CITY of Greater Geelong councilors have voted against sending the city’s mayor and a senior officer on an international business trip that would have cost ratepayers $25,000.<\/p>\n
In September, Geelong mayor Trent Sullivan was scheduled to visited Korean city Changwon to advance a shared memorandum of understanding and meet with leaders of Hanwha Corporation; Istanbul, Turkiye for the UNESCO Creative Cities network annual meeting; and an “inspiration tour” to Kortnijk, Belgium and Dundee, Scotland.<\/p>\n
Hanwha Defence Australia is building a manufacturing facility at Avalon Airport for self-propelled howitzers and military vehicles \u2013 and is in the running for another multi-billion-dollar contract \u2013 while Geelong is one of just 43 global cities in the UN-backed City of Design program.<\/p>\n
A report to the council this week said the two-person trip was essential for the city to maintain its relationships with the international bodies.<\/p>\n
But a majority of councillors said the proposed visit was in poor taste, coming just a month after the city faced intense criticism for its frugal 2023-24 budget that reduced spending on projects and services due to financial constraints.<\/p>\n
Cr Melissa Cadwell said she believed the trip didn’t have “any tangible benefits for the city or its residents”.<\/p>\n
“At a time when we ripped the guts out of the funding many programs that residents hold dear, it’s an insult to those same residents.<\/p>\n
“This $25,000 could be far more usefully spent on public infrastructure projects that improve the lives of our residents.”<\/p>\n
Cr Jim Mason said he supported the premise of the travel but could not support the trip.<\/p>\n
“It would have been a great opportunity to pay our respects to Korea.<\/p>\n
“So I am very disappointed that we’re in a situation where we have severe budget constraints, and that we have other critical social issues such as food insecurity and homelessness to contend with.”<\/p>\n
But those in favour of the opportunity said the city risked undoing its good work in recent years that had positioned it as a global player.<\/p>\n
Cr Sullivan acknowledged the international travel was a “contentious issue” but said strengthening global relationships was key to securing international events and investment that brought direct benefit to the city.<\/p>\n
“When we attract those meetings, we’ve had delegates [from] all around the world to our doorstep.<\/p>\n
“And that we’re not willing to do the same, that sends a message… that we’re willing to take this information when we’re not willing to give back.”<\/p>\n
Cr Anthony Aitken said he also feared the consequences of not honouring the city’s agreements.<\/p>\n
“We’re actually saying we’re happy to be part of the city design, but we’re not going to honour our commitment to actually attend the AGM.<\/p>\n
“We won’t honour our MOU with Changwon, and the implications for that are severe for my community… [that] is desperate for employment opportunities, new investment and for having hope.”<\/p>\n
Councillors Cadwell, Mason, Peter Murrihy, Sarah Hathway and Belinda Moloney all voted against the planned visit, with Sullivan, Aitken and Stephanie Asher in favour.<\/p>\n
Cr Aitken moved an alternate motion that would have removed the Belgium and Scotland part of the journey to save about $5,000, which lost with the same division of votes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
CITY of Greater Geelong councilors have voted against sending the city’s mayor and a senior officer on an international business trip that would have cost ratepayers $25,000. In September, Geelong mayor Trent Sullivan was scheduled to visited Korean city Changwon to advance a shared memorandum of understanding and meet with leaders of Hanwha Corporation; Istanbul, […]<\/p>\n