Test us too, aldermen tell council manager

FOUR Hobart City Council aldermen say they have found a loophole to get voluntarily drug and alcohol tested.

Tensions were high at Monday night’s council meeting during debate of a notice of motion from aldermen Jeff Briscoe and Tanya Denison calling for a report to consider elected members be included in the staff random illicit drug and alcohol testing program.

The motion was lost by one vote. Yesterday, aldermen Briscoe, Denison and Marti Zucco said they had individually applied to the council’s acting general manager to be included in the testing program. Ald Simon Behrakis said he intended to do the same.

“It is regrettable … that HCC didn’t support our sensible and equitable motion to include all elected members in the drug and alcohol program,” Ald Briscoe said.

“As workers defined under Health and Safety laws, we believe that we have an obligation to demonstrate we are doing our part to provide a safe and healthy workplace for the employees … and demonstrate to the community that we don’t hold ourselves above the other 700 workers at the council.

“Preliminary advice given to us is, in theory, it will be possible to join the program provided the logistics with the testing company are sorted out.”

Ald Zucco said elected members should show leadership on the issue.

Ald Denison said she hoped those councillors who had voted against the motion would volunteer to be included in the employees’ testing program, despite the motion being lost.

Cr Zelinda Sherlock said during the meeting that she suspected something else had motivated the notice of motion, including the intention to generate a headline.

She also read from Charles Wooley’s TasWeekend column from earlier this month which quoted an unnamed source as saying: “We are sick of the concentration on green-left noncore issues beyond the effective reach of council. Now we are getting square.”

Ald Briscoe said this was not at all the case.

“I find it very disrespectful that people’s motives are questioned and to put that up as a reason to not vote for the motion, is unfortunate,” he said.

It has previously been reported the West Tamar Council has a voluntary testing program for its councillors, but general manager Rolph Vos clarified this had only happened on one occasion.

“Random testing was being carried out at one of council’s offices [and] councillors were attending the building for a workshop. They were given the opportunity to participate and did so on a voluntary basis,” he said.

“Should circumstances arise in the future where testing is being carried out and councillors are present, they will again be given the option to participate.”