Stashed Cash To Pay For Court Action
Illawarra Mercury
Tuesday May 20, 2008
SHELLHARBOUR City Council has broken into its piggy bank to cover more than $1 million in legal and investigative costs for its landmark court action over confidential leaks to a community website.
General manager Brian Weir said that while he still hoped to "claw back" some of the court costs, the council had been forced to dig deep into its savings.The council last year alleged that independent councillors Helen Stewart and Geoff Rose breached the Local Government Act by leaking Mr Weir's contract renewal, remuneration package, a draft report and confidential business papers to a website in 2006.The Land and Environment Court ruled last month that Cr Stewart was responsible for one of the leaks, but neither she nor Cr Rose was found responsible for leaking the remuneration details.There is no mention of the court costs in next year's budget, which went on public exhibition last week. The expenses were dealt with in this year's budget because the case was expected to be finished by the end of the financial year. Mr Weir said fortunately he had encouraged the council over the years to put a bit of cash away for later, saving the council from major debt in the 2008-9 budget."But we're eroding all the good work, eroding the fiscal responsibility," he said."I don't mind making a loss if you're using it to buy an asset. But this is like selling the family car." The council was also burdened with the sub-prime crisis, which had brought down investment returns."That's why the deficit has blown out and we have to fund from savings accumulated from previous years."The debt didn't flow into the next budget as the funds were taken from the savings pile.The quarterly review going to tonight's council meeting includes a further $169,000 to cover legal costs for the website case in this final quarter.However, the report notes that only the council's own legal costs have been accounted for, and does not include any estimate of costs owed to Cr Rose, or possibly Cr Stewart. A costs hearing is set for May 26.
© 2008 Illawarra Mercury
