Queanbeyan-Palerang administrator Tim Overall may face legal action if elected
Queanbeyan-Palerang administrator Tim Overall could face legal action brought by the NSW Greens should he be elected.
Greens MLC David Shoebridge said he was considering launching a challenge to the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal if any state appointed administrators were elected on September 9.
The challenge would need to be lodged within 30 days of the election results being announced.
Labor MLC Peter Primrose said in March that the issue should be brought to the Independent Commissioner Against Corruption.
Both state parliamentarians have said the situation of administrators running for council was undemocratic and unethical.
On August 8 Mr Shoebridge gave notice he would make a motion calling on the government to immediately direct serving administrators to withdraw their nominations and make it unlawful for any administrator to run for council within 12 months of holding the position.
He said he knew of at least two administrators contesting the upcoming election.
“We thought it was essential that it got state political attention,” Mr Shoebridge said.
“Nobody should be using an undemocratic position, they gained at the hands of the state government, to get a leg up in a local council campaign.
“On the face of it, it’s a breach of our electoral laws.”
Section 275 (2) of the Local Government Act states: “A person is disqualified from holding civic office on a council if he or she is an employee of the council or holds an office or place of profit under the council”.
The Minister for Local Government declined to comment on the potential legal action, however the department supplied the following response.
“There is nothing in the Local Government Act or new council proclamations preventing an administrator from standing as a candidate in the upcoming council elections.”
“Administrators serve in place of the elected body and therefore are not council staff.”
Administrator Tim Overall said he was aware of his name being brought up in state parliament but had not changed his views on his eligibility to run for council.
Mr Overall referenced the 2004 council elections when several administrators ran for council and were elected. He said that he applied for the position as all former councillors were offered the opportunity to do, and was appointed fairly by the state government.
The council confirmed during a recent public forum that Mr Overall, like other administrators, had continued to receive the administrator’s salary during the campaign period and would do so until the first meeting of the newly elected council.
The main issue concerning the Greens and Labor is the fact that administrators have had millions of dollars in funding to spend since the amalgamations that could be seen as state-sponsored campaigning.
“These people have had an 18-month head start on others running for office and have used council funds to launch their campaign,” Mr Primrose said.
“This is very undemocratic and the government should have acted sooner.”
While the state government has abandoned further council amalgamations at least temporarily, Mr Shoebridge was convinced this would become an issue in future.
“As Paul Keating said ‘this will be a dog that returns to its own vomit’ and no doubt they will come back to their forced amalgamation agenda.”