The Office of Local Government investigation into the leaked candidate names during the Huon Valley Council GM recruitment process is still ongoing. This investigation has been in progress since July 2021 with as yet no prosecution mounted.
As the author of the article published in Tasmanian Times I can now advise the source of the information provided to me as a journalist came from former Councillor Mike Wilson. Wilson has since advised the Director of Local Government it was he who contacted me, and as such has released me from my obligations of needing to protect my source.
Wilson phoned my landline at 02.50pm on Monday 12 July 2021 and said to me, “there are six interviews happening this week – take down these names – they are the three shortlisted candidates for the GM job.”
Importantly, the GM Panel were not meeting until the following day, Tuesday 13 July and Thursday 15 July 2021 to consider the six (6) short listed candidates.
The final six (6) came from a selection of fourteen (14) candidates that remained after Joanne Inches from Red Giant had culled the list of eighty five (85) applicants down to fourteen (14). Inches emailed the candidate details of the fourteen (14) to the GM Panel at 09.50pm Sunday evening, 4 July 2021 and at 01.30pm on Monday 5 July the GM Panel met to review the fourteen (14) and to agree on the final six (6) candidates.
Whether Inches advised the GM Panel that her conflicted partner, Jason Browne was one of these final 14, 6 or 3 candidates at this time, or earlier in the recruitment process, is still a matter of investigation.
The GM Panel then met on Tuesday 13 July 2021, interviewed the candidates, and they did indeed shortlist to the three (3) names that were provided to me, to include Jason Browne from TasWater.
Whilst all the evidence alleges the “leak” came from one of the GM Panel members – being Mayor Enders, Deputy Mayor Doyle, Cr Campbell or Cr Newell, the investigation is still in progress.
On receiving the candidate names from Wilson, I undertook due diligence over the next 48 hours to ascertain if the names provided were potential GM candidates, or if I was being provided with ‘fake news’.
Satisfied with my research I then made contact with Inches at Red Giant, and the Director Local Government, Craig Limkin. Limkin advised me if I wanted an investigation into the breach I would need to submit a formal request under section 339 of the Local Government Act 1993 along with a signed statutorydeclaration. I did so in following days.
Considerable evidence has since been provided to the investigation from a number of members of the community to include a statutory declaration that was read out at the recent public meeting held in the Franklin Palais Friday 4 February 2022.
The statutory declaration came from former Councillor Mike Wilson and it read in part:
Sometime in mid-July 2021, I was provided with confidential information relevant to the General Manager recruitment process from one of the three remaining members of the GM Panel.
Revealed to me were the names along with some details of three candidates who were to be considered on the shortlist of applicants for the General Managers position with the Huon Valley Council.
The three names provided to me were Jason Browne, …………… and …………….
At the 23 February 2022 Ordinary Meeting of Council, this statutory declaration was referred to by Mayor Enders when Cr Gibson attempted to put up a motion before the council which read:
Council notes the seriousness of the allegations contained in the statutory declaration read out at the public meeting on 4 February.
Council seeks independent legal advice to advise on the termination of Council’s contract with Jason Browne. A special meeting is held on 9 March so that there is time to act prior to the end of the probationary period on 21 March. Qualified advice is to be brought to the meeting for a Council decision on how to proceed.
Should the contract be terminated, Council starts a new General Manager recruitment process and invites Jason Browne to apply.
A report is brought to open Council outlining the steps taken to rectify the flawed recruitment process.
Mayor Enders was at the ready with the following pre-prepared statement:
“I believe you’ve already been advised that to date, the Director of Local Government has not received evidence that supports the allegations made by former Councillor Mike Wilson in his Stat Dec and officer advice has been provided to Council prior to putting this notice of motion forward. The advice included is that the Stat Dec is unreliable for the Council’s purposes or to be the basis of Council decisions, and that the Stat Dec is potentially defamatory. So based on the fact that for those reasons, and that it is an unreliable document, so if you’re basing your Notice of Motion on that …
… thank you for raising it but I will stand by the advice, the professional advice I have received.”
When I later challenged Enders during public question time about this statement, she replied she had received the advice from the Director of Local Government two days ago, which was Monday 21 February 2022.
In a letter 25 February 2022 from the Director of Local Government, Mathew Healey to Geoffrey Swan, who inquired as a ratepayer about this statement made by the Mayor; he responded in part:
Mr Wilson’s Statutory Declaration of I January 2022, (SIC) [should read 1 February 2022], read out at the Public Meeting of 4 February 2022, presents serious allegations, warranting the investigation of the release of confidential information from the recent Huon Valley General Manager recruitment process.
As stated in my letter read out at the above mentioned Public Meeting, investigations into this matter remain ongoing. The provision of further evidence to advance the completion of this investigation is welcomed.
The suggestion that this office provided the Huon Valley Council with information treated confidentially as part of this ongoing investigation is rejected.
You are advised to address any concerns you may have with comments made by Mayor Enders directly, this office is not responsible for representing the Mayor’s position in these matters.
Tasmanian Times has since contacted Mayor Enders asking if she will please confirm that the Director of Local Government gave her information, be it verbal or written that stated:
“The advice included is that the Stat Dec is unreliable for the Council’s purposes or to be the basis of Council decisions, and that the Stat Dec is potentially defamatory.”
Enders responded:
I am not entering into any further correspondence on this matter. All information related to the GM Recruitment is located on council’s website on a dedicated page.
As you are fully aware, the Director of Local Government is yet to make a determination on the matter relating to the ‘leak’. I make no comment.
Best,
Cr Bec Enders
In making this statement Mayor Enders did not only manage to prevent the motion from Cr Gibson from being passed, but she also managed to publicly discredit, if not defame Wilson for his statutory declaration which he signed and had witnessed under oath.
Wilson has since provided the Office of Local Government with a revised statutory declaration to replace the now earlier statutory declaration that has been publicly tarnished by Enders. It now appears Enders took personal licence in providing her statement at the 23 February 2022 meeting of Huon Valley Council.
The amended statutory declaration from Wilson now reads in part:
Sometime in early to mid-July 2021, ……………, Councillor with the Huon Valley Council, told me in a telephone conversation that there were six candidates being interviewed in the shortlist of General Manager applications for Council. ……………advised me that Jason Browne of TasWater, …………… and …………… were the final three candidates. …………… told me …………… and …………… were from Queensland Councils.
Wilson sent me an email 18 December 2021 and confirmed to me the name of the councillor who had leaked the information. Wilson has told Tasmanian Times he came forward because he wanted to clear Cr Campbell’s name from the list of possible people who could have leaked this information. Campbell has been accused by fellow councillors as being the source of the leak.
“Geoffrey it was in fact …………… that released the names to me re the General managers job they are in fact the same names I gave you …….. was one of three committee members at the time …”
Questions have been asked of Huon Valley Council and the Office of Local Government if all the four GM Panel members have been asked to sign statutory declarations to declare it was not one of them who leaked the confidential information.
The answer to this question has not been forthcoming, instead both parties have responded “we cannot comment on an investigation that is in progress.”
https://www.tasmaniantimes.com/2021/08/flawed-general-manager-recruitment-process/
https://tasmaniantimes.com/2021/10/is-this-the-end-of-enders/
Declaration of Interest
Since 2015 Geoffrey Swan has been actively involved in following the activities of the Huon Valley Council as a resident and ratepayer of the Huon Valley.
Swan has attended most of the HVC Ordinary Meetings of Council until COVID which has been via online streaming of the meetings. When contacting Council Swan delineates between being a ratepayer and being a reporter for Tasmanian Times. This article is based on first person experience with the investigation.
