TWEED ‘STILL RECOVERING’ FROM DISMISSAL OF COUNCIL
THE former mayor of the Tweed Shire Council sensationally sacked over a decade ago has warned Ipswich it could take years to recover from the drama engulfing the besieged city.
Warren Polglase was mayor of the Tweed when the entire council was sacked in 2005 following a State government inquiry into allegations of corruption.
While no councillor ever faced criminal charges, the entire group was removed from office, with a team of Sydney-based administrators headed by the wife of Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull placed in charge.
Ipswich joins a growing list of councils to face dismissal.
In Far North Queensland, Johnstone Shire Council was sacked in 2007, while the Gold Coast City Council was dismissed in 1978.
Lucy Turnbull, former Tweed mayor Max Boyd and NSW director-general of local government Garry Payne ruled the Tweed for three years before fresh elections were finally held in 2008.
Speaking in the wake of the Ipswich debacle, Councillor Polglase, who returned to the Tweed council after the departure of administrators, said the shire was still recovering.
“The Tweed really did grind to a halt for a long time because developers were uncertain about the role of the administrators,” he said.
“It took a long time to recover and it’s probably still recovering.”
He said the drama in Ipswich did offer a chance to start fresh, without the influence of political powers.
“People want more transparency and more independence in local government,” he said.