City of Greater Geraldton invites public to have their say on local government reforms

Four or nine, or somewhere in between? What is your view on how many councillors should represent Geraldton? Under reforms to the Local Government Act 1995 which are already in progress, the size of councils will be based on population while optional preferential voting will be introduced. The public is invited to have their say on how big the council should be, as part of a representation review. “Under the local government reform proposals, municipalities with a population between 5000 and 75,000 are required to reduce their number of councillors to between five and nine which includes a mayor,” he said. “Our City region has a population of approximately 40,000 therefore the maximum number of councillors we can have is set at nine, including the mayor, which is four less than the 12 councillors we currently have. “Given councillor representation could potentially drop to four, or a quarter of what it currently is, I urge community members to read the City of Greater Geraldton Review of Representation Discussion Paper outlining all the pros and cons regarding a reduced number of councillors before they have their say.” A reduced council could lead to a more efficient decision-making process and cost reductions, while on the flipside it includes less views represented in decision-making and increases the risk a particular interest group may become dominant within council. The discussion paper is available on the City’s website or in hard copy at the Geraldton Civic Centre or Mullewa District Office. To contribute to the review, people can visit surveymonkey.com/r/LGReformCGG, email council@cgg.wa.gov.au or provide written feedback to the civic centre or Mullewa office. The feedback deadline is 4pm on Wednesday, January 18.