Public Question Time Applicant: Nick Cooke

Thank you. Make sure I've got the right one. Destination Management Plan, strategic, significant strategic document intended to guide tourism and visit a management industry over the coming development of the plan commenced with community engagement in 2023 and involved extensive consultation, engagement, workshops, surveys, communication activities, advertising, staff resources and external expertise over a period of more than two years. While council's reported on the aspects of the engagement and the process and the outcomes of the plan, it does not appear to have been publicly available consolidated figure outlining the total cost incurred by Council in developing the plan from inception through to adoption, understanding cost of the strategic planning initiatives is important for transparency, accountability and informed public discussion, particularly at a time when Council is proposing rate increases and communities are seeking assurance that resources are being allocated effectively. This question seeks to establish investment made by Council in preparing the Destination Management Plan and provide clarity on where those funds have been expended. So the question is: what has been the total cost of the Destination Management Plan from initial concept planning to final adoption, including but not limited to internal staff costs, consultant fees, research? Community engagement, workshops, surveys, advertising, communications, graphic designs and the like, and the other direct or indirect associated costs?

Second question is about dog registrations. Recently reports indicate the booster Council issued over 500 infringement notices to dog owners for unpaid registration resulting in substantial community concerns and a large number of appeals. Council has publicly stated that renewal notices were sent via postal mail, however many residents have publicly claimed they did not receive a renewal notice prior to receiving an infringement notice. Council has also reported approximately 200 appeals have been lodged in relation to these infringements and there's rumblings of class actions. Given the number of residents raising concerns and significant financial penalties involved it's important the community have confidence that the registration process operated as intended. The question seeks clarifications to whether renewal notices were successfully generated. First and foremost in internal systems and sent to dog owners for the registration periods that ultimately resulted in infringement notices being issued. So the question is simply can Council confirm whether the annual dog registration renewal notices for all affected dog owners. Were successfully generated by council's internal systems for the registration periods that resulted in the recent infringement notices you, Nick.