KINGSTON councillors have been discussing “serious issues” behind closed doors this year, leaving ratepayers in the dark.
Multiple votes about “CEO employment matters” have been held in confidential Kingston Council meetings since March. The matter appeared on the agenda during confidential council sessions on 23 March, 30 March, 14 April, and 27 April.
Questions sent to Kingston Council asking what these matters are were not directly answered. Council’s corporate services general manager Paul Franklin told The News “Kingston as a matter of practice does not respond to any questions about staffing but has been transparent on CEO contract matters and has always been happy to disclose the CEO’s remuneration package.”
“Many items that are discussed in confidential business, where possible, are made public at a later date. This is common in matters including property matters, contract and tender negotiations,” he said.
At their 27 April ordinary public meeting councillors debated making the full minutes from their confidential 30 March meeting public, but ultimately voted to keep that information from ratepayers.
The minutes from the 30 March meeting that were approved for release were not published on the Kingston Council website for more than two months. The released minutes read that items had been raised in the meeting by the mayor Georgina Oxley and Cr Rosemary West, which would be referred to a “CEO employment subcommittee for investigation and action”.
Cr Oxley supported making the full minutes of the meeting public. She said “there were issues raised in that meeting I can’t tell the community about.”
“Ultimately we are here for our community, not for ourselves. We are here for the people who elected us. The fact I can’t share serious issues with the community, and what we are doing about it, is really bad,” she said.
“I think it’s really important that we share these with the community and be proactive as a council, and not sweep them under the rug and lock them away in secret meetings.”
Cr Rosemary West said “I think that the issue of transparency is becoming more important for local government.”
“I think that employment of the CEO is the most important decision councillors make, and my feeling is that it’s very important to understand the issues that were raised, and concerns that were raised, and I think it’s a worry that we have not been able to do so.”
Crs Oxley, West, and David Eden supported releasing the full minutes from the 30 March meeting, while Crs Tamara Barth, Tamsin Bearsley, Ron Brownlees, Geoff Gledhill, George Hua, and Steve Staikos opposed.
Kingston Council CEO Julie Reid began her tenure in August 2019. The News is not suggesting any wrongdoing by council or the CEO.
First published in the Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News – 3 June 2020
