traffic.   Many such towns try and attract the " Grey Nomads " who use their retirement years to travel Australia with a caravan behind their car.    Highway signs extol new caravan parks and upgraded amenities, but these jobs are seasonal and what is required is permanent employment to sustain a stable work force.

The coming of the communications age and the era of Internet shopping is creating opportunities for those with the foresight to grasp them.    It is no longer necessary to pay for an expensive city location to provide many services that meet public demand and information services are a fast growing industry that seems ever expanding.

Perhaps we need to offer grants to those who can locate these types of services to fill the employment gaps that are widening between city and country.   The clever entrepreneur launching a new venture would see the benefit of a low cost start up in a country location - if the government could provide an attractive inducement.

Getting people to move from the city to the country is the first step in a wise relocation plan.   Attracting the jobs that will keep them there needs to work in lockstep.    That requires imagination - and the right bureaucratic thinking !