A former Hobsons Bay mayor has claimed the proposed removal of councillor question time from monthly meetings is an attempt to muzzle councillors.
The removal of councillor question time from the council meeting order of business is included in Hobsons Bay’s draft governance rules which were endorsed at a meeting on July 1 and are currently open to community feedback.
Under the draft rules, councillor question time has been replaced by an expanded public question time which will run for at least 30 minutes in an attempt to give members of the public more direct participation in meetings.
However Mr Hemphill, who served on council from 1999 to 2024 and spent three terms as mayor, said this shouldn’t come at the expense of councillor question time.
“Councillor question time is essential for transparency and good governance at Hobsons Bay,” Mr Hemphill said.
“It allows councillors to raise issues on behalf of ratepayers and the questions are usually on issues that are not covered by reports in the agenda of that meeting.”
Mr Hemphill said some of the biggest issues affecting Hobsons Bay in recent times were first raised through councillor questions.
“There’s chemical leaks in our waterways, another one is the asbestos in our parks, Techno Park Drive.”
He also argued that councillor questions were one of the few ways where code of conduct designations could be publicised, referring to his own experience as an example.
“People would not have known that a code of conduct hearing against myself was held in my absence,” said Mr Hemphill, referring to a dispute during the pervious council term that resulted in his suspension.
“ I only got that message out through a councillor question.”
A spokesperson for Hobsons Bay council defended the proposed changes.
“Council meetings are primarily for decision making,” the spokesperson said.
“Councillors will still be able to ask questions of council officers regarding agenda items.”
The changes to governance rules proposed by council officers are aimed at refining the order of business, clarifying rules and procedures and removing ambiguous or redundant provisions.
The draft rules are open for public comment at: https://participate.hobsonsbay.vic.gov.au/governance
