Greater Geelong City Council has rejected a proposed overseas delegation, after a lengthy and at times heated debate.
The proposal was reported by the Geelong Advertiser on the weekend, prompting community opposition after a tough budget process, and including comments from an inside source that described the proposal as a bad look.
The trip, estimated to cost $25K, would have seen the Mayor and a council officer visit South Korea, Turkey, Belgium and Scotland.
At one point in the debate, Mayor Trent Sullivan directed Cr Melissa Cadwell to withdraw a comment suggesting that council officers were out of touch for bringing the report forward.
Cr Cadwell withdrew the comment after insinuating at one point that she was being bullied.
After the motion was lost by 5 votes to three, an alternative itinerary dropping the Belgium and Scotland legs was also lost.
During the debate, concerns were raised that failing to undertake the trip would place the council in breach of its agreement with UNESCO as a member of its Creative Cities Network and Australia’s only UNESCO City of Design.
Geelong Advertiser $; Greater Geelong City Council; Watch the Council meeting