After years and years of secrecy, there just might be some changes in the appointment of independent members of the Audit Committee. Based on past history, we had quite reasonably assumed that the selection of an independent member was done and dusted but this resolution shows otherwise.

Crs Delahunty/Magee

1. That Council endorse the recruitment process to appoint an Independent Member to Council’s Audit Committee. That Council endorse the transparency of the process and that Council move forward from this point to find the appropriate candidate for the City of Glen Eira.

2. That this resolution be incorporated in the Public Minutes of this Meeting.

The MOTION was put and CARRIED unanimously.

Yet, the phrasing of the resolution, and the very fact that it was done behind closed doors does not assist in entirely alleviating suspicions. For example:

  • Why couldn’t this item have been tabled in open council and announced to all and sundry as other councils do? Surely it can’t be a state secret that a member is going and that council will now be embarking on a recruitment process?
  • How ‘transparent’ can something be when it is conducted behind closed doors?
  • What does ‘move forward from this point’ really mean? What ‘robust discussions’ possibly took place to even achieve this minute step?
  • Other questions hang in the balance – what role will officers have in the appointment? Will ‘selection committees’ of a few councillors be chosen? Will a recruitment company be involved? If so, at what cost to ratepayers? Will anyone receive an ‘invitation’ to apply for the position?
  • And the most important question of all – will this really change what happens in the Audit Committee?

Here’s how some other councils do things –

http://www.portphillip.vic.gov.au/Report_12_-_audit.pdf

http://www.monash.vic.gov.au/reports/pdftext/cp29apr14/6.1.pdf