FOR the second year in a row, council misconduct allegations have topped the annual list of complaints by residents and ratepayers.
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Minister for Local Government, Gabrielle Upton, said this outcome underlies the need for the new codes of conduct released earlier this year.
Ms Upton said 823 complaints were received by the Office of Local Government about NSW councils in 2017/18, compared to 811 lodged the previous year.
Kempsey topped the NSW list – perhaps unsurprisingly given the ruckus over the cinema project and the turbulence surrounding operations of the air training college at the airport.
“The community rightfully expects their local council to be meeting their expectations and these complaint statistics highlight where councils are potentially letting down their residents,” Ms Upton said.
“The Office of Local Government assesses each complaint, uses the information to help improve the performance of councils, and where necessary takes other appropriate regulatory action.”
Kempsey Shire Council was the most complained about council in 2017-18 with 35 complaints, followed by Central Coast Council (33 complaints), Blue Mountains City Council (31), Northern Beaches Council (31), and City of Sydney Council (25).
It’s important to note that these numbers reflect only the number of complaints – not whether a criticism was valid or found.
“The NSW Government has introduced a range of measures to strengthen the performance, sustainability and integrity of local councils,” Ms Upton said.
“We will continue to work hard to strengthen the ability of local councils to deliver for their local community and ensure high standards of behaviour in the State’s local government sector.”
In a statement to The Argus this afternoon, Kempsey Shire Council said it acknowledged it had faced some significant and challenging decisions in the past 12 months which had resulted in some sections of the almost 30,000 shire population feeling aggrieved.
“We have not been formally advised by the Office of Local Government (OLG) of the complaints ranking but can surmise that these complaints can be attributed to the CBD cinema and the management of our airport,” a spokesperson said.
“The OLG have only made inquiries regarding two complaints and have not initiated any follow-up actions. Council’s new management team will continue to build community trust and increase opportunities for residents to have their say to better inform future decision-making processes.”
Council complaint data for 2017-18 can be accessed on the Office of Local Government’s website at https://bit.ly/1MD7RcX.
