In each edition we feature the views of a Local Government Association President. The following is from Councillor Clive Robartson, President of the Western Australian Local Government Association.
Local Governments in Western Australia have been calling for changes to the way the State Government investigates issues of misconduct in Councils, and the handling of any disciplinary action that occurs as a result of these investigations.
There has been significant unrest amongst WA Local Governments about this issue, following a number of Departmental inquiries into Councils over the past few years. The most recent inquiry into a large Perth metropolitan Council highlighted the huge impact, financially, professionally and personally, an inquiry process can have on Councillors, staff and ratepayers.
This particular inquiry took over 14 months to complete and finally resolved that the Council had provided good governance to its community.
This inquiry process illustrated the dire need for changes to the way Local Governments and elected members are held accountable for their conduct and compliance with the Act and relevant laws.
Currently, under the WA Local Government Act, if a Council is found guilty of breaching the Act or of wrong doing, then the only penalty available to the Minister is to dismiss the entire Council, regardless of whether or not every Councillor is guilty of any wrong doing.
It is clear that there is a need for a wider range of penalties other than the option of complete Council dismissal. Consultation with Local Governments has shown wide support for a greater range of sanctions where misconduct is proven, ranging from censure at the lower end of the spectrum, right through to dismissal as the most serious penalty.
The WA Local Government Association has strongly advocated for wide ranging reforms, and a new framework to effectively deal with misconduct.
The current Minister for Local Government, after much negotiation, has given the green light to developing a new framework to address improper behaviour by elected members. The proposal includes the following key features.
- Establishment of a legislated minimum Code of Conduct, which will be enforceable.
- A new system for internal review of complaints by individual Local Governments in relation to minor Code of Conduct breaches (voluntary).
- Use of Peer Support Teams to mediate and, where possible, resolve complaints of minor Code of Conduct breaches (voluntary).
- Establishment of a Standards Panel to deal with breaches of the Code of Conduct.
- Creation of a Disciplinary Tribunal to deal with complaints of serious breaches of the Code of Conduct and breaches of the Act.
If implemented, this new framework will be the first of its kind in Australia, and could be a catalyst for change in other States.
This proposal is currently with our WA Local Government members, and we are hopeful that there will be some practical implementation of the new framework before the end of the year.
