We wish all our readers a wonderful and safe festive season and a healthy 2012. It’s been a busy year. Much has happened as outlined in our ‘review’, but much still remains to be achieved. Our objectives are to continue to grow; to highlight all the issues that impact on residents and to provide the necessary conduit for opinion, debate, and consensus. In short, we aim to provide a voice for residents – something so obviously lacking in this muncipality.
As always, we’re grateful for all contributions and for the countless email messages of holiday cheer and well wishes. Unless something of major importance surfaces, we will return refreshed, eager, and invigorated in the new year. Last but not least we again extend our thanks to councillors (and administrators) for providing us with so much copy for our regular posts! We could not be doing this without you.
Glen Eira Debates 
December 21, 2011 at 7:31 PM
Thank you for all your incredibly hard work. The blog is going from strength to strength and I wish you continued success in the year ahead.
December 21, 2011 at 8:57 PM
Congratulations and thanks for your hard work. I hope you enjoy your much deserved break and have a wonderful time celebrating with family and friends.
We look forward to your insightful comments next year … it has all the hallmarks of being a dozy. Please, please come back refreshed as the info that you provide is sorely needed in this “mushroom” municipality
December 21, 2011 at 9:29 PM
Likewise, thanks for all your efforts and trying to keep the bastards honest. May 2012 see the end of the gang and the Newton dictatorship.
December 21, 2011 at 9:48 PM
Best wishes to all. If I had one wish for the blog in 2012 it would be for regulars posters to choose a username so we can differentiate one from the other. All the ‘Anons’ aren’t conducive to good conversation.
Cheers all!
December 21, 2011 at 10:19 PM
I’d also like to add my thanks to the owners of this site and the hours they put in to keep us informed. I’m very appreciative of the council meeting reports since as we all know, council minutes reveal nothing. To read what each councillor has basically said and to be able to analyse their arguments has been most enlightening.
To all other bloggers, a very merry Xmas, or a happy Chanukah, and looking forward to more discussions in the near future.
December 21, 2011 at 10:48 PM
Thank you for your tireless work on behalf of the Glen Eira community and you are an inspiration to other communities around Australia. Please keep up your energy and enthusiasm in the New Year.
December 22, 2011 at 8:08 AM
Thank you to the “anonymous” owner operators of Glen Eira Debates. I admire the reports of the Council meetings.. Whoever takes down shorthand and compiles the reports of the Council meetings, your efforts and hardwork are truely appreciated. Having a quick overview within an hour of the completion of some meetings is quite remarkable. I am sure that some of the Council staff arrive at work following a meeting and check the site as the quickest reliable reference as learn of the outcome of some of the motions.
I do sometimes question your drive for transparency. There are so many laws that set out to protect the privacy of the companies and individual that are easily overlooked. While some of these laws are good in many respects, they have a downside which many bloggers don’t quite get. I think Cr. Pilling is coming to understand this fact.
I think very few Councillors in our State are so carefully monitored.
Thank you.
December 22, 2011 at 11:08 AM
Glen Eira Debates is an important resource for residents. I congratulate the owners and authors of the site and wish everyone well for the future.
Laws of the land are important and so is transparency. Obviously many things cannot be revealed such as commercial in confidence arrangements and some legal advice. This should only constitute a minority of issues and items that are considered by council. We know that this is far from the truth where most things are labelled confidential by Newton and then are prevented from being made public. I’d guess very few come under the commercial in confidence banner. Most are declared confidential I’d say to avoid the public gaze because it might be politically embarrasing. Sure, let’s have laws, and let’s have concern for people’s privacy, but let’s not allow the laws to be manipulated and abused simply because it suits some individuals agendas.
December 23, 2011 at 8:27 AM
Your work has been tireless,reliable and informative a truly great achievement for the year in your devoted cause of simply tryinggot bring about democracy in our municipality again. Congratulations
December 23, 2011 at 1:41 PM
You guys are doing a terrific job. Keep it up.
December 24, 2011 at 9:40 AM
The author of this website has done a fantasic job in keeping residents informed and needs to be congratulated. It has been one bright spot in a bleak year for Glen Eira with C60 approved, dodgy Mayor heritage planning issues, GESAC stuffups, Frisbee affair and an attitude by administration to block everything that the most popular Councillor in Glen Eira history says. My wish for this Christmas is for all this to change but with the CEO reappointed, Hyams mayor, Gibbs and Mclean continuing in their audit committee roles to rival Kim Jong, I suspect we will be getting another lump of coal in the stocking.
December 24, 2011 at 9:48 AM
On the issue of audit committee membership, readers may find the comparison from the following Port Phillip council minutes (12th December, 2011) of interest. Of note:
1. maximum terms set
2. all up front and included in minutes as opposed to Glen Eira’s practice of incamera and secret appointments
See: http://www.portphillip.vic.gov.au/Report_14_-_Appointment_of_External_Members_and_a_Chairperson_to_the_Audit_Comm_Membership.pdf
December 24, 2011 at 9:59 AM
PS: It’s also worth noting that NO AUDIT COMMITTEE ANNUAL REPORT has been tabled in open Council Meeting. The last council meeting contained minutes of a November Audit Committee meeting where it stated under the heading of “Annual Report of the Audit Committee” – “The report was approved for consideration by Council”. Does this mean that the Annual Report was again presented in camera, at an assembly meeting, or is it still to make an official appearance, well after a year? In the past, these almost verbatim copies of year to year ‘reports’ were tabled at the final council meeting of the year. Not so in 2011. Draw your own conclusions as to why!
December 25, 2011 at 10:50 AM
Best wishes all you Glen Eira sloogers, and a special thanx to the home-base scribes, that are second to none when it comes to both brains & heart. I suggest that people like this do not do it for themselves, they see something a lot bigger. All strength to your arm.
December 25, 2011 at 2:55 PM
Glen Eira, Seasons Greeting and congratulations in most of your boggers total absorbtion in Abbott style negativity. Also never let the truth get in the way of a good story. I;m shocked that you could possibly quote Port Phillip ,the greatest basket case suburb in Victoria.The place is full of deviates, alchoholics and misfits. If you want to get s—ed or stoned you head for Port Phillip. Next to the City, you have huge car costs in terms of parking and fines and the Council receives over $20m this way. Thier footpaths are dangerous and crime rampent especially in their Chappel St police station. No wonder they limit tenure. Avoids too much potential corruption.I didn’t even mention their huge Rates.
December 26, 2011 at 8:27 AM
Bad Christmas trade this year Noel?
December 26, 2011 at 10:31 PM
You will just love it when Abbott becomes your prime minister. Opposition is supposed to be negative.
December 25, 2011 at 5:40 PM
Amazing how governance improves once you get rid of the existing ceo and the majority of old councillors. Well done Port Phillip – you got rid of the rubbish. Now it’s Glen Eira’s turn.