Snowy Monaro Regional Council to Consider Response to Minister's Notice of Intention to Issue Performance Improvement Order - By Chris Chan
The Snowy Monaro Regional Council is set to convene an extraordinary general meeting this Friday. The meeting will consider a motion regarding a proposed letter responding to Minister of Local Government, Ron Hoenig’s request for written feedback from the council regarding his intention to issue a Performance Improvement Order (PIO). If the motion is passed by councillors, the letter will be forwarded by Mayor Chris Hanna to the Minister as the Council’s collective response.
One of the proposed letters has already been circulated with the notice of motion. An alternative letter has been drafted by Councillor Rose and sent to all councillors, following consultation with the Mayor who considered that the original proposed letter had too many questions.
Acknowledging Concerns, Proposing Action: The alternative draft letter, which has been circulated to councillors ahead of the meeting, addresses the three key areas of concern identified by the Minister: councillor behaviour, meeting conduct and length, and financial management. While acknowledging these issues, the letter argues that issuing a PIO is unnecessary, citing confidence in the tools already available under the Local Government Act (LGA) to manage and rectify internal governance challenges.
“We recognise the concerns raised by the Minister, and we take them seriously,” said Councillor Rose, who contributed to the drafting of the letter. “However, this Council is less than three months old, and we are already making strides in addressing these matters. We are hopeful that the Minister will allow us time to demonstrate further progress.”
Proposed Measures for Improvement: The proposed response outlines several measures to address the Minister’s concerns, including:
Conducting workshops on the Model Code of Conduct and Meeting Practice to ensure councillors understand their obligations;
Enhancing financial reporting to improve transparency and ensure responsible management of unrestricted funds;
Fostering a more professional and collaborative environment during council meetings.
Next Steps: If one of the letters is endorsed by councillors during Friday’s meeting, it will be submitted by the Mayor (on behalf of the council) to the Minister, in response to his request for council feedback. The council will also extend an invitation to Minister Hoenig to visit the Snowy Monaro region to gain firsthand insight into the governance challenges faced by the area.
“A visit would provide the Minister with a greater appreciation of the scale of governance required in our region and the unique issues we navigate” the letter concludes.
The Independent councillors remain optimistic that internal measures will address the identified issues without the need for external intervention.
A copy of the alternative letter to the Minister can be found here:
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