Orange mayor Reg Kidd says common sense should prevail when a mayor or a councillor is unable to attend meetings due to illness.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Dubbo Regional Council this week approved that if a councillor or the mayor is granted a leave of absence of more than one month they have to return any car, phone or iPad provided by council until the leave of absence ends.
Earlier this month Dubbo Regional Council announced mayor Ben Shields would take indefinite medical leave, effective immediately, with deputy mayor Stephen Lawrence to step into the mayoral role.
Cr Kidd said he did not believe making the same rule would be needed in Orange and the issue should be judged on a case-by-case basis. "I assume someone else would take it on, the deputy mayor," he said.
Cr Kidd said they would be able to use the mayoral office and other council assets to do the job.
"It should just be common sense, I would do it."
He said the personal issues of the individual involved should take priority.
"That person's health is important, forget the political point-scoring [and other issues] until later," he said.
Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content:
- Bookmark www.centralwesterndaily.com.au
- Make sure you are signed up for our breaking and regular headlines newsletters
- Follow us on Twitter
- Follow us on Instagram
HAVE YOUR SAY
Send us a letter to the editor using the form below ...