Who's spending ratepayer money?

From our Facebook page 16 June 2025

Tuesday night’s council meeting will see councillors vote on their Donation Policy. That is how and who gets to decide on ratepayers money being spent on donations to Charitable Organisations in the city.

This policy was first established in 2018 and last reviewed in 2022 when Ms Nelmes was formerly Lord Mayor. At both times, the authority of the policy required that the Lord Mayor to be consulted for all donation decisions. https://newcastle.nsw.gov.au/.../Item-100-Attachments-A-C... 

Despite the previous Lord Mayor being involved in these decisions, the motion on the table tomorrow night will put decisions relating to CN donations entirely in the hands of the administration – with the CEO in charge. https://newcastle.resolve.red/.../web/DocPDFWrapper.aspx... (p. 16)

This is a not an isolated move. It follows a troubling pattern of stripping authority from the Lord Mayor’s office. At the first council meeting presided over by our new Lord Mayor Dr Kerridge, new Instruments of Delegation were voted upon which dramatically reduced the Lord Mayor’s powers to exercise control over the CEO’s compensation, staffing of his office and voting rights at local government conferences. https://www.newcastleherald.com.au/.../newcastle-lord.../ 

At the time, the Lord Mayor remarked that the loss of his powers of delegation might hamper his ability to deliver on his election promises. And so it has. A crucial promise to provide a thorough investigation into the Nylon- Sivo letter writing scandal was swept under the carpet in the Davidson report – looking at the process rather than taking a fresh and thorough look. https://newcastle.nsw.gov.au/.../City-of-Newcastle... (p. 10-11)

The people of Newcastle voted for a new Lord Mayor. They voted expecting the powers of the Lord Mayor would continue - regardless of who was in the role of Lord Mayor. These motions undermine the office of the Lord Mayor, the communities vote and our democratic process.