The ACT has always been in a unique position land-wise. Discussions on expanding the borders seemed to be a rotating story. On this day in 1995, the then-ACT chief minister Kate Carnell was looking to Goulburn to possibly become a part of the bush capital.
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While conceding that a proposal for the ACT to annex Goulburn was impractical, the ACT government was keen to foster closer ties with the city. Mrs Carnell said that rather than extending the territory's borders, the government wanted borders to disappear.
"The borders have to become more irrelevant to the way we operate and that means having substantially better cooperation with NSW - with the people in Goulburn and other areas," Mrs Carnell said.
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The Goulburn annexation was the brainchild of Goulburn Post columnist Ray Williams. It was born from Goulburn's need to have a reliable water supply. Mr Williams said there had been talk about Goulburn tapping into the ACT's water supply, so why stop there?
The idea quickly developed a life of its own. The former NSW premier, and member for the Southern Highlands, John Fahey, told the paper merging the ACT and Goulburn was "certainly worth thinking about'' although he had reservations.
Mrs Carnell had written to the Mayor of Goulburn, Councillor Margaret O'Neill, saying she was "delighted" the idea of joining the two cities was met with such a positive response in Goulburn.
It was her aim to foster much closer ties between Canberra and the major regional centres and Mrs Carnell was keen to discuss the idea with Councillor O'Neill.
"While it may be impractical to talk about actually expanding out borders, I believe it's vital that we start approaching our region with the view that the borders of the ACT count for nothing," the letter said.
