Frankston City Council committed to good governance

Published on 03 March 2021

Three important documents underscoring and committing Councillors to good and respectful governance have been ticked off by Frankston City Council.

Councillors voted recently to adopt the revised Councillor Code of Conduct and progress both the draft Communications Policy 2021 – 2024 and draft Councillor Training and Development Policy to four week periods of community consultation.

Mayor Kris Bolam said the Policies and Code ensured a unified approach to exemplary leadership and governance in the best interests of Frankston City residents and ratepayers.

“We’ve adopted our Councillor Code of Conduct, which outlines the standard of conduct Councillors are expected to observe and sets out a process of dealing with breaches.

“The performance of the Council and the wellbeing of the Frankston community are directly affected by the conduct of the City’s elected Councillors. The community is rightly entitled to expect that the business of Council is conducted with impartiality and integrity; Councillors obey the spirit and letter of the law; and responsibility to the community is given priority over the private interests of Councillors.

“The Code has been adopted in satisfaction of the requirements of the Local Government Act 2020 and is a legally binding document that must be adhered to by all Councillors. It specifies standards of conduct and mandates legal, ethical and appropriate Councillor conduct that builds public confidence in the integrity of Local Government,” Mayor Bolam said.

Councillors at their recent Council meeting also considered the draft Communications Policy 2021 – 2024.

Mayor Bolam said the new draft had been revised and strengthened to reflect the current communications environment and to better support a unified governance approach by Council.

“The policy has been strengthened in areas including the use of social media by Councillors, engaging Councillors and Council officers in media opportunities and the ability to promote community and private business in media opportunities that bring marketing and tourism benefit to Frankston City,” Mayor Bolam said.

Mayor Bolam noted that the current Council had been sworn in last November, adding: “It’s not unusual for policies and strategies to be reviewed and strengthened at the commencement of a new Council, and in this case there were changes to several sections that required updating, including the social media portion.”

Following a recent accusation that the draft Communications Policy offered the Mayor unprecedented power to deactivate a Councillor’s social media account, the Mayor wished to set the record straight.

“The draft policy proposes to allow the Mayor at his or her discretion to request that a Councillor remove a piece of content for a period of up to 24 hours should there be a suspected breach of the relevant code or policy, in order for a proper investigation to be undertaken. If no breach is identified, the Councillor is within their rights to reinstate the content,” Mayor Bolam said.

Mayor Bolam said consequences of policy breaches would depend of the severity of the situation and be assessed on a case by case basis.

The Mayor added: “The right to freedom of expression is important but it is not absolute and it may be limited when its exercise causes harm to the public interest or the rights of others.”

South Ward Cr Brad Hill said: “Respecting requirements in the policy serves to enhance the ability of Councillors to work together as a functional and stable Council, which in turn minimises the risk of the Council becoming involved in costly and distracting Councillor Conduct disputes.

“VCAT has previously found equivalent provisions to the ones in our Code of Conduct, to be compatible with Victoria’s Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities, and a justifiable constraint from the right to freedom of expression.”

Cr Hill added: “The new draft policy is much more user friendly and sets out clear principles. It is also both simplified and streamlined compared to the previous policy, making it easier to interpret and understand.”

Councillors voted to endorse the draft policy to be placed on public exhibition and seek a report back no later than April 2021 to adopt the policy – taking into account feedback from the community.

Cr Hill said the draft Councillor Training and Development Policy enables Councillors to receive ongoing training throughout their term on Council to ensure they are effective in their role and hence strengthen good governance.

“Council recognises the importance of appropriate training and development to support and assist Councillors in the effective performance of their official duties and functions. Councillors are encouraged to undertake appropriate training and professional development during their term in office,” he said.

Rules are in place to ensure oversight and following attendance at a conference, seminar, event or training course, Councillors must provide a written summary to Council which outlines learning outcomes, matters of relevance to Frankston City and any recommendations.

Cr Hill noted that Councillors are required to behave with integrity and in an ethical manner in adherence to the Code of Conduct, be strategic thinkers with an ability to engage with the community and communicate effectively – hence underscoring the importance of training and development.

“They also require the ability to analyse and problem solve to reach successful solutions, work as part of a team, understand the financial and budget processes, possess time management and organisation skills, be resilient and understand, or be able to acquire an understanding of, Local Government legislation,” Cr Hill said.

Councillors voted to endorse the draft Councillor Training and Development Policy to be placed on public exhibition and seek a report back no later than May 2021 to adopt the policy – taking into account feedback from the community.

For more information and to have your say on the draft Communications Policy and draft Councillor Training and Development Policy, visit www.frankston.vic.gov.au