I KNOW I’m not the sharpest tool in the shed, but I’m having trouble understanding what the mayor, Lindsay Brown, is saying when he says that council requires indemnity from the state government before it can tackle the rising sea-level problem.
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Is he saying that Shoalhaven and Bega have been given this indemnity and that’s why they can move on the problem or is he saying that they don’t need indemnity, but our shire does for some reason, or is he saying that council is the only one that can see problems where others do not?
And his comment that the planning department was not singing from the same page as the minister is difficult to understand as well.
Does he mean that the minister is misleading his department or that his department is misleading the minister?
And why does Eurobodalla Shire Council see legislative requirements where other councils do not?
Are all those councils acting illegally?
Shoalhaven Shire Council, acting on the same report as Eurobodalla Shire Council, passed its planning policy by nine votes to two, which is a pretty fair majority and a pretty quick result.
How did Eurobodalla end up with a bitterly divided council with the mayor siding predominantly with one group against the other?
Is this because Shoalhaven councillors are capable of working together on important issues or is it because the mayor is inclusive and can work with all the elected representatives of his much larger shire to get results that benefit the residents?
Strangely, in spite of Eurobodalla having committed councillors and such well-paid, highly professional council staff, Bega and Shoalhaven shires are going ahead while it is falling away.
Michael Johnson
Tuross Head