Source : the age
Shoalhaven Council faces being stripped of its ability to make hiring decisions following the appointment of former NSW transport minister Andrew Constance as its general manager, with a separate investigation into his recruitment launched by the Office of Local Government.
The South Coast council announced in October it had hired the former Bega MP, who twice unsuccessfully ran as the federal Liberal candidate for Gilmore, as its new head.
Constance’s appointment prompted a local federal Labor MP to claim it “reeks of jobs for Liberal mates” and Local Government Minister Ron Hoenig asked the Office of Local Government NSW to investigate the manner of the appointment.
Hoenig has now moved to strip the council of its ability to make hiring decisions, allowing it 14 days to plead its case through the issuing of a performance improvement order.
The minister said in a statement that the Office of Local Government has raised concerns about the “integrity of recruitment processes within Shoalhaven City Council”.
“I have proposed making a performance improvement order in relation to the matters that have been raised. The council has 14 days to respond as to whether I should make the proposed order,” Hoenig’s statement said.
The council will hold an extraordinary meeting on Friday to consider the order, with a report to councillors, approved by Constance, recommending they accept the draft order.
A performance improvement order is a mechanism for early intervention to support a council to remedy an existing or emerging issue.
The federal member for Gilmore, Fiona Phillips, who narrowly won the seat for Labor in May, said in response to Constance’s appointment last year that she had “lost all confidence” in the council and Mayor Patricia White.
“It reeks of jobs for Liberal mates, and does not pass the pub test. It is certainly not in the best interests of Shoalhaven ratepayers,” Phillips said in a statement.
White, a member of the Shoalhaven Independent Group, said in a council statement announcing Constance’s appointment that his “commitment to the Shoalhaven and his proven leadership make him an outstanding choice to guide our organisation”.
The draft order says there is “sufficient evidence to raise questions about the transparency, impartiality and integrity of the recruitment process leading to the appointment of Mr Andrew Constance as general manager”.
“Against the backdrop of internal and external disquiet about the recruitment process leading to Mr Constance’s appointment, and another managerial appointment, it is likely that, if left unaddressed, those concerns will impact upon relationships between the elected body and the general manager and upon staff morale,” the order says.
Under the draft order, future recruitment processes would need to take place with a panel of at least three people, including one person who is independent of council.
The council would also have to provide all details to the Office of Local Government of the number of applicants, as well as the dates and number of interviews conducted.
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