Misbehaving councillors could be suspended for six months under a state government push to introduce tougher conduct standards.
The state government will present its proposed Local Government (Improved Governance) Bill to Parliament in the next month. The bill is aimed at giving councils the ability to respond to councillor misconduct and provide more rigourous standards for councillors to follow.
Under the proposed changes, councillors would need to agree to codes of conduct before taking office, councils would be required to establish procedures to deal with alleged breaches, and conduct panels would have the power to suspend councillors for up to six months in instances of serious misconduct.
If approved by both houses of Parliament, the new standards will come into effect early next year.
Local Government Minister Natalie Hutchins said the proposed bill would give councils and the state government a broader range of powers to deal with misconduct.
“While rare, unfortunately there have been examples of misconduct which the current system has failed to adequately deal with,” Ms Hutchins said.
“It’s clear, based on feedback from councils and communities, that there needs to be a more timely and appropriate way of dealing with these situations.”
The bill is part of a statewide review of the Local Government Act that is examining the power and roles of mayors, councillors and council staff.
Fore example, in May a company run by councillor Intaj Khan was fined more than $10,000 by the Immigration Department for rorting the 457 working visa scheme.
However the council had no grounds under the act to disqualify Cr Khan from its ranks.
Wyndham council acting advocacy director Trisha Love said that while the council supported a review of the legislation, it would not comment on the bill until it had been brought before Parliament and could be read.
