RULES governing Frankston councillors’ expenses have not been updated for more than a decade despite council admitting it is “best practice” to review policies at least once every four years.
Frankston Council’s current expense entitlement policy for councillors was formulated in 1998 and was last amended in 2004.
The policy stipulates the type of expenses – including travel, study, phone and child care costs – councillors can claim as out-of-pocket costs incurred while performing duties as a councillor.
The intervening 12 years since the expenses policy was reviewed has seen new technology such as iPads and tablets and associated internet usage by councillors for council business claimed as expenses.
When asked why expenses rules had not been reviewed for more than 10 years, council CEO Dennis Hovenden, who joined the council from Swan Hill Rural City Council in September 2012, said in a statement that he and council’s executive team had decided to review the policy in early 2015.
“We aim to review each policy every four years as a measure of best practice,” Council CEO Dennis Hovenden said.
“The Councillor’s Expense Entitlement Policy dates back to 1998 and has subsequently been updated with amendments. This policy is currently under review by council officers and the executive management team.”
The existing expenses policy is not available to view on council’s website and is marked as a ‘new policy to be developed’.
Mr Hovenden said the existing expenses policy was not deliberately removed from the site.
“All policies highlighted for review weren’t added to the new council website when it was introduced two years ago.”
Councillor expenses were thrust into the spotlight last month when Frankston Labor MP Paul Edbrooke used parliamentary privilege to attack Cr Darrel Taylor for “spending twice as much [$25,371] as the ratepayer funds on himself than anyone else” (‘MP guns for councillor’, The Times 28/3/16).
Cr Taylor, a Liberal Party member, said his expenses were higher in the year highlighted by Mr Edbrooke since he was the mayor that year.
At council’s public meeting in March, Cr Taylor likened Premier Daniel Andrews to Ned Kelly over a $2000 metropolitan planning levy to be charged as part of the Frankston Regional Basketball Stadium.
He withdrew the remark after being reminded by Mr Hovenden that councillors have no equivalent to parliamentary privilege protection against defamation legal action when making public remarks.
Frankston Council’s failure to display its councillors’ expenses policy for public view on its website is in contrast to neighbouring Mornington Peninsula Shire and Kingston Council which both make councillor expenses guidelines available for ratepayers to see.
Mornington Peninsula Shire and Kingston Council both last reviewed councillor expenses policies in 2013.
Kingston Council makes specific reference to newer technology such as iPad tablets in its updated expenses rules.
