Moran on pay but no clarity

GOLD Coast Mayor Tom Tate’s chief of staff Wayne Moran is on full pay after being stood down, but council is refusing to provide details about his investigation.

Councillors are unaware of the investigation process and are being advised in emails not to discuss it.

Councillor Tate said he was shocked when Mr Moran was stood down more than 10 days ago, but declined to comment further.

“On the CCC matter, I have absolutely no detail,” Cr Tate said at a media conference last week.

A council insider told the Bulletin: “Even the councillors don’t know what the allegations are. They are entitled to ask that. They should know why he was stood down and what the allegations are.”

Several council sources have confirmed that Mr Moran remains on full pay but absent from City Hall offices.

The Bulletin has asked the council to confirm this, and whether the investigation was an internal matter regarding staff or an external matter.

Council was also asked to provide a timeline on how long the investigation would take.

A City spokesman said in a statement: “It is not appropriate to comment on confidential matters involving City employees.”

The CCC previously said its investigation into the council was continuing but it was “not appropriate to comment further or to confirm the specifics of allegations being investigated”.

Hinterland-based councillor Glenn Tozer was asked about Mr Moran during question time at the Mudgeeraba Chamber of Commerce breakfast yesterday.

Cr Tozer declined to comment, saying Mr Moran should be afforded the same rights as any employee stood down as part of an investigation.

“Even though it’s no secret there is no love lost between Wayne Moran and I, because of his relationship with (the former Mudgeeraba councillor) Ted Shepherd, he should be afforded the same due process every other employee gets,” Cr Tozer said.

A council source said Mr Moran’s absence and continuing questions about the status of the investigation had led to private meetings of councillors in the so-called leadership group. “There have been meetings upstairs. They are concerned about damage control,” a council source said.

Mr Moran was expected to be the Mayor’s campaign adviser leading into the March poll.

The Mayor must now consider a replacement. Mr Moran was also the Mayor’s representative on the Gold Coast Waterways Authority and a key player in developing the cruise ship terminal at The Spit.

Council staffer Luke Wallace has been appointed acting chief of staff.