{"id":372847,"date":"2026-06-04T14:40:31","date_gmt":"2026-06-04T04:40:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/?p=372847"},"modified":"2026-06-04T14:40:31","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T04:40:31","slug":"inquiry-into-council-complaints","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2026\/06\/04\/inquiry-into-council-complaints\/","title":{"rendered":"Inquiry Into Council Complaints"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
Local Government Minister Ann Leahy<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

June 4, 2026<\/strong><\/p>\n

A Parliamentary Inquiry has begun into the effectiveness of the Office of the Independent Assessor (OIA) and Councillor Conduct Tribunal, the bodies which handle complaints against local councillors.<\/p>\n

The inquiry – by the Local Government, Small Business and Customer Service Committee – will consider if any changes are necessary to the Local Government Act 2009.<\/p>\n

A State Government spokesperson said that under the previous Labor Government the OIA “was excessive and demoralised councillors, wasting millions of dollars in ratepayers\u2019 money on legal fees”.<\/p>\n

The inquiry will focus on five key areas:<\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  • The effectiveness and efficiency of the OIA in dealing with complaints<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
      \n
    • The effectiveness and efficiency of the Councillor Conduct Tribunal<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
        \n
      • Alternative structural models for the OIA “to enhance consistency across government and provide tailored integrity support for councillors”<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
          \n
        • Rights of review for Councillor Conduct Tribunal decisions<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
            \n
          • Any necessary changes to the Local Government Act 2009 or the functions of the OIA or Councillor Conduct Tribunal<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

            A report will be delivered by November 6.<\/strong><\/p>\n

            \u201cWe promised to review the councillor conduct framework to ensure it\u2019s meeting the needs of the local government sector and the communities they serve,\u201d Local Government Minister Ann Leahy said.<\/p>\n

            \u201cWe want to ensure that the processes in place are efficient, effective, and provide the right balance between accountability and fairness.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

            A Parliamentary Inquiry has begun into the effectiveness of the Office of the Independent Assessor (OIA) and Councillor Conduct Tribunal, the bodies which handle complaints against local councillors.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":277266,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[22,3],"tags":[1131],"yoast_head":"\nInquiry Into Council Complaints - southburnett.com.au<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A Parliamentary Inquiry has begun into the effectiveness of the Office of the Independent Assessor (OIA) and Councillor Conduct Tribunal, the bodies which handle complaints against local councillors.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2026\/06\/04\/inquiry-into-council-complaints\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Inquiry Into Council Complaints - 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