Western Australia’s Local Government Inspector, Tony Brown, has launched a three-month inquiry into the City of Perth, intensifying scrutiny of a council that has faced repeated allegations of poor governance and internal conflict.
The inquiry was triggered by a report from monitor Carol Adams, who spent almost five months observing the council. ABC News reported that Mr Brown has not made the report’s details public, but said the inquiry will allow him to consider stronger measures, including recommending that Local Government Minister Hannah Beazley suspend or dismiss councillors, or suspend the entire council.
The investigation follows earlier official warnings and a direction for the council to improve. According to ABC News, the inquiry is intended to enable earlier intervention than would otherwise be available to the minister. Mr Brown has also indicated he is prepared to work with the council and send a monitor.
The City of Perth has previously undergone major scrutiny. A 2018 crisis led to a suspension threat and a $7.2 million, two-year inquiry, which found a culture affected by self-interest, complacency and insufficient accountability and transparency. Former Lord Mayor Lisa Scaffidi was also associated with findings involving undeclared gifts and travel, serious breaches of local government laws and factional disputes.
More recently, ABC News reported that Acting Lord Mayor Bruce Reynolds became lord mayor after Basil Zempilas entered state parliament. The acting chief executive resigned after describing an attempted workplace culture review as unlawful; Mr Reynolds later abandoned those plans and said he would ask the inspector to examine the city’s culture. A leaked report subsequently identified “concerning parallels” with the council’s earlier collapse and described the relationship between councillors and management as being in crisis.
Mr Reynolds welcomed the new inquiry, saying it offered an opportunity for matters to be independently examined. Minister Beazley has expressed frustration with the council’s dysfunction, while Mark Irwin, president of the Western Australian Local Government Association, rejected the characterisation that the council was dysfunctional and said there was no evidence of problems. The inquiry will determine whether the council can stabilise or whether further action is warranted.