George Brandis (Queensland, Liberal Party, Attorney-General) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you very much, Senator Georgiou, and thank you also for the courtesy of advance notice of the question and of your acknowledgement of the government's Smart Cities policy, which is indeed a very, very good policy. A key pillar of that policy is the performance framework to which you have referred. It recognises the important role that cities, both regional and metropolitan, play in driving the national economy. This is also true of Western Australian cities, where a range of regional cities, including Bunbury, Rockingham, Geraldton, Mandurah and others, are playing a key role in the Western Australian economy.

The government is developing the first ever national cities performance framework, to be released later this year. The framework will track the performance of Australia's cities and support an evidence based approach to cities policy. This online and interactive framework will provide a snapshot of the productivity, liveability and progress of our major centres. As a starting point, the framework will focus on the 21 largest cities, with the framework to be expanded over time, alongside Australia's regions yearbook.

Senator Georgiou, the point I make to you is that there are criteria. Those criteria are published criteria within the national cities performance framework. They are being developed over time. There are thresholds for eligibility, as there are in any evidence based policy area, and there will be some cities in Western Australia, regional cities, such as those I have referred to, which will meet those thresholds and others which will not.