Rockingham council votes to change controversial policy allowing use of ratepayer funds for defamation cases
A controversial policy that allowed City of Rockingham councillors to use ratepayer funds to pursue defamation cases has been overturned.
The policy was first adopted in 2001 and put in place to provide a 'safer working environment' for council members.
But after a concerns notice was raised in 2022, the policy was brought back before the council, where it was hotly contested, passed by six votes versus five and readopted.
It allowed councillors to access city funding to sue for defamation any 'a person or organisation lessening the confidence of the community in the local government by publicly making adverse personal comments about council members'.
Community members strongly opposed the policy, but council documents reveal that since its implementation, no applications have been made for funding.
At the recent May council meeting, Cr Kelly Middlecoat successfully moved a motion to have the contentious policy amended.
'Amending the legal representation policy to disallow councillors from accessing ratepayer money to initiate defamation proceedings against residents in my opinion, was critical to rebuilding trust with residents, particularly given the community's strong opposition to the policy in when it was implemented in 2022,' Cr Middlecoat told the Sound.
'The former policy did not include a financial limit that could be requested. It also extended to former councillors, a provision which lacks a clear connection to the ongoing governance and responsibilities of the council.
'This level of privilege stands in stark contrast to the support available to front-line workers like police officers and nurses, who do not have access to public funds for personal legal matters arising from their duties.
Cr Middlecoat said that it was a proactive measure as upcoming changes to the Local Government Act would establish new safeguards to prohibit the use of public funds for legal costs.
Ratepayers described the change as a 'massive win for the community'.
Cr Loran Buchan welcomed the motion after 'failing to stop the changes to the policy' in 2022.
'The reason I spoke out loudly against the policy and the changes is that it is a gross inappropriate use of public funds,' she added.
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A controversial policy that allowed City of Rockingham councillors to use ratepayer funds to pursue defamation cases has been overturned. The policy was first adopted in 2001 to provide a 'safer working environment' for council members, although none have ever attempted to access the public money to sue. But after a concerns notice was raised in 2022, the policy was again debated by the council where it was hotly contested, passed six votes to five and readopted. It allowed councillors to access city funding to sue for defamation any 'person or organisation lessening the confidence of the community in the local government by publicly making adverse personal comments about council members'. At the May council meeting, Cr Kelly Middlecoat successfully moved a motion to have the contentious policy amended. Baldivis councillor Kelly Middlecoat. Credit: Supplied 'Amending the legal representation policy to disallow councillors from accessing ratepayer money to initiate defamation proceedings against residents in my opinion, was critical to rebuilding trust with residents, particularly given the community's strong opposition to the policy in when it was implemented in 2022,' Cr Middlecoat told the Sound Telegraph. 'The former policy did not include a financial limit that could be requested. It also extended to former councillors, a provision which lacks a clear connection to the ongoing governance and responsibilities of the council. 'This level of privilege stands in stark contrast to the support available to frontline workers like police officers and nurses, who do not have access to public funds for personal legal matters arising from their duties.' Cr Middlecoat said Rockingham's change was a proactive measure given upcoming changes to the Local Government Act would establish new safeguards to prohibit the use of public funds for legal costs. Community members strongly opposed the policy from the beginning, although council documents reveal that since its implementation no applications have been made for funding. Cr Lorna Buchan welcomed the motion after 'failing to stop the changes to the policy' in 2022. 'The reason I spoke out loudly against the policy and the changes is that it is a gross inappropriate use of public funds,' she added.
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A controversial policy that allowed City of Rockingham councillors to use ratepayer funds to pursue defamation cases has been overturned. The policy was first adopted in 2001 and put in place to provide a 'safer working environment' for council members. But after a concerns notice was raised in 2022, the policy was brought back before the council, where it was hotly contested, passed by six votes versus five and readopted. It allowed councillors to access city funding to sue for defamation any 'a person or organisation lessening the confidence of the community in the local government by publicly making adverse personal comments about council members'. Community members strongly opposed the policy, but council documents reveal that since its implementation, no applications have been made for funding. At the recent May council meeting, Cr Kelly Middlecoat successfully moved a motion to have the contentious policy amended. 'Amending the legal representation policy to disallow councillors from accessing ratepayer money to initiate defamation proceedings against residents in my opinion, was critical to rebuilding trust with residents, particularly given the community's strong opposition to the policy in when it was implemented in 2022,' Cr Middlecoat told the Sound. 'The former policy did not include a financial limit that could be requested. It also extended to former councillors, a provision which lacks a clear connection to the ongoing governance and responsibilities of the council. 'This level of privilege stands in stark contrast to the support available to front-line workers like police officers and nurses, who do not have access to public funds for personal legal matters arising from their duties. Cr Middlecoat said that it was a proactive measure as upcoming changes to the Local Government Act would establish new safeguards to prohibit the use of public funds for legal costs. Ratepayers described the change as a 'massive win for the community'. Cr Loran Buchan welcomed the motion after 'failing to stop the changes to the policy' in 2022. 'The reason I spoke out loudly against the policy and the changes is that it is a gross inappropriate use of public funds,' she added.
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"The City of Newcastle has developed a detailed Inland Pool Strategy 2043, which we believe is of very high quality," Davidson consultant Justin Hanney said. While it may have ticked the legal boxes, the community was left less than impressed with the council's efforts to notify the public about the proposed lease. A notice inviting comments on the proposed lease of the five public pools appeared in Sydney newspaper the Daily Telegraph classified section on July 3, 2023. The notice also appeared on the council's website on the public notices page as a link titled 'Proposed Lease'. The Local Government Act requires the council to give public notice of community land lease proposals that are for a term of more than five years. The public must be given 28 days to make a submission, and if someone makes a submission objecting to the proposal, the council cannot grant the lease without the Minister's consent. At the time, regular pool users said they were not aware of the call for public submissions, as did several Newcastle councillors. Mr Hanney said contracting out the inland pools was supported by a comprehensive cost-benefit analysis and capital investment benchmarking, which was presented to councillors to inform the tender process. "The tender process adhered to the council policy and the Local Government Act," Mr Hanney said. "Additionally, there's evidence of effective management of conflicts of interest demonstrated by the former lord mayor and six councillors exiting the chamber during the tender discussion due to a declared conflict of interest." The decision was delegated to the CEO after Labor councillors declared conflicts of interest in the matter, meaning a quorum of councillors could not be reached to vote on awarding a tender. City of Newcastle's seven Labor councillors recused themselves from a confidential debate on awarding a contract to lease and operate the five council pools because they said interactions with an unnamed politician had created a conflict of interest. While Davidson said the pool decision showed "evidence of effective management of conflicts of interest", the firm found room for improvement generally in how conflicts of interest were managed within the council. The review did not find issues with illegality or a lack of compliance around conflicts of interest, but instead noted there were issues with "how members of the public perceive conflicts of interest being handled". "There is a need, however, for constant vigilance in conflict of interest declarations and to ensure consistency in the way that councillors actually make them," Davidson consultant Colin Jensen said. The full review report will be publicly released on May 21.
