LOCAL GOVERNMENT AMENDMENT BILL REFINED

Monday, 27 October 2008
Local Government Minister Richard Wynne will this week introduce a house amendment to clarify conflict of interest provisions in the Local Government Amendment (Councillor Conduct and Other Matters) Bill 2008.
Mr Wynne said the amendments will be introduced following a request from the Municipal Association of Victoria and discussions with other stakeholders who raised concerns over the potentially broad interpretation of the original Bill

“The amendment which relates to conflict of interest is just a small part of the overarching reforms to the Local Government Act that will strengthen local governance and transparency for councillors, council staff and the public,” Mr Wynne said.
   
The Bill proposed that a councillor who had made themselves party to a matter should be considered to have a conflict of interest.  This included where a person became involved in a matter by being a party to civil action in court, a VCAT appeal, or by making an objection or submission on the matter to the relevant council.

“There was concern that the terms ‘objections’ and ‘submissions’ may have been interpreted as having a broader application than intended and may unduly limit decision making by councillors,” Mr Wynne said.

“The House Amendment clarifies this issue by explicitly stating that the only conflicts of interest, as an interested party, that would automatically bar a councillor from voting on an issue are being a party to a civil action, a VCAT appeal or lodging an objection to a planning permit.

“Anyone who became a party to a civil action, VCAT appeal or lodged a planning objection prior to this legislation being passed will not have a conflict of interest regarding that issue.”

A new provision will be added to apply to other objections or submissions made under a formal statutory process.

Under this provision councillors will be required to disclose their previous submission or objection and exclude themselves from voting only if they cannot consider the matter fairly and with an open mind.

“We expect councillors to advocate strongly on behalf of their constituents and this legislation protects the right of councillors to make submissions on a broad range of matters, provided they recognise their responsibilities to deal with statutory matters in a fair and unbiased way,” Mr Wynne said.

“The proposed amendment provides greater clarity for councillors while continuing to meet the public expectation that they will make decisions in an unbiased way and follow the principles of natural justice.

“Since last December, the Brumby Government has extensively consulted with local councils and stakeholders across Victoria regarding proposed amendments to the Local Government Act.

“The amended Bill provides a strong governance framework for the new councils that will soon be elected.”

The Brumby Government will submit its revised Local Government Amendment (Councillor Conduct and Other Matters) Bill 2008 to the Upper House this week.