SINCE the decision was made last November by Golden Plains Shire councillors not to elect a deputy-mayor, debate has continued as to whether one is necessary.<\/p>\n
Current mayor, Cr Brett Cunningham voted in favour of retaining the position and said this week that while January is a quiet time, there were occasions last year where he had a clash of events.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you get on council you get elected to internal committees and external boards,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cLast year on a few occasions there was a clash of a meeting with a politician, or you get invites for the same date or time so in that case I was able to ask deputy-mayor Gavin Gamble to step up.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, Cr Cunningham said now the decision has been made not to have a deputy mayor, he will embrace it.<\/p>\n
\u201cOnce the vote is made by the group of councillors you accept and you follow the outcome of the vote,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt does come at a saving of about $20,000.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think all councils are going to have a tough couple of financial years so there\u2019s a saving there.\u201d<\/p>\n
The issue of whether a deputy-mayor is needed was highlighted recently with Cr Cunningham while Cr Cunningham was away on a cruise.<\/p>\n
Due to the timing of the trip, he was not required to take a leave of absence and previous mayor Cr Gamble would have had to fulfill duties if there was an emergency.<\/p>\n
Cr Gamble, who was also the last deputy-mayor and stood again for the position in November, agreed with Cr Cunningham and said the role is important for covering the expansive Shire.<\/p>\n
\u201cMayor Cunningham and I worked together as a leadership team to provide best coverage and attendance possible over the whole Shire, representing the council,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile I accept the council group voted four to three not to have a deputy mayor for this term, I argued at the election time that having a deputy-mayor is especially appropriate for Golden Plains Shire, in my opinion, because our Shire is fundamentally different from other rural ones.<\/p>\n
\u201cGolden Plains Shire is peri-urban on two fronts.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cr Owen Sharkey led the movemto scrap the deputy position that saw Crs Clayton Whitfield, Les Rowe and Ian Getsom join him in voting against offering the role.<\/p>\n
Cr Sharkey served as mayor when the deputy position was unpaid and said he volunteered to do fulfill the role unpaid in 2022\/23, but other councillors chose to elect Cr Gamble to a paid role instead.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it is handy having a nominated deputy but when I was mayor, we did have a deputy, I brought about the deputy role, but it was tokenistic and it didn\u2019t cost ratepayers an odd $20,000 a year,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was my main thing, I couldn\u2019t justify the costs of it and I\u2019m sure with what happened last week there are policies which need changing.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf there was better communication or policies changed, we don\u2019t need it.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
SINCE the decision was made last November by Golden Plains Shire councillors not to elect a deputy-mayor, debate has continued as to whether one is necessary. Current mayor, Cr Brett Cunningham voted in favour of retaining the position and said this week that while January is a quiet time, there were occasions last year where […]<\/p>\n