Clampdown on bad councillors

THE State Government has sent out a warning to all local councils as new misconduct laws take effect this week.
Under amendments to the Local Government Act passed last year, councils now have a greater authority to deal with councillor misconduct internally including new and improved procedures to address alleged code of conduct breaches.
The changes empower councils and the government to take action against councillors doing the wrong thing.
Allegations of misconduct and serious misconduct will be dealt with by independent Councillor Conduct Panels which will have the power to suspend councillors for up to six months.
Councillors retain a right of appeal to VCAT but can no longer bypass Councillor Conduct Panels and have hearings moved to VCAT before a final decision is made.
Local Government Minister Natalie Hutchins said: “When one bad apple does the wrong thing” it is important that there are “quick and robust processes in place to deal with misconduct”.
“Standards of council governance in Victoria are higher than they have ever been before thanks to the Labor Government’s new laws,” she said.