SARA GILLIGAN
LOCAL councillor Diane Fraser has criticised the “toxic” environment of Gawler Council and demanded more respectful behaviour from elected members.
During December’s general meeting, Cr Fraser spoke to a complaint-handling procedure motion about the treatment of elected members and council staff.
“I would like to talk about the toxic environment that is happening in this chamber,” she said.
“This is not healthy nor helpful for the staff, the mayor, the elected members or the community.
“We, the elected members, were elected by the community to represent the community and make Gawler an inviting place to live.
“We are not here for our own self-gratification.”
During her speech, Cr Fraser recognised council was made up of individuals.
“We don’t have to be friends, although it would be nice if we could be,” she said.
“We certainly don’t have to agree and that is why we have the democratic vote.
“The mayor has a job to do and part of that job is to chair the meeting for which there are policies and procedures in place to help the meeting run smoothly, and we as elected members need to show our mayor some respect.
“With the code of conduct, I can’t believe how many hours we spend discussing this. It is an internal policy which in an ideal world would not be necessary.
“We are not children in a schoolyard… we are adults elected to do a job.
“If for some unfortunate reason we need to use the code of conduct, we should accept the findings (of) the arbitrator, whether they be internal or through a solicitor, otherwise we end up back in this toxic environment.”
