HUON GM TIMELINE
March 15: Emilio Reale resigns as Huon Valley general manager.
March 31: Huon Valley Mayor Bec Enders, deputy mayor Sally Doyle, Cr Mick Newell and Cr Mike Wilson appointed to the recruitment panel for new general manager.
April 16: Emilio Reale finishes up as general manager.
April 19: Paul West and Andrew Wardlaw become acting general managers.
April 22: Red Giant appointed as recruitment agency.
May 5: Red Giant advertises general manager role.
May 24: Application period extended to May
26. The council had initially told the Mercury the application period “was always intended to be for three weeks, concluding on 24 May 2021”, claiming the period was originally advertised in error as two weeks. It later clarified in its answer to a question taken on notice that the statement provided to the Mercury was incorrect and the extension was actually from the 24th to the 26th.
May 26: Application period closes with 85 candidates applying for the role. Head of Red Giant, Joanne Inches, would go on to submit 14 candidates to council, dismissing the remaining
71.
June 16: Huon Valley
Council announces Cr
Mike Wilson is no longer eligible to serve on council. Mr Wilson is consequently removed from the recruitment panel.
July 7: Mr Wilson replaced on the panel by
Cr Christine Campbell who later stood down.
August 17: Council confirms Red Giant assesses 47 applications and identified 14 candidates to be submitted to the recruitment panel for review.
August 23: Media outlet the Tasmanian Times alleges a conflict of interest in the recruitment process for general manager, revealing the candidate set to become general manager was “directly linked” to Ms Inches.
August 25: Council decides to appoint Jason Browne, pictured, as new general manager at closed council meeting.
August 31: Huon Valley mayor Bec Enders announces a review has been commissioned due to community concerns.
September 15: A special closed council meeting held to discuss the results of a review into the recruitment process confirms Mr Browne as GM. The council claimed the review cleared it of breaching the local government act, code of conduct and Huon Valley governance framework, but said the review did find the management of the conflict fell below expected standards. The council said it would release further details, including a copy of the key findings “in the coming days”.
September 21: Mr Browne began as general manager.
September 29: Community members protest at Huon Valley Town Hall. Huon Valley Council decides to release a redacted version of the Edge Legal report to the public.