A good decision stands the test of time – it is something that I can attest to after 25 years in council.
However, the right decision is not always the easiest decision. A significant part of our role as councillors is making decisions to deliver the best possible outcomes to City of Logan residents.
Sometimes making these tough decisions on our community’s behalf can have impacts on small parts of our community. Our councillors do a great job of representing their divisions – but under the legislation we all must balance divisional considerations with what is best for the residents of the whole city.
In my 25 years, I’ve been part of councils that have had to make hard decisions, but later, people have said to me that they were the right outcomes for the community.
While council decisions are made in the public domain there is sometimes background information that is required to be considered in a confidential manner.
Having these discussions confidentially is not something council takes lightly – we are required to ensure openness and transparency in all that we do and to make decisions in the public interest.
At times though council has a responsibility to treat information sensitively. As a result, council will sometimes need to discuss those matters in a closed session, which it can do under the Local Government Act.
Some of the reasons councillors may decide to do that include the need to discuss legal advice, negotiations about commercial matters, the budget and matters that council may be required to keep confidential by the state or commonwealth.
If we are in negotiations with a resident or business about something that might impact their situation, it is only fair things like that are kept confidential.
Once a meeting is closed, we are only able to discuss the item; any decision or resolution needs to be made publicly. This keeps councillors accountable to the ratepayers – by making the resolutions public it indicates the decisions that have been made.
I stand by my colleagues and the decisions they make on your behalf. We are elected to serve you, and we do that to the utmost of our ability.
I firmly believe this is the most open and transparent council I have seen. All meetings are recorded and live streamed – it has never been easier to access council meetings.
