NEW CEO JOINS CITY HALL FLIGHT CLUB:
New council chief joins overseas jaunts
GEELONG’S new chief executive will head off on a ratepayer-funded overseas trip just days after taking on the city’s top job.
New CEO Martin Cutter will join Mayor Bruce Harwood in Kuala Lumpur for two nights at the end of June, to meet with AirAsia X ahead of its expansion to Avalon Airport later this year.
The former key Melbourne City Council manager will be the third member of council to take part in the $18,000 overseas trip — which will also see the Mayor and another council officer spend 16 days travelling across Europe to attend the UN- ESCO Creative Cities Network Annual Conference and meet with fellow UNESCO Creative Cities members.
“Acting Director of Investment and Attraction, Tim Ellis, will travel with the Mayor to Europe then will return to Australia,” Geelong acting chief executive Brett Luxford said.
“The City’s newly appointed CEO Martin Cutter will travel directly from Australia to Kuala Lumpur to meet the Mayor and Air Asia representatives.”
Mr Luxford said the expected total travel cost of the three council members would be within $18,000.
The ratepayer-funded international jaunt will come as the council doubles up on advocacy trips to Canberra just weeks apart — with Cr Harwood attending one days before flying to Europe.
Geelong council will attend delegations to the capital in late May and early June, and will meet many of the same politicians during each of the trips.
Mr Cutter’s first overseas trip will be less than a year after he attended a 10-day $31,000 Melbourne City Council ¬junket to Europe — including visits to Hamburg, Brussels and Barcelona.
The council’s then-director of city operations and its chief digital officer Michelle Fitzgerald accompanied Cr Rohan Leppert on the trip.
Mr Cutter was confirmed as Geelong’s new chief executive last month, and is scheduled to take up City Hall’s top job on Monday.
The City of Greater Geelong would not reveal Mr Cutter’s salary when asked this week.
Figures released last year revealed former chief executive Kevin Spiller received $400,000-$409,000 per annum, with Mr Cutter likely to receive the same cash package or slightly more.