Contract termination called ‘reactive’, ‘unfair’

MEMBERS of the Victorian Socialists Ballarat and Free Palestine Ballarat have called the termination of the Ballarat Renewable Energy and Zero Emissions (BREAZE) group’s partnership with the City of Ballarat ‘undemocratic.’

Group members posed several questions about the terminated partnership at May’s council meeting and said they were concerned that questions were directed by the mayor to council directors rather than elected councillors.

“The opaque decision-making process that has resulted in the defunding of BREAZE has sowed distrust in the community,” Victorian Socialists Ballarat representative Ben Nunquam said.

“In my opinion, the whole process initiated by the City of Ballarat was reactive. This is an unfair approach to dealing with community partners.”

Members of both groups met on Friday 20 June to organise a rally before the 25 June council meeting. That meeting was after the Ballarat Times print deadline.

City of Ballarat director of corporate services John Hausler said it is up to the mayor to decide where a question is directed at a council meeting.

“When a question is brought to a council meeting, it is at the discretion of the mayor, who is the chair of the meetings, to direct questions,” he said.

“The mayor can nominate a councillor or the CEO – and by extension, officers – to respond to questions to ensure the correct information is provided.”

In 2024, City of Ballarat councillors passed a notice of motion calling to advocate for a ceasefire in Palestine.

Mr Nunquam said the contract termination does not correspond with the notice of motion.

“We heard from Director Hausler [at the May council meeting], that comments ‘were assessed by the City of Ballarat as antisemitic’,” Mr Nunquam said.

“How that was determined has not been disclosed. But the decision means that the right to criticise Israel’s genocide is threatened.”

BREAZE was contracted by the City of Ballarat to support communication and engagement for the Electrify Your Home initiative.

The communications component of the program will now be undertaken by City of Ballarat staff.

The funding also supported Ballarat ZNet Sustainability Awards Program, which will now not be run, and home energy efficiency workshops which are proposed to be conducted by the City during the next financial year.

The BREAZE contract was terminated in February after comments made by the former president were deemed by the City to be antisemitic and discriminatory.

The BREAZE board said they did not have adequate grounds for dismissal, although the board member stood down. A review of the decision was conducted and both parties took part in a dispute resolution process, meeting on three occasions to try to come to a resolution.

BREAZE later advised that they did not wish to progress the matter to mediation although president Peta Guy said they still do not accept the reason for the termination.

“The mediation process was going to take in the region of six weeks, it was going to cost our members money to do that to pay lawyers, and it would have taken us right up to about now,” she said. “This would have left us a week or two weeks to do half a year’s work which obviously couldn’t have been done.

“The result of that is effectively we would be giving the money back anyway because we are required to return any unexpended funds.”