Mayor mum on details
Council sits on benefits of trip
GEELONG Mayor Bruce Harwood has dodged questions about the key findings from a ratepayer-funded trip overseas.
Cr Harwood returned to Geelong this week after an 18day jaunt to Europe and Malaysia that the council estimated would cost about $18,000.
He was accompanied by economic development manager Tim Ellis for commitments in Poland, Scotland and Italy.
The main focus of the trip was to attend the UNESCO Creative Cities Network annual meeting in Poland.
Geelong became one of 31 cities across the world to be listed as a UNESCO city of design last year.
Cr Harwood also visited waste to energy plants in Dundee and Turin.
He was then joined by new chief executive Martin Cutter in Kuala Lumpur, where they met Air Asia X officials before the airline starts flights to and from Avalon Airport.
In a column in the Geelong Advertiser on Wednesday, Cr Harwood said debate about the value of the council’s overseas travel tended to focus on the cost.
“Rarely does the discussion start with what the benefits might be,” he wrote.
However, when asked to detail the projects or ideas that emanated from the visit, or any plans that relate to the UNESCO experience, he declined to comment.
He also would not put a timeline on when the public would learn more about the value of the expedition.
“A report will be out in due course outlining what’s occurred and what our next steps will be,” he said.
The guarded answer follows the council’s decision not to proactively release any details about Cr Harwood’s travels during the 18-day tour.
Ratepayers Geelong president Andrew Senia called on the council to provide a full disclosure.
“We would expect a breakdown of the costs and a full report that clearly explains the tangible short and long-term benefits for the City of Greater Geelong,” Mr Senia said.
In his column, Cr Harwood said the international gathering was a modern update on having “sister cities”.
“The UNESCO experience has been far more tangible and very connected through open dialogue, genuine exchange of ideas and projects, information sharing and access to various conferences,” he said.
The venture follows three visits to Europe for UNESCOrelated activities during 2016 and 2017 by council tourism manager Roger Grant.
His stops included locations in Germany, Belgium, France and the UK.
All of those trips, including a six-week European visit last year, were funded by Great Southern Touring Route or United Nations agencies.