2020-01-16 Ordinary Meeting Minutes

ORDINARY MEETING MINUTES                                                    16 JANUARY 2020


        of direct funding for public infrastructure, even if City Deals does ultimately come to
        fruition.
        As Mayor, I speak with other mayors of the SEQ Region whenever I need to, and I deal
        with them all at various functions and forums such as the SEQ Regional Planning
        Committee meetings (of which Noosa is a member) and at LGAQ events including the
        annual conference. The CEO is also in regular touch with SEQ councils through their
        respective CEOs, most particularly in his role as Queensland President of the Local
        Government Managers Association, but also informally through his CEO network.
        In the end, the tens of thousands of dollars required annually to participate in the SEQ
        Council of Mayors is not considered to be money well spent, and can be put to better
        use on behalf of our residents without any significant loss of engagement opportunities
        with other councils in SEQ.
        Question 2:
        By Noosa forgoing interregional cooperation on transport connectivity and other common
        interests via the SEQ Council of Mayors alignment, instead as the Mayor says, to forge
        closer ties with the Gympie Regional Council, what tangible outcomes have been
        achieved through that alliance?
        Response by Michael Shave, Acting CEO:
        The close relationship between Noosa and our northern neighbour Gympie continues
        to deliver rewards for both Councils. Some examples of tangible outcomes that can be
        mentioned are:
            Gympie council have been very supportive during our local disaster events. For
             example, during the recent fires, Gympie offered immediate access if needed to
             their heavy plant such as graders and dozers etc. They also offered their
             evacuation centres as back-up should they have been needed.
            There are many examples of information and resource sharing. For example,
             Council recently hosted the Gympie bridge crew to compare work practices. This
             afforded us the opportunity to demonstrate Noosa Council’s success in the use of
             battery-powered small plant and equipment relating to bridge maintenance.
            Gympie and Noosa have provided each other with expert staff to assist with
             specific employee recruitment. This can mean Noosa staff sitting on Gympie
             interview panels and vice versa.
            We share information at the operational level regarding governance matters. For
             example, we have shared internal audit plans, allowing the opportunity for each
             council to review the other council’s forward plans and practices.
            Both Council CEOs periodically attend the respective Audit and Risk Committee
             meetings. This active participation allows each CEO to contribute positively at the
             meeting and also to consider improvements to their own Council's governance and
             risk framework.
            We have established an agreed sharing of procurement information, allowing
             comparisons of costs and arrangements related to many essential items that both
             councils need to purchase, in addition to exploring shared arrangements which
             combines our buying power in the market.
            We are also progressing discussions between the two councils to identify
             opportunities to maximise the use of plant and fleet through shared arrangements.
        This list is not exhaustive, but I believe they do demonstrate the good working
        relationship between the two councils.



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