A report released by Victorian Local Government Minister Melissa Horne in parliament this week found Moira Shire Council could no longer effectively carry out its responsibilities in accordance with the Local Government Act.
The report, called the Commission of Inquiry into Moira Shire Council, was written by commissioners Frances O’Brien and John Tanner.
Here are the 10 findings as written in the report.
1. Governance of Moira Shire Council has deteriorated such that the Council can no longer effectively carry out its responsibilities in accordance with the Local Government Act.
2. The Council failed to manage the performance of the Chief Executive Officer.
3. The Council and its administration failed to take necessary action to ensure the health and safety of employees in the Council’s depots and other outdoor locations.
4. The actions of the Council and its administration in transferring asbestos contaminated waste to the Tungamah and Strathmerton waste stations which were not licensed to receive it constituted serious misconduct putting Council staff, contractors and residents at potential risk of exposure to asbestos.
5. The Council and its administration, by delaying implementation of already approved flood mitigation measures, left the township of Numurkah and its residents at serious risk in the event of another major flooding incident.
6. The Council and its administration through the mismanagement of two major capital projects, failed to act in accordance with the financial management principles contained in s 101 of the Local Government Act and the obligation therein that financial risks must be monitored and managed prudently having regard to economic circumstances.
7. The Council and its administration have failed to provide adequate community representation and to apply the community engagement principles of the Local Government Act on a Shire wide basis, as evidenced by the significant decline in the assessment of Council performance reported in the 2022 Local Government Community Satisfaction Survey.
8. The present undivided municipality model for representation is no longer working in the best interests of the whole Shire.
9. The Chief Executive Officer of Moira Shire Council failed in her duties:
9.1. to comply with the Council’s Employee Code of Conduct requiring employees to conduct themselves in a professional and ethical manner at all times and behave in a way that will not bring disrepute to Council or themselves;
9.2. to act appropriately in response to serious misconduct involving a major breach of the Council’s procurement policy;
9.3. to comply with the legislative requirement for mandatory notification of suspected corrupt conduct to IBAC;
9.4. to exercise responsible oversight of human resource management practices in breach of the Occupational Health and Safety Act.
10. The Commission also finds the complaint by Ms Keenan to the Executive Director Local Government Victoria about the conduct of the Municipal Monitor Ms Marg Allen to be wholly unfounded. The Monitor acted at all times within the terms of reference provided to her by the Minister for Local Government.