Here are the stories that featured in the National Roundup segment of the latest episode of the Local Government News Roundup – episode #79.
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. Source: NSW Electoral Commission
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. Source: City of Adelaide
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. Source: ABC News; Local Government Association of Queensland
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. Source: 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. Source: City of Hobart
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. Source: NAIDOC