The National General Assembly of Local Government (NGA) is an important opportunity for you and your council to influence the national policy agenda. 

The 2020 NGA “Working Together for Our Communities” was unfortunately cancelled due to COVID-19 but the ALGA Board has decided to retain the theme and emphasise the importance of partnerships to building and maintaining resilience in our councils and our communities. 

To assist you to identify motions that address the theme of the 2021 NGA, the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA) Secretariat has prepared this short discussion paper. You are encouraged to read all the sections of the paper but are not expected to respond to every question. Your motion/s can address one or more of the issues identified in the discussion paper. 

Remember that the focus of the NGA is on partnerships, working together, and resilience so your questions could focus on how local governments can work in partnership with the Australian Government to address the challenges our communities face, or the opportunities that are arising to build back better.

To be eligible for inclusion in the NGA Business Papers, and subsequent debate on the floor of the NGA, motions must meet the following criteria:

1. be relevant to the work of local government nationally;
   
2. not be focused on a specific location or region – unless the project has national implications. You will be asked to justify why your motion has strategic national importance and should be discussed at a national conference;
   
3. be consistent with the themes of the NGA;
   
4. complement or build on the policy objectives of your state and territory local government association;
   
5. be submitted by a council which is a financial member of their state or territory local government association;
   
6. propose a clear action and outcome i.e. call on the Australian Government to do something;
   
7. be a new motion that has not already been debated at an NGA in the preceding two years; and
8. not be advanced on behalf of external third parties that may seek to use the NGA to apply pressure to Board members, or to gain national political exposure for positions that are not directly relevant to the work of, or in the national interests of, local government.

Motions should be received no later than 11:59pm AEST on Friday 26 March 2021.