The further you are from your state’s parliament house, the more likely you are to be disadvantaged. But greater local control of policy can change all that
Living in south-west Sydney instead of northern Sydney can take three years off your life. Across Australia, male life expectancy between the inner city and regional areas can vary by 10 years. According to the National Health Performance Agency, the rate of preventable death is 30% higher in outer suburban areas than the inner city. It’s not just health. Generally, the further from a state’s parliament house you get, the more likely you are to experience all forms of socioeconomic disadvantage.
Hidden among the poles and wires, spatial inequality was the defining issue of the recent NSW election campaign. Both parties’ major policies were linked to addressing differences caused by geography: infrastructure to lower transport costs for the suburbs, health projects to improve equality of access across NSW and better funding to address varying education outcomes. Similar spatially-based policies play out in other states and at the federal level.
Continue reading...