Local Government (Elections) (Display and Publication of Valid Nominations) Amendment Bill

Introduction and First Reading

The Hon. S.L. GAME (16:44): Obtained leave and introduced a bill for an act to amend the Local Government (Elections) Act 1999. Read a first time.

Second Reading

The Hon. S.L. GAME (16:45): I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

Being ethical, open and honest are key characteristics of successful councillors. It is also important for the ratepayers to know who is seeking to represent them. I want to see councils being more open with the community when it comes to its nomination and voting processes. Ratepayers want to know that the people seeking to represent them are going to make decisions that are in their interests.

There has been much criticism of the secretive nature of the South Australian Voice candidate nomination process and the difficulty in finding clear information about what the government is spending on the upcoming election and who the candidates are. As is the case with councils, the public cannot easily scrutinise these nominations until after the candidate nomination period has closed.

Councillors play an important role, as they find out what local people want and endeavour to represent their views. Working with other councillors, they make decisions on what the council agenda will need to be to meet these needs. They have the responsibility of deciding how to best allocate and spend ratepayers' money, ensuring that these decisions are in the best interests of the community.

However, we know that councils and common sense do not always go hand in hand. I read with interest Kathryn Bermingham's article in The Advertiser last week detailing the situation where the Adelaide City Council voted down a proposal to erect a 1.1-metre high fence around the Adelaide Comets Football Club's western Parklands pitches so it complied with Football Australia requirements to host National Premier Leagues matches. The decision was overturned but is symptomatic of the often out-of-touch individuals who are elected to represent or, in this case, misrepresent their community.

We have seen councils playing politics and investing in self-interest and virtue signalling to a public that has had enough of this nonsense. I use the example of the Mitcham council voting to allocate $40,000 to support the Yes campaign, a decision that was made without consulting its ratepayers. The motion, put forward by Mayor Heather Holmes-Ross, to allocate the funds was carried by a majority of councillors. Thankfully, the council backflipped in response to community pressure, with ratepayers making it clear that they want councils to focus on core business, not playing politics.

Currently, we have a council election candidate nomination process that allows for the potential for nominations to be confidential. This means that the public may not be able to scrutinise nominations until after the candidate nomination period has closed. I hope to achieve transparency by making these changes to the Local Government (Elections) Act 1999.

This amendment will require returning officers to display a copy of the nomination in the principal office of the council in respect of which the nomination was made. This is to be done as soon as possible after the receipt of a valid nomination. It will also require a copy of the nomination to be published on the internet. There is also a requirement for the returning officer to provide a council with a list of all valid nominations relevant to the council's area and publish a list of all valid nominations on the internet within 24 hours after the close of nominations.

Ratepayers rightly expect councillors to be honest and ethical. These changes will provide for a more open and transparent candidate nomination process and will allow for greater scrutiny by the public, thereby improving the quality of candidates. If the community can easily access information on who has been nominated before nominations close then community members will have a better idea of how they will be represented and whether there is a diverse pool of candidates.

We had an incredible situation in 2023 where eight council areas headed back to the polls at taxpayer expense after failing to receive enough councillor or mayoral nominations. This included the Tumby Bay area. It is likely that if this had been publicised before nominations closed, that members of the community inclined to consider running would have thrown their hats into the ring.

We have seen the steady rise of Greens candidates infiltrating councils and pushing work policies that are out of touch with community sentiment. Decisions are being made that are not representative of the majority of South Australians, be it banning nativity displays at Christmas time, removing traditional prayers from council meetings or cancelling Australia Day citizenship ceremonies. This needs to stop, and my bill will ensure that candidates can be scrutinised in a fair and timely manner.

Debate adjourned on motion of Hon. I.K. Hunter.