SA Mayor ousted early by fellow councillors
Ipswich booming – new data revealed
Boundary change proposal – Burnside and Adelaide Hills Councils
LGANT elects new President
Nick Dametto declared winner of Townsville mayoral election
League table of Council planning permit approval times: Herald Sun
Ombudsman report into Rivervue and Kensington Banks flood issues
Maitland disappointed with Newcastle’s Rising Tide decision
More Victorian mayoral election results are in
SA: Sue Scarman has been removed as mayor of Northern Areas Council with 12 months left in her term.
Fellow councillors have voted to replace her with farmer Keith Pluckrose, with a reason given that other councillors should have the chance to prove themselves ahead of upcoming electoral changes that will see mayors directly elected.
Cr Scarman, who was originally elected by straw draw after a tied vote, has questioned the legitimacy of the move, according to ABC News.
The decision passed six votes to three at Tuesday night’s council meeting.
QLD: New figures show the City of Ipswich is booming, with more than 2,300 new residents settling in over the past three months, pushing the city’s population to over 268,000 and its growth rate to 3.5 per cent.
The September quarter saw 840 new homes built, with Ripley leading the charge as the fastest-growing suburb, adding 515 new residents.
The Council is calling on state and federal governments to urgently upgrade transport infrastructure, including the Cunningham and Centenary highways, to support the rapidly expanding Ripley Valley Priority Development Area.
SA: Community feedback is open on a proposed boundary change affecting land parcels in Skye, in the City of Burnside and Adelaide Hills Council.
The minor administrative change, first raised in 2018, aims to resolve a boundary anomaly between the two councils.
Residents have until November 26th to submit their views to the SA Local Government Boundaries Commission.
NT: The Local Government Association of the Northern Territory has elected Councillor Peter Pangquee from the City of Darwin as its new President at this week’s Annual General Meeting in Darwin.
Two new directors, Mayor Joanna Holden from Katherine Town Council and Councillor Mark Fraser from the City of Palmerston, have joined the board as the organisation focuses on building capability and driving reform across the Territory.
The announcement comes as the City of Palmerston rejoins LGANT membership, strengthening unified representation for councils across the NT.
QLD: Nick Dametto has been confirmed as the new Mayor of Townsville, after the declaration of the result by the Queensland Electoral Commission.
The declaration came as Mr Dametto achieved an unassailable lead, even without outstanding postal votes which can be received until 25th November.
The Townsville Bulletin reported that Mr Dametto had secured 62.7 per cent of the vote after counting on Wednesday, ahead of Acting Mayor Cr Ann-Maree Greaney on 12.71 per cent.
VIC: The Herald Sun has published a list of each Victorian Council and their planning permit approval timelines.
It found that more than 50 Victorian councils are failing to approve planning permits within the regulated 60-day timeframe, with Hepburn Shire the worst performer at just 26.5 per cent approval rate.
Tradies and property developers say the delays are costing them jobs and significant revenue, with some councils taking up to six months to make decisions.
Councils have pointed to staff shortages and resource constraints for the backlog, though some regional councils have improved after receiving state government grants to boost their planning teams.
The best performing council is Loddon Shire; while the best metro council is Banyule.
VIC: The Victorian Ombudsman has delivered a damning report on the Rivervue flood disaster that devastated a retirement village in Avondale Heights in October 2022.
Ombudsman Marlo Baragwanath found that the flooding of 45 retirement villas was the direct result of what she calls “recognisable and avoidable” government failures.
The report found that poor flood modelling by Melbourne Water in the early 2000s allowed homes to be built dangerously low in a floodplain, and that Moonee Valley City Council signed on faulty plans.
The ombudsman is calling on the Victorian government to compensate affected residents, saying it’s simply “the fair thing to do.” However, the government has not supported that recommendation, saying it would be carefully considered and would require a Cabinet decision.
The report also highlights similar concerns for residents at Kensington Banks, nine kilometres downstream in the City of Melbourne, where climate change and increased development have created new flood risks.
The Ombudsman said the experiences show the planning framework is letting Victorians down, and makes recommendations to improve how the systems manages flood risk.
Melbourne Water says it accepts the findings and is committed to improving flood risk information for the public.
More information: The Age, 19th November 2025
Link to Ombudsman report
NSW: Maitland Council has expressed disappointment with the City of Newcastle’s decision to allow Rising Tide protesters to use council land for their 2025 climate blockade.
The Newcastle Herald reported that the decision has led to Viking Cruises cancelling two ship visits that would have brought hundreds of passengers and millions of dollars in revenue for the Hunter region.
Some Maitland councillors are disappointed that Newcastle is accommodating the protesters despite last year’s damage to council property and multiple arrests.
Newcastle Council granted an event licence, allowing Rising Tide to use council-owned land, noting that 76.6 percent of some 1500 public submissions supported the event.
VIC: More mayoral election results from last night. Cr Bernie Hearn has been re-elected as mayor of Benalla, while Cr Melina Sehr has been chosen to serve a second consecutive term as mayor of Stonnington. At Murrindindi, Cr Damien Gallagher has been elected for a third consecutive term as that council’s mayor.
Buloke councillor Graeme Milne will serve as mayor for the first time in 13 years on the Council.
Other notable results include a new mayor for Maribyrnong in Cr Mohamed Semra; the election of Cr Nat Abboud as the new mayor of Merri-bek; and Cr Ben Green is a first time mayor at Central Goldfields.
For the full list of results, see our handy list here.