![]() ![]() At last year’s federal election, 60% of seats were in our capitals. Sizeable political gaps have emerged between urban and rural areas. This NASA image of Australia at night shows the concentration of activity in the capital cities. Each state and territory has a lonesome metropolitan centre, surrounded by much smaller “satellites”. The capital cities alone account for 67% of the population and roughly 70% of GDP. This trend is especially obvious in Australia – about 90% of us live in urban areas. It’s in line with a global trend of social, economic, technological and political convergence on cities. Global cities – cities with a significant role in the global economy – like Sydney and Melbourne are gaining more power. This has had huge consequences for social well-being, economic development and global competitiveness. What might not be so obvious in Australia is that all our capital cities are effectively on the way to being city-states. Statehood has long been granted to global cities such as Berlin and Vienna (in the German and Austrian federations, respectively). ![]() Metropolitan governance is the missing link in Australia's reform agenda Perhaps it’s time to consider statehood for our largest and fastest-growing cities. ![]()
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