2020-01-13 General Committee Agenda

GENERAL COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA                                                              13 JANUARY 2020


              Note: A close associate includes a spouse, parent, child, sibling, partner or employer
              of the councillor, an entity for which the councillor is an executive officer or board
              member, or an entity in which the councillor or a close associate has a more than 5%
              interest. A councillor’s parent, child or sibling is a close associate only where the
              councillor knows or ought to reasonably know about their involvement in the matter.
              It is proposed that the following offences in relation to prescribed COIs will apply and
              include a maximum penalty of up to two years imprisonment:
              o      a councillor with a prescribed COI in a matter, with intent to dishonestly gain or
                     benefit or cause a detriment for themselves or another person, who participates
                     in a decision relating to the matter; and,
              o      a councillor, with intent to dishonestly gain a benefit for the councillor or another
                     person, who fails to inform a meeting or notify the chief executive officer of the
                     prescribed conflict of interest as required under those subsections.
              The proposed maximum penalties are equivalent to existing penalties8 because they
              are deemed to be reasonable and proportionate to ensure integrity in local
              government decision-making.
              Note: where there is no intent to gain a benefit or no knowledge element, the conduct
              is defined as misconduct.
            Declarable Conflicts of Interest –
              A new provision of the LG Act will state that declarable COIs will apply if a councillor
              has, or could reasonably be presumed to have, a conflict between the councillor’s
              personal interests, or the personal interests of a related party of the councillor, and
              the public interest and because of the conflict, the councillor’s participation in a
              decision about the matter might lead to a decision that is contrary to the public
              interest.9
              In other words, if a councillor has a declarable COI, the councillor must stop
              participating and not further participate in the decision and must inform a local
              government meeting or the CEO of the declarable conflict of interest, including the
              prescribed particulars. Unless the councillor voluntarily decides not to participate in
              the decision, eligible councillors must, by resolution, decide whether a councillor with
              a declarable conflict of interest may participate in the decision and may also impose
              conditions on the councillor’s participation.10
              Note: A related party of a councillor is a spouse of the councillor, a parent, child,
              sibling or partner of the councillor, an employer of the councillor, an entity for which
              the councillor is an executive officer or board member or a person who has a close
              personal relationship with the councillor. A parent, child or sibling of the councillor or
              their spouse is a related party only where the councillor knows or ought to reasonably
              know about their involvement in the matter.11
              Interests12 that are not declarable COIs include:
              o     the conflict of interest is a prescribed COI in the matter;
              o     non-board memberships in community or sporting associations;
              o     religious beliefs;
              o     membership in a political party;
              o     having been a student, or being a parent of a student, at an educational facility;


8 Local Government Act 2009 (QLD) s 175C(2).
9 Explanatory Notes, Electoral and Other Legislation (Accountability, Integrity and Other Matters) Amendment Bill 2019

(Qld), 58.
10 Ibid., 6.
11 DLGRMA, Electoral and other Legislation (Accountability, Integrity and Other Matters) Amendment Bill 2019:

Information Paper, November 2019, 7.
12 Ibid.


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