LABOR FORCE
ALP TICKET FOR COUNCIL ELECTION
TOWNSVILLE looks headed back to partisan local elections with Labor planning a party ticket at the next council elections.
Members at the Townsville Labor Conference last weekend backed a motion put forward by current councillor Paul Jacob to run an ALP ticket in the 2020 local government poll.
Speaking from the US, Mayor Jenny Hill ( right) said she was “surprised and disappointed” Cr Jacob had put forward the motion without consulting her or his colleagues.
TOWNSVILLE Labor members have dropped a political bombshell on Mayor Jenny Hill by voting to run candidates on a partisan ticket at the next council election.
The Bulletin can reveal members at the Townsville Labor Conference last weekend backed a motion put forward by current councillor Paul Jacob to run an ALP ticket in the 2020 local government election.
It would be the first time the ALP has run a partisan Townsville City Council ticket since former mayor Tony Mooney in the early 2000s.
It is understood Cr Jacob moved the proposal in his capacity as a member of the ALP, however it still puts him at odds with Cr Hill, who ran her team on an “independent” ticket in 2012 and 2016.
Cr Hill, Cr Mark Molachino, Cr Kurt Rehbein and Cr Les Walker are also declared members of the ALP but the remaining six councillors on “Team Jenny Hill” are independent.
Speaking from a trade mission in the US, Cr Hill said she was “surprised and disappointed” Cr Jacob had put forward the motion without consulting her or his colleagues.
“Unfortunately, Cr Jacob appears to be distracted with an idea that would have very little community support,” she said.
“He is entitled to his view, but he must be prepared to accept the community’s judgment on whether they want party politics in local government.”
Cr Hill said she was committed to running an independent team in 2020.
“I have picked my team of councillors based on who is best to deliver for Townsville, regardless of their politics,” she said. “I don’t think there is any desire from Townsville resi- dents to bring back party politics into local government.”
Cr Hill said her team was “totally focused” on securing long- term jobs for Townsville.
“My team and I do what’s best for Townsville, not what we’re told to do by Brisbane,” she said.
This is not the first time Cr Jacob has gone head- to- head with the Mayor in recent months. In December he lodged a petition opposing the council’s decision to fund an airstrip that would service Adani’s proposed Carmichael mine.
Cr Jacob was the only member of the council who voted against the $ 18.5 million funding arrangement for the airstrip at special meetings in August and September 2017.
Queensland Labor state secretary Julie- Ann Campbell declined to specifically comment on the Townsville branch vote.
“Queensland Labor has a local government assessment committee that considers matters,” she said.
Cr Jacob was contacted for comment but did not respond before deadline.