Today on the Roundup, current and former councillors elected to Victorian State Parliament; the latest Victorian mayoral election results; an advisor appointed to a Queensland council; Busselton appoints a new CEO; and the first local government ministers forum held under the new federal government.
Listen to this episode here, and find the link for your podcast player here for any of the 175 episodes so far. Scroll down for the transcript for episode 175 with story links.
The Local Government News Roundup is brought to you by the Victorian Local Governance Association,the national broadcaster on all things local government; and by Technology One’s 2022 Local Government Digital Transformation Index – download the new report now to find out how your council shapes up.
Transcript (with story links):
Episode 175 LG News Roundup, 27th November 2022
Hello and welcome to the Local Government News Roundup. This is your update for the 27th November. I’m Chris Eddy.
Today, current and former councillors elected to Victorian State Parliament; the latest Victorian mayoral election results; an advisor appointed to a Queensland council; Busselton appoints a new CEO; and the first local government ministers forum held under the new federal government.
That’s all ahead on the Local Government News Roundup, brought to you by the Victorian Local Governance Association, the national broadcaster on all things local government; and by Technology One’s 2022 Local Government Digital Transformation Index – new report out now.
First up today,
As the dust settles on the Victorian state election, it appears that as many as five vacancies have been created on Councils due to the likely election of sitting councillors to State Parliament.
As counting of pre poll and postal votes continues, the result in some seats contested by current councillors remains unclear and it may be some time before a final result is known.
In the seat of Shepparton, the ABC is projecting a clear win on preferences for former four-term mayor of Greater Shepparton, Kim O’Keeffe. The win will return the seat to the Nationals, after two terms for Independent Suzanna Sheed.
A similar story in Mildura, where former Swan Hill mayor and current councillor Jade Benham has won back the seat for the Nationals from Independent Ali Cupper, who held it for one term.
Former two term Hobsons Bay councillor, Luba Grigorovitch has been elected to the parliament, holding the seat of Kororoit for the ALP. Ms Grigorovitch is the former secretary of the Victorian Railway, Tram and Bus Union, and succeeds Marlene Kairouz, who held the seat for 14 years.
The seat of Richmond, where the ALP’s Richard Wynne has retired, has turned Green. Current councillor and former mayor of the City of Yarra, Gabrielle De Vietri, is well ahead onpreferences and appears certain of victory.
The seat of Hastings, on the Mornington Peninsula is one to watch. Early in counting, it appeared to have gone the way of local councillor and actor Paul Mercurio, who stood for the ALP. But later in the evening, as pre poll and postal votes came in, his lead had narrowed considerably. The ABC projection this morning has him ahead by 470 votes.
Current Melton City Councillor Moira Deeming appears certain to take a seat in the upper house, with early voting indicating her likely election in the Western Metropolitan Region for the Liberal Party.
The state’s two most recent Local Government ministers appear to have been safely returned.
Melissa Horne, the ALP member for Williamstown, has comfortably defeated local Hobsons Bay councillor Daria Kellandar to retain the seat for a second term; and while counting continues for the upper house, North Eastern Metropolitan Region member Shaun Leane will retain his position for the ALP.
There were nervous moments for the opposition’s local government shadow minister Richard Riordan, with projections that his seat of Polwarth would be picked up by the ALP candidate. However, a reported data entry error has since been corrected, and it is now projected that Mr Riordan will retain the seat for the Liberal Party.
Ex Local Government Minister and former ALP member Adem Somyurek appears to have been unsuccessful in his bid for re-election to the upper house.
A special mention for Hume City Council, which was very quick out of the blocks to congratulate the State Government on its re-election.
Mayor Joseph Haweill issued a statement last night congratulating the government and successful local members, saying he was looking forward to meeting with the new government to discuss funding for better arterial roads, community health and social housing.
Meanwhile, mayoral elections have continued around the state, and here are the results that have come in since our last episode.
Firstly to Glen Eira City Council, where incumbent mayor Jim Magee has been elected for a fourth term. Anne-Marie Cade was elected Deputy Mayor for the first time in her second term on the Council.
Another incumbent mayor has been returned, this time at Stonnington City Council – where Jamie Klisaris has been re-elected for her third term. She previously held the role in 2017.
Melina Sehr was also re-elected as Deputy Mayor.
Nillumbik Shire Council has elected its youngest ever mayor in Ben Ramcharan. The 26 year old first term councillor was deputy mayor last year.
Geoff Paine was elected as deputy mayor for the next year.
At Mansfield Shire Council, James Tehan was unanimously re-elected for a second term as Mayor this week; Cr Steve Rabie was elected as Deputy Mayor for the same one year period.
Towong Shire Council has reelected Andrew Whitehead unanimously to a second term as mayor; and former mayor David Wortmann will again serve as Deputy Mayor.
At Yarriambiack Shire, the council has reappointed incumbent mayor Kylie Zanker for another 12 month term. The council chose not to have a deputy mayor this year.
And at South Gippsland, there’s a new leadership team with the election this week of Nathan Hersey to the mayoralty, and Clare Williams as deputy mayor.
There are just 8 councils yet to elect a mayor for the forthcoming term. Boroondara, Latrobe and Wodonga have deferred their elections, while Darebin, Moorabool, Merri-Bek, Wangaratta and Yarra are all due to hold mayoral elections this coming week.
Keep an eye on the Local Government News Roundup website for the latest updates as they come to hand.
In other Council related news this week:
Wodonga City Council will ask the Local Government minister to revoke a gazettal notice that requires the implementation of single councillor wards at the next council elections, and is seeking a process of community consultation to determine a preferred structure.
The Council is one of 39 to have its electoral structure reviewed in the coming months, and it has a preference to retain the current unsubdivided electoral structure.
It wants the Minister to request the Electoral Representation Advisory Panel to consult the community on whether wards are required, and if so, whether they should be single member or multi-member wards.
A series of guided audio tours showcasing attractions in Baw Baw Shire has been made available through a partnership with Storytowns.
The 13 part series uses an immersive podcast style format to guide travellers through local towns and sites of interest, highlighting features, attractions and stories automatically through geo-location technology.
The Baw Baw Audio Tour podcast is available through the free Storytowns App.
A Yarra City Council children’s centre has won an award for excellence at the 2022 Victorian Early Years Awards.
The Keel Street Children’s Centre was recognised for its Bush Kinder program, which supports children to connect country and nature. It received the Emeritus Professor Collette Taylor Excellence in Educational Leadership award.
Coming Up: an advisor appointed to a Queensland council; Busselton appoints a new CEO; NSW councillors putting their hands up for the state election; and the first local government ministers forum held under the new federal government.
The term on everyone’s lips these days is ‘digital transformation’ – so, how does your council shape up?
TechnologyOne’s 2022 Local Government Digital Transformation Index measures SaaS migration in councils today. The report’s findings come from a survey of local government leaders across Australia and New Zealand in 2022. And it shows where digital transformation is sitting in the local government sector, where it is heading and identifies some of the sticking points that need to be overcome.
The report also outlines the characteristics of best-in-class councils, so you can learn from others in the sector and use their experience to transform your council into the best digitised version of itself – for you, your people and your community.
To find out what it means for your council, download your free copy of the report from the link in the show notes.
Now in today’s National Roundup:
Federal Local Government Minister Kristy McBain has hosted the first Local Government Minister’s Forum under the new federal Labor government.
Ministers and representatives from around the country, including the President of ALGA, joined the Minister online for a discussion about collaboration on issues impacting local governments.
The Minister said key challenges facing local government were discussed, including skills, workforce, housing and financial sustainability – as well as the ongoing effect of natural disasters.
Queensland’s Scenic Rim Regional Council will have an Advisor appointed to provide assistance with governance matters.
The state government has written to the Council, informing of the appointment of an advisor to assist Council and Councillors in relation to matters including conflict of interest, inappropriate conduct and meeting procedure.
In a statement, the council said it welcomes the appointment and looks forward to working collaboratively with the Advisor over the coming months.
In WA, the City of Busselton has appointed its new CEO. Tony Nottle, currently the council’s Director Finance and Corporate Services, will step into the top job on 5th December.
Mr Nottle has previously held the CEO position at the shires of Dandaragan, Coolgardie, Carnamah and Menzies.
He succeeds Mike Archer, who resigned in July after 12 years at Busselton to take up the CEO position at Shellharbour in NSW.
The Mayor of the District Council of Kimba, Dean Johnson, has been elected to the role of President of the Local Government Association of South Australia.
Mayor Johnson was recently elected to a third term as mayor of Kimba, and he will take on the President’s duties for the remainder of the board’s two year term.
An election was necessary after former Naracoorte Lucindale Mayor Erika Vickery was unsuccessful in her re-election bid at the November Council elections, creating a vacancy in the office of LGA President.
In Tasmania, the Mayor of Circular Head, Gerard Blizzard has expressed the council’s concern about a lack of ambulance availability in the area.
He said the council has written to the Premier, who is also the minister responsible for statewide ambulance services, describing the current situation as unacceptable.
Mayor Blizzard said incidents where the wait time for an ambulance is unrealistic or dangerous, or where there are no ambulances available at all, are becoming more common, and this cannot be ignored.
A trial of rental e-scooters in Launceston and Hobart is set to continue over the summer months.
The trial, which commenced last December, was due to conclude next month. However, it will now be extended through next March while both Councils collate usage data and public feedback for final reports for consideration by councillors.
In Launceston alone, it’s reported that more than 220,000 individual trips have been taken on e-scooters since the commencement of the trial – equating to nearly 400 rides per day.
Armidale Regional Council in NSW will apply for a special rate variation of 50%, to be phased in over three years.
Mayor Sam Coupland said it was a bold move to set the region up to grow its way out of decline and into economic prosperity.
The Council has approved a process to prepare an application to the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal for the variation, which must be submitted by 3rd February next year.
Russell Fitzpatrick, the Mayor of Bega Valley Shire in NSW, will contest the upcoming State Election as a candidate for the Liberal Party. The Bega District News reports that Cr Fitzpatrick is looking to take the seat of Bega from Labor member Michael Holland.
In southwestern Sydney, a former Liverpool City Council councillor and deputy mayor has won pre-selection for the Liberal party to contest the seat of Holsworthy at the state election.
The Merimbula News Weekly reports that Tina Ayyad has won a preselection battle at the expense of three term Liberal MP Melanie Gibbons.
The Local Government News Roundup is brought to you by the Victorian Local Governance Association, the national broadcaster on all things local government.
Once more in 2022, the VLGA will team with LGIU to bring you an insightful Global Executive Panel – bringing together leaders from Australia and the UK, this time to discuss the unique challenges being faced by rural and coastal shires.
Confirmed panellists include Malcolm Burr, the CEO of Western Isles Council in Scotland, and John Baker, CEO from Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula Shire Council; Niall Healy – Director of Municipal Districts and Rural Operations at Ireland’s Cork County Council; and Sabina Rahman-Horstmann, coastal planning and management engineer from WA’s City of Cockburn.
Make sure you don’t miss your chance to be part of the conversation. It’s happening online at 6.30pm on Thursday 1st December.
It’s free for VLGA and LGIU members, and a small fee applies for non-members.
You can find out more, including registration details, on the VLGA website – link in the show notes.
Now to today’s International Spotlight, highlighting some stories of interest from beyond our borders..
An increase to councillor allowances at York Council is in the spotlight this week, after some council members objected to receiving any increase at all.
The BBC reports that a 4% increase would have been applied but for a move to bring on a debate about a series of options, including a potential 7% increase or a complete freeze on allowances.
Some councillors are arguing that any increase in councillor pay would be out of touch with the financial challenges faced by the country and citizens.
The last review of councillor pay three years ago led to an increase in the basic allowance of 12% to around £11,100.
Still in England, and localgov.co.uk reports on a push to put plans for an elected mayor in Cornwall to a public referendum.
Council leader Linda Taylor was understood to be about to accept a government deal, which the council says is worth £390M to the county.
The council will debate a cross-party motion to hold a referendum and take the decision out of the hands of county councillors.
And from Canada this weekend, a call from city mayors in the province of Saskatchewan for better use of government housing to combat homelessness.
CTV News reports that emergency shelters across the province are full, with people forced to live in tents as winter approaches.
City mayors have called for the 3,000 vacant housing units, controlled by the provincial government, to be used as part of the solution.
Under current rules, only seniors and families are eligible to access the units.
That’s the latest from the Local Government News Roundup.
You can find more information at our website – lgnewsroundup.com – including our regularly updated list of Victorian mayoral election results and CEO appointment news.
The Local Government News Roundup returns with more on Sunday, brought to you by the Victorian Local Governance Association, the national broadcaster on all things local government; and Technology One’s 2022 Local Government Digital Transformation Index – download your free copy now.
Until then, thanks for listening and bye for now.