By ALESHA CAPONE
A WESTERN metropolitan MP has thrown his support behind a bill which would prevent councillors using ratepayers’ money to fund their VCAT cases.
Liberal MP Andrew Elsbury said amendments to local government legislation – which were debated in parliament recently – would increase the public’s confidence in their councillors.
“This bill will also remove the requirement to pay for a councillor’s legal costs should a councillor exercise their right to have matters about conduct heard at VCAT,” Mr Elsbury said.
“Currently if a councillor has a conduct matter about them brought to a councillor conduct panel, they can seek to have the matter heard by VCAT so that the council will pay their legal costs.”
Mr Elsbury said this situation had developed in Hobsons Bay after some councillors voted in 2011 to use council money to pay Deputy Mayor Tony Briffa’s legal bills at councillor conduct panel hearings.
Cr Briffa – now mayor – was taken to a councillor conduct panel relating to emails he sent to then Mobil employee Maureen Short.
The panel found the Cr Briffa breached the councillors’ code of conduct and ordered him to attend 12 months counselling and apologise to Ms Short.
In September Cr Briffa faced another conduct panel, but instead exercised his right to have the matter referred to VCAT.
In July this year Star reported Cr Briffa and his fellow Cr Peter Hemphill have spent more than $110,000 in legal fees.
However, another Western Metropolitan MP Khalil Eideh said the local government legislation amendment bill could cause “chaos” across the state.
In addition to changing VCAT case funding, the bill could take away the obligation of councillors to vote.
The Municipal Association of Victoria has requested this amendment be removed from the bill.
Mr Eideh quoted former MAV president Bob Matheson as saying “the ability to opt out of crucial decision making… will only serve to weaken the role and status of those councillors elected to represent and lead on behalf of the community”.
