Federation Council (New South Wales)

Federation Council New South Wales
Location in New South Wales
Coordinates	35°34′S 146°18′E
Population	12,277 (2016 census)[1] 12,462 (2018 est.)[2]
• Density	2.15954/km^2 (5.5932/sq mi)
Established	12 May 2016 (2016-05-12)[3]
Area	5,685 km^2 (2,195.0 sq mi)[3]
Mayor	Patrick Bourke
Council seat	Corowa
Region	Murray
State electorate(s)	Albury
Federal division(s)	Farrer
Website	Federation Council
LGAs around Federation Council: Murrumbidgee Narrandera Murrumbidgee Murrumbidgee, Berrigan Federation Council Lockhart, Greater Hume Moira (Vic) Indigo (Vic) Indigo (Vic)

Federation Council is a local government area located in the Murray region of New South Wales, Australia, formed in 2016 from the merger of the Corowa Shire with neighbouring Urana Shire.[3]

The council comprises an area of 5,685 square kilometres (2,195 sq mi) and covers the urban areas of Corowa and Mulwala and the surrounding cropping and pastoral region to the north. It is bounded to the south by the Murray River and the state of Victoria. At the time of its establishment the council had an estimated population of 12,602.[3]

The inaugural mayor of Federation Council is Patrick Bourke from Urana, elected by his fellow councillors on 26 September 2017.[4]

Main towns and villages

In addition to the main urban centres of Corowa, Urana and Mulwala, localities in the area include Balldale, Boree Creek, Buraja, Coreen, Daysdale, Hopefield, Howlong, Lowesdale, Morundah, Oaklands, Rand, Rennie and Savernake.

Heritage listings

The Federation Council has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:

• Corowa Courthouse[5]
• Corowa railway station[6]
• Corowa Flour Mill[7]
• Savernake Station[8]
• Urana Soldiers' Memorial Hall[9]

Council

Federation Council comprise nine councillors elected proportionally as a single ward. All councillors are elected for a fixed four-year term of office.[3]

The interim administrator of the Federation Council was solicitor and former professional rugby league footballer Mike Eden, until elections were held on 9 September 2017

The most recent election was held on 4 December 2021.

Past councillors

2017−present

Year	Councillor		Councillor		Councillor		Councillor		Councillor		Councillor		Councillor		Councillor		Councillor
2017		Shaun Whitechurch (Ind.)		Patrick Bourke (Ind.)		David Longley (Ind.)		Paul Miegel (Ind.)		Fred Longmire (Ind.)		Bronwyn Thomas (Ind.)		Gail Law (Ind.)		Norm Wales (Ind.)		Andrew Kennedy (Ind.)
2021								David Fahey (Ind.)		Aaron Nicholls (Ind.)		Sally Hughes (FFF/Ind.)				Rowena Black (Ind.)
2024

Election results

2024

This section is an excerpt from Results of the 2024 New South Wales local elections in Murray and Far West § Federation results.[edit]

2024 New South Wales local elections: Federation[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Howlong First	1. Cheryl Cook (elected 1) 2. Susan Wearne (elected 8) 3. Michael Gardiner 4. Damien Glass 5. David Longley	1,419	19.0
	Independent (Group D)	1. Andrew Kennedy (elected 2) 2. Chanade Seiler 3. Nathan Parker 4. Robert Purtle 5. Nicole Urquhart	1,009	13.5	−1.6
	Independent (Group A)	1. Derek Schoen (elected 3) 2. Michael Robson 3. Melanie Trevethan 4. Matthew Mahon 5. Theresea Hughes	924	12.3
	Independent	David Bott (elected 4)	762	10.2
	Independent (Group F)	1. Richard Nixon (elected 6) 2. Robert Pearce 3. Rowley Bennett 4. Rosie Dye 5. Susan Curran	649	8.7
	Independent (Group E)	1. David Harrison (elected 7) 2. Ray McLarty 3. Julianne Whyte 4. Dean Druce 5. John Crothers	613	8.2	+4.8
	Independent	Rowena Black (elected 5)	604	8.1	+1.4
	Independent (Group B)	1. Patrick Bourke (elected 9) 2. David Fahey 3. Leeanne Dalitz 4. John Doyle 5. Mareeta Corcoran	579	7.7	−14.1
	Independent (Group C)	1. Shaun Whitechurch 2. Norman Wales 3. Daniel Webb 4. Brooke Ollington 5. Katrina Whitechurch	455	6.1	−4.5
	Independent	Sally Hughes	303	4.1	−5.3
	Independent	Frederick Longmire	168	2.2
	Ind. Socialist Alliance	Todd Beaton	4	0.1
Total formal votes			7,489	93.5	−0.5
Informal votes			522	6.5	+0.5
Turnout			8,011	80.4	+0.8

2021

This section is an excerpt from Results of the 2021 New South Wales local elections in Murray and Far West § Federation.[edit]

Elected councillor		Party
	Patrick Bourke	Independent (Group A)
	David Fahey	Independent (Group A)
	Andrew Kennedy	Independent (Group C)
	Aaron Nicholls	Independent (Group E)
	Shaun Whitechurch	Independent (Group D)
	Sally Hughes	Independent (Group B)
	David Longley	Independent
	Rowena Black	Independent
	Gail Law	Independent

2021 New South Wales local elections: Federation[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent (Group A)		1,616	21.8
	Independent (Group C)		1,117	15.1
	Independent (Group E)		932	12.6
	Independent	David Longley	873	11.8
	Independent (Group D)		785	10.6
	Independent (Group B)		699	9.4
	Independent	Rowena Black	497	6.7
	Independent	Gail Law	280	3.8
	Independent	David Harrison	251	3.4
	Independent	Janette Outram	249	3.4
	Independent	Mick Robson	103	1.4
Total formal votes			7,402	94.0
Informal votes			1,780	6.0
Turnout			7,877	79.6

History

The Federation Council was created by the Government of New South Wales as a result of an amalgamation of some local government bodies through a reform program between 2013 and 2016.[12][13] As part of the review, all New South Wales local government authorities were assessed by the NSW Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal on their historical and projected demographic data, financial sustainability, and other measures including their impact on the State's resources. Those council deemed "unfit" were asked to nominate their preferred merger partner in order to achieve economies of scale.[13][14] Corowa and Urana shires both nominated to merge with each other. In addition Lockhart Shire nominated Urana Shire as a preferred merger partner.[14] In December 2015, the Minister for Local Government Paul Toole proposed the amalgamation of all three Councils.[15] All three Councils opposed the proposal and a group of residents in the town of Mulwala in Corowa Shire threatened to secede and join Berrigan Shire if the three-way merger went ahead.[16][17] Corowa Shire put forward the alternate proposal being a merger of Corowa and Urana shires, despite objections from Urana Shire.[18] The Minister accepted the Corowa and Urana merger proposal and the Federation Council was proclaimed on 12 May 2016.[3]

See also

• Local government areas of New South Wales

References

1. Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "Federation (A)". 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 8 December 2017.
2. "3218.0 – Regional Population Growth, Australia, 2017–18". Australian Bureau of Statistics. 27 March 2019. Retrieved 27 March 2019. Estimated resident population (ERP) at 30 June 2018.
3. "Federation Council". Stronger Councils. Government of New South Wales. 12 May 2016. Retrieved 13 May 2016.
4. Johnston, David (26 September 2017). "Pat Bourke voted mayor of Federation Council with Shaun Whitechurch elected deputy". Border Mail. Retrieved 26 September 2017.
5. "Corowa Courthouse". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H01450. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
6. "Corowa Railway Station and yard group". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H01120. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
7. "Corowa Flour Mill and site". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H00566. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
8. "Savernake Station and Moveable Heritage". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H01907. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
9. "Urana Soldiers' Memorial Hall". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H01966. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
10. "TODD BEATON". New South Wales Electoral Commission. 16 August 2024. Archived from the original on 19 August 2024. Retrieved 19 August 2024.
11. "Federation". ABC News.
12. Sansom, Graham; Munro, Jude; Inglis, Glenn (25 October 2013). "Revitalising Local Government: Final Report" (PDF). Independent Local Government Review Panel. Government of New South Wales. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 February 2015. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
13. Johnston, David (20 October 2015). "Corowa and Urana shires both ruled not fit for future by IPART". Border Mail. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
14. Willett, Rachael (23 March 2016). "Urana digs in and says 'no' to voluntary merger". mmg.com.au. Archived from the original on 17 June 2016. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
15. Johnston, David (18 December 2015). "Lockhart joins Corowa and Urana in merger". Border Mail. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
16. Muir, Robert (19 January 2016). "Yes Minister…..but No, Minister". Corowa Free Press. Archived from the original on 17 June 2016. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
17. Willett, Rachael (19 January 2016). "Mulwala on the move?". Yarrawonga Chronicle. Archived from the original on 17 June 2016. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
18. Johnston, David (11 March 2016). "Urana Shire prefers to be standalone rather than taken over by Corowa Shire". Border Mail. Retrieved 22 May 2016.

External links

• "Local Government Area Boundary: Federation Council" (PDF) (Map). Land & Property Information. Government of New South Wales. 19 April 2016.^[dead link‍]