❓ A member of parliament questions the Minister for Local Government regarding the inquiry into governance issues at the City of Melville, focusing on the rationale behind initiating the inquiry and the criteria considered.
AnsweredQoN 2466Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
(1) I refer to the Minister’s media statement dated 29 November 2017, regarding the inquiry to address governance issues at the City of Melville, which states “...the quantity and ongoing nature of the allegations made against the City has now prompted an inquiry using the powers of the legislation to determine the veracity of the complaints”, and I ask: (a) how many complaints have been made against the City of Melville; (b) what about the ongoing nature of the allegations has necessitated the commencement of an inquiry; and (c) why was a probity audit not considered the most appropriate course of action to investigate this matter? (2) I refer to the Minister's opinion piece in the West Australian on 21 December 2017 regarding the same topic, which states that the inquiry "was determined by the department and is subject to various criteria, including but not primarily based on the number of complaints received by the department and my office", and I ask: (a) what were the "various criteria" considered; (b) did the Department suggest any other compliance measures could be appropriate in this matter; and (c) was it the Minister or the Department who had final sign off on the initiation of the inquiry?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
15 March 2018
Responded by
Minister for Local Government
Response time
8 days
(1)(a) As has been answered on my behalf in the Legislative Council, my office has received approximately 250 pieces of correspondence from at least 100 individual people either raising concerns or complaining about the City of Melville. The Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries continues to receive a large amount of correspondence related to the City.
(b) The number and seriousness of the allegations
(c) The Department considered that a Probity Audit would only provide answers to a portion of the issues
(2)(a) The Department considers a number of criteria before commencing any inquiry, including, but not limited to, public interest factors, seriousness of the allegations, number of allegations, and the effect on governance.
(b) The Department did not consider any other measures would be appropriate.
(c) The Department.
(b) The number and seriousness of the allegations
(c) The Department considered that a Probity Audit would only provide answers to a portion of the issues
(2)(a) The Department considers a number of criteria before commencing any inquiry, including, but not limited to, public interest factors, seriousness of the allegations, number of allegations, and the effect on governance.
(b) The Department did not consider any other measures would be appropriate.
(c) The Department.
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