NSW Ministerial Powers to Remove or Suspend Appointed Councillors

Local Government Amendment (Rural and Remote Councils) Bill 2024

15 Oct 2024: Passed by Parliament and signed off by the governor.

This bill kicks in: TBA

Legislative Assembly

Legislative Council

Assent

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Topics

council membership councillor appointments local government public office conduct remote councils rural councils

Introduced by: The Hon Ron Hoenig MP (ALP); The Hon Tara Moriarty MLC (ALP)

Links to official parliament websites

Official page: progress through parliament

Official page: bill text and explanatory notes

Effects of this bill

If this bill passes, it means that:

The Governor can designate a council as a rural and remote council for up to 10 years; this happens if an administrator is in office and regulations are met.
The Governor sets the council membership by proclamation; rural and remote councils must have between 5 and 15 councillors, and at least half the councillors must be elected.
The Minister for Local Government appoints the appointed councillors and the council chairperson for rural and remote councils; the appointed councillors must collectively have experience in finance, governance, emergency management, and environment.
The Minister for Local Government can remove or suspend an appointed councillor from office.
The Local Government Minister can take disciplinary action against appointed councillors for misconduct.
Rural and remote councils must get the Local Government Minister's agreement to change or abolish their wards.
The Minister for Local Government can fill casual vacancies for elected councillors if the council applies.
The chairperson of a rural and remote council must call an extraordinary meeting if two councillors--one appointed and one elected--request it in writing.

The Debate

What different members said when this bill was debated:

Natasha Maclaren-Jones LIB

“I speak in support of the Local Government Amendment (Rural and Remote Councils) Bill 2024. I note the Opposition moved amendments in the other place pertaining to proclamation by the Governor. Those amendments allow for decisions to be made by the Minister by regulation, ensuring that the Parliament is able to scrutinise them and that they are subject to disallowance.”

Official source →

Amanda Cohn GRN

“On behalf of The Greens, as spokesperson for local government and spokesperson for western New South Wales, I contribute to debate on the Local Government Amendment (Rural and Remote Councils) Bill 2024. The Greens oppose the bill in its current form and will seek to move amendments.”

Official source →

Stephen Lawrence ALP

“I speak briefly in debate on the Local Government Amendment (Rural and Remote Councils) Bill 2024. This important bill pertains to my duty electorate of Barwon.”

Official source →

Tara Moriarty ALP

“I acknowledge and thank all members who contributed to debate on the Local Government Amendment (Rural and Remote Councils) Bill, in particular the Hon. Natasha Maclaren-Jones, Dr Amanda Cohn and the Hon. Stephen Lawrence. I also specifically recognise the amendments moved by the Opposition and agreed to in the other place.”

Official source →

News articles and press releases

Local Government Amendment (Rural and Remote Councils) Bill 2024

Mr RON HOENIG, Minister for Local Government — 2024-08-07

The bill provides a practical and sensible solution to bring Central Darling Shire Council out of administration by transitioning to a new type of council model. At its core, the rural and remote council model set out in this bill provides for a governing body comprised of a mix of locally and democratically elected councillors and government‑appointed councillors. This is the best way to ensure both democratic representation and stable, experienced governance. In the case of Central Darling, I am proposing that the council will be designated via proclamation a "rural and remote council", with a governing body comprising three locally elected councillors—one from each of the three existing wards—along with three government‑appointed councillors, one of whom will be the chairperson.