In this episode of the Local Government News Roundup:
Brimbank Council announces its new CEO;
Victorians Council peak body concerned about a lack of consultation on planning reforms;
Some early results coming through from this weekend’s local government elections in NSW;
And a parliamentary committee calls for a commission of inquiry into Queensland’s Crime and Corruption Commission.
Just some of what’s ahead on the Roundup, which is brought to you by the Victorian Local Governance Association, an independent governance organisation supporting councils and councillors to achieve the highest standards of governance
Links:
Brimbank appoints new CEO
New Sunshine Precinct plan welcomed
Transparency needed now and into the future - MAV
Mayor elected Regional Capitals Australia Chair | City of Ballarat
New Grants Commission appointments (p.2259)
Victorian Government announcement about Swinburne Prahran site City of Stonnington
Mayoral Election Status
New Deputy Lord Mayor of Adelaide
Queensland parliamentary committee reviewing Logan councillors' dismissal recommends review of CCC structure
CCC Chair should stand down following damning parliamentary report – LGAQ
Joint organisation model gets tick of approval - Office of Local Government NSW
City of Hobart vaccination policy announced
2021 National NAIDOC awards recipients | NAIDOC
Slough welcomes commissioners – Slough Borough Council
Support the Roundup and get access to special episodes and regular breaking news updates by becoming a subscriber for around $5 per month. ($3 USD) Click here to subscribe now.
The Local Government News Roundup is brought to you by the Victorian Local Governance Association, the national broadcaster on all things local government; with support from Davidson, the nationally recognised executive recruitment and business advisory service; and from Ventia, making infrastructure work sustainably for our communities.
Links for stories referenced in the podcast can be found in the transcript, or by visiting the Roundup website.
In this episode of the Local Government News Roundup:
Brimbank Council announces its new CEO;
Victorians Council peak body concerned about a lack of consultation on planning reforms;
Some early results coming through from this weekend’s local government elections in NSW;
And a parliamentary committee calls for a commission of inquiry into Queensland’s Crime and Corruption Commission.
Just some of what’s ahead on the Roundup, which is brought to you by the Victorian Local Governance Association, an independent governance organisation supporting councils and councillors to achieve the highest standards of governance
Links:
Brimbank appoints new CEO
New Sunshine Precinct plan welcomed
Transparency needed now and into the future - MAV
Mayor elected Regional Capitals Australia Chair | City of Ballarat
New Grants Commission appointments (p.2259)
Victorian Government announcement about Swinburne Prahran site City of Stonnington
Mayoral Election Status
New Deputy Lord Mayor of Adelaide
Queensland parliamentary committee reviewing Logan councillors' dismissal recommends review of CCC structure
CCC Chair should stand down following damning parliamentary report – LGAQ
Joint organisation model gets tick of approval - Office of Local Government NSW
City of Hobart vaccination policy announced
2021 National NAIDOC awards recipients | NAIDOC
Slough welcomes commissioners – Slough Borough Council
Support the Roundup and get access to special episodes and regular breaking news updates by becoming a subscriber for around $5 per month. ($3 USD) Click here to subscribe now.
The Local Government News Roundup is brought to you by the Victorian Local Governance Association, the national broadcaster on all things local government; with support from Davidson, the nationally recognised executive recruitment and business advisory service; and from Ventia, making infrastructure work sustainably for our communities.
Links for stories referenced in the podcast can be found in the transcript, or by visiting the Roundup website.
Hello, and welcome to the Local Government News Roundup for 5th December 2021. I’m Chris Eddy.
On the Roundup today…
Brimbank Council announces its new CEO;
Victorians Council peak body concerned about a lack of consultation on planning reforms;
Some early results coming through from this weekend’s local government elections in NSW;
And a parliamentary committee calls for a commission of inquiry into Queensland’s Crime and Corruption Commission.
Just some of what’s ahead on the Roundup, which is brought to you by the Victorian Local Governance Association, an independent governance organisation supporting councils and councillors to achieve the highest standards of governance;.
Another week, another CEO announcement.
Brimbank City Council has appointed Fiona Blair as its next CEO.
Ms Blair has a background in state and local government, most recently in a senior role with the Department of Transport, and previously as a senior executive at the City of Port Phillip.
She will take over from Warren Roberts, who was lured out of retirement earlier this year to fill the role on an interim basis after the retirement of previous CEO Helen Morrissey.
Fiona Blair commences at Brimbank on the 24th January.
There are now 8 Victorian councils with a vacancy for a permanent CEO, with more appointments expected to be announced soon.
While we’re in Brimbank and Melbourne’s West, a key document setting out the state government’s vision and framework for Sunshine transport precinct has been released, and it has received a positive response from Brimbank City Council.
The Sunshine Precinct Opportunity Statement recognises Sunshine as the centre of Melbourne’s west, and sets goals and objectives for achieving transformational outcomes from the $20B in planned infrastructure investment, including Melbourne Airport Rail and Geelong Fast Rail.
Brimbank Mayor Jasmine Nguyen, said the statement recognises the Council’s efforts in advocating to government to ensure that transport infrastructure coming to the city is about community and people, not just commuters and places.
https://www.brimbank.vic.gov.au/mr/State-Gov-backs-Sunshine-centre-Melbournes-west
Victoria's peak body, the Municipal Association of Victoria, has expressed concerns about a lack of community consultation in relation to proposed reforms to the Victorian planning system.
MAV President Cr David Clark says there is genuine concern that the voice of the community, expressed through their elected councillors, may be lost.
He has cited examples of government action under the guise of pandemic recovery, that puts aside longer-term community aspirations.
Cr Clark says the planning system should not be overhauled for short-term economic benefit, and the MAV is ready to engage with the government on the reforms to ensure communities can express their concerns about planning decisions.
Transparency needed now and into the future
The Mayor of the City of Ballarat, Cr Daniel Moloney, has been elected as Chair of the Regional Capitals Australia advocacy group.
The group was formed 9 years ago to bring 51 regional capital cities together to present a unified voice to the federal government.
Cr Moloney takes over from the retired Albury mayor Kevin Mack who chaired the group for the past 12 months.
The composition of the board of Regional Capitals Australia has attracted some criticism in recent days, with gender advocates expressing disappointment in its all-male composition.
Mayors of member councils are eligible to represent their state on the board. Of the 51 regional capitals in Australia, 22 are current members of the group.
Of those 22, three of five Victorian member councils have a female mayor. There are no female mayors currently in office at any of the remaining member councils.
However, the mayoralties of the 7 NSW members are to be determined with elections taking place this weeked in that state.
Mayor elected Regional Capitals Australia Chair | City of Ballarat
There have been two appointments made to the Victorian Local Government Grants Commission.
Michael Ulbrick, a local government consultant and former Council CEO, has been reappointed for a further four years; and experienced state and local government executive Marg Allan has joined the commission.
Julie Eisenbise has completed her term as a member of the Commission, having been first appointed in 2013.
Mr Ulbrick and Ms Allan join Commission Chair John Watson, whose appointment runs until 31 October 2023.
http://www.gazette.vic.gov.au/gazette/Gazettes2021/GG2021G043.pdf (p2259)
https://www.localgovernment.vic.gov.au/funding-programs/victoria-grants-commission
The state government has announced plans to purchase the Swinburne University site in Prahran as part of a long term plan to support an education and arts precinct in the area.
The announcement has been welcomed by the City of Stonnington as providing certainty for the community about how the site would be used in the longer term.
Mayor Jami Klisaris said securing the site as a long term education and arts hub will provide generational outcomes in Stonnington for residents and students.
Victorian Government announcement about Swinburne Prahran site City of Stonnington
The Roundup continues in a moment with more news from around the country.
The Local Government News Roundup is brought to you by the Victorian Local Governance Association, the only independent governance organisation supporting councils and councillors in achieving the highest standards of governance on behalf of their communities.
The VLGA provides opportunities for councillor networking, professional development and information exchange and actively engages with key policymakers and broader stakeholders to inform, influence and lead the conversations that determine the priorities for the sector.
All councillors and staff at a VLGA Member Council can access the VLGA’s programs and services. Membership is also open to non-council members and individuals interested in local governance. If you’d like to know more about VLGA membership, call (03) 9349 7999 or email vlga@vlga.org.au
Now to some stories making news in local government around Australia this week.
Local government elections have been held across NSW this weekend, and some mayoral results are already clear.
The 17 year reign of Clover Moore as Sydney’s Lord Mayor will continue, after she was comfortably re-elected for a fifth term.
Ms Moore has won an estimated 43.5 percent of the vote, down from 58 per cent at the last election in 2016.
The Wollongong mayoral race looks like going down to the wire, with two candidates separated by less than 1 percentage point last night. Incumbent Lord Mayor Gordon Bradbery trails challenger Tania Brown by 0.8 of a percent.
There is also a tight race for the mayoralty of Shellharbour, with independent Chris Homer holding 51.39% of first preferences this morning, ahead of ALP candidate Marianne Saliba on 48.61%, with less than half of the votes counted so far.
The incumbent mayor of Port Macquarie-Hastings, Peta Pinson, appears to have secured another term. She has polled 53 percent of first preference votes, with 22,000 votes counted out of a possible 66 ½ thousand votes.
Nuatali Nelmes has polled strongly to claim the mayoralty of Newcastle, with 41% percent of first preference counted so far.
And at Lake Macquarie, Kay Fraser has been returned for another term as mayor with more than 53% of first preference votes cast her way.
There are 34 mayoral elections being conducted, and more than 1,200 councillor positions being decided at 124 local councils across NSW, with many results not expected to be known for some time.
The City of Adelaide has a new deputy lord mayor, with Cr Arman Abrahimzadeh OAM commencing in the role this week after being elected at the November Council meeting.
Lord Mayor Sandy Verschoor has paid tribute to outgoing deputy lord mayor Mary Couros, who completed her term this week. It was the first time in over 20 years that the city had a female Lord Mayor and Deputy Lord Mayor.
The new deputy lord mayor is a tireless anti-domestic violence campaigner, and is the first person with Persian and Afghan heritage to hold the office.
https://www.cityofadelaide.com.au/media-centre/new-deputy-lord-mayor/
A damning report has been tabled in the Queensland parliament calling for a commission of inquiry into that state’s anti-corruption body, the Crime and Corruption Commission.
The bipartisan Parliamentary Crime and Corruption Committee found that the CCC had breached its duty to remain independent and impartial; and that it failed to take into account all material considerations and evidence when deciding to charge eight Logan City councillors with fraud in 2019.
The committee has called for a commission of inquiry into the structure of the CCC. It stopped short of recommending the termination of the CCC Chair’s appointment, as had been suggested in submissions.
Following the report’s release, the Local Government Association of Queensland called for a public apology and compensation for the Logan councillors, and for the Chair Alan MacSporran to stand down from his position.
CCC Chair should stand down following damning parliamentary report – LGAQ
The results of an independent review into NSW’s network of 13 joint organisations has been released by the local government minister Shelley Hancock.
The review has found that the joint organisations deliver strong and effective outcomes for regional communities, and the framework under which they operate is a credible, legitimate and transparent model of regional governance.
11 recommendations to further strengthen the model will be implemented by the Office of Local Government next year.
The network was introduced in 2018 through an investment from the government of $8.2 million in their establishment, sustainability and capacity. The 13 joint organisations focus on improving the delivery of services and infrastructure to regional communities.
87 regional councils are active members of a joint organisation, along with representatives of state agencies and other key stakeholders.
Joint organisation model gets tick of approval - Office of Local Government NSW
Hobart City Council CEO Kelly Grigsby has announced a mandatory vaccination policy for staff, ahead of the Tasmanian border opening to domestic travellers this month.
Council employees will need to have booked their first by vaccination the 15th December under the proposed policy, and the second by 31st January.
The proposed policy is undergoing formal consultation with employees and unions in accordance with the Council’s enterprise agreement.
The mayor of Aurukun Shire in Queensland has been named the Person of the Year at the 2021 National NAIDOC Awards.
Cr Keri Tamwoy is one of four Queenslanders to be recognised at the awards. She is co-founder of the Wik Women’s Group, which champions for education and safety of women and children. Her late mother, Alison Woola, also served as mayor of the shire of Aurukun, located in the remote western Cape York Peninsula.
2021 National NAIDOC awards recipients | NAIDOC
Now some stories of interest under our international spotlight….
Two government commissioners have been installed at Slough Borough Council, in south east England, following a review into the governance and finances of the council which found problems stretching back several years.
The commissioners will oversee and assist with the council’s recovery and renewal plan.
Council Leader, James Swindlehurst, says the council has been working to identify savings over summer, reducing large budget gaps in the current and coming financial years, but that the council remains in a challenging financial position.
The government announced the appointment of the lead commissioner Max Caller and finance commissioner Margaret Lee on Wednesday, and they were on deck at the council the following day.
Slough welcomes commissioners – Slough Borough Council
Leicester City Council, in the East Midlands region of England, will spend upwards of £26M to acquire 371 homes from the private sector to reduce the number of people on the housing waiting list.
The homes are being bought using a £100M fund the council has created to address an affordable housing crisis.
There are currently more than 5,300 applicants waiting for homes to become available in the city.
Leicester City Council bid to spend £26m to cut housing wait list
The next mayor of the City of Atlanta has been decided, with Andre Dickens winning a runoff election last week.
He outpolled 20 year council veteran Felicia Moore, who was seen as the frontrunner after polling the most votes by a wide margin in the first round of voting last month.
Dickens has been a councillor since 2013, and has campaigned on addressing crime and affordable housing in a city that has seen a 67 per cent increase in killings over the past two years.
Councilman Andre Dickens wins Atlanta mayor race over Moore
And that’s it for this edition of the roundup. Visit www.lgnewsroundup.com for more on each episode, including show notes, links to the stories referenced and extra features.
The Local Government News Roundup is brought to you by the Victorian Local Governance Association, the home of VLGA Connect - an ever growing library of interviews, updates and panel discussions on YouTube and podcast
Join me next time for more local government news. Until then, thanks for listening and bye for now.