Tuesday, 7 March 2023

Councillor conduct

Evan MULHOLLAND (Northern Metropolitan) (18:09): (81) My adjournment tonight is for the action of the Minister for Local Government, and I call on the minister to reject an attempt to gag free speech by publicly elected councillors in Victoria. It is not a wacky idea but a dangerous one.

I know we have been speaking about local government today. The minister is being urged by a crowd called Local Government Professionals, or LGPro, to apply fines or suspensions for up to three years for what is considered councillor misbehaviour and misconduct, but their gripe seems to be in what they deem unruly or rowdy councillors. If someone were upset by something someone said, an arbiter would be appointed to investigate and dish out penalties. According to the submission now with the minister:

Arbiters should be empowered to suspend a Councillor from office for up three months in the event of misconduct.

And:

Councillor Conduct Panels should be empowered to suspend Councillors for up to three years –

or in fact determine if that –

… Councillor is ineligible to remain in office for the balance of the Council term.

What is more, they reckon consideration should be given to dishing out fines as a sanction, hoping that it basically acts as a deterrent.

My problem with such penalties is that they can be used to gag or stymie political opponents by other councillors. We have seen this movie before. Councillors have seen this arbiter process weaponised, mostly actually not by the Labor Party but by Greens members, in what are clearly political partisan tactics. In one case a councillor in –

David Davis interjected.

Evan MULHOLLAND: Well, I’m getting to that. In one case a councillor in Stonnington, Alexander Lew, was ordered to go to social media and behaviour training after a spat with the council, like some kind of re-education camp. But we have to look into this LGPro organisation. Two of the four executive members of this organisation, I wonder what council they come from; that would be right, the Greens-controlled City of Yarra Council, who are at the moment attempting to sneak through a bin tax that they ruled out at the election. They are trying it again. We have already seen examples where Yarra are restricting ratepayer questions, holding fewer council meetings and preventing councillors from talking to the media.

We are seeing across Victoria these green-tinged councils setting up media and communications Star Chambers. Those opposite will know the Premier’s private office acts in a similar way to prevent speaking. But these Star Chambers – we cannot allow this mission creep to take hold. Like elected representatives in this place, it is incumbent on us to allow councillors to act on behalf of their community – to fearlessly act on behalf of their community. I call on the minister to shut the door on this ridiculous proposal.