Adelaide Hills Council votes to call for mayor to resign after secret complaint sparks investigation

The council has voted to dump its own mayor, alleging a probe found she had misled council and bullied staff. But she’s fired back, saying she’s challenging the findings.

Adelaide Hills Council has voted for its own mayor to resign, alleging a “complex” investigation sparked by a secret complaint had found she had bullied staff and misled the community and council.

However, a “deeply distressed” Mayor Jan-Claire Wisdom has refused to step down, saying she challenged the findings and was not given “proper opportunity” to respond before the vote took place. She is seeking legal advice.

In a late-night meeting on Tuesday, AHC voted to formally censure the Mayor, force her to make public and private apologies, undertake training and repay the investigation cost.

The Mayor said she was not present at the meeting for medical reasons.

One councillor voted against it and not all elected members were present. The minutes were not available at publication time.

The original complaint remains confidential, Cr Selwood said, adding the resolutions voted by council were “commensurate with the seriousness of the breaches”.

“This complaint has led to a thorough and complex independent investigation that prioritised procedural fairness and natural justice for all parties,” Cr Selwood said.

Adelaide Hills Council Mayor Jan-Claire Wisdom. Photo: Naomi Jellicoe

“The subsequent report generated as a result of this investigation found the Mayor had breached the policy … with regard to acting in a manner consistent with the role, establishing and maintaining relationships of respect and trust, taking all reasonable steps to ensure the community and the council are not knowingly misled, and a commitment not to bully council employees.”

Mayor Wisdom said she was “shocked” by the council’s actions, believed the matter was to be kept confidential, and had no idea the vote had actually taken place until she was alerted by a journalist.

The Mayor said she learnt the matter was on the council’s agenda as a confidential item, but informed council she was unable to attend the meeting because of a medical issue and asked any resolutions be deferred to “be given a proper opportunity to respond”.

“It is alarming to me that the elected members proceeded anyway,” she said.

“I have not read the resolution and will not be in a position to respond until I have done so and until I have taken legal advice.

“The actions that appear to have been taken are unjustified. I do challenge the findings made and I will not be resigning as Mayor.”

However, Cr Selwood said the Mayor had been given “both advance notice and subsequent notice regarding the timing of the vote and the nature of the resolution”.

“The decision did not remain in confidence as it was made public as required under the Local Government Act,” she said.

It’s the latest in a string of controversies to rock the council this year, including a surprise $5m operating deficit, a SafeWork SA referral over workplace intimidation of staff, and twin revelations its legal fees have leapt to $327,710 while it lost nearly a quarter of its staff.

In September, the Mayor was stripped over her powers amid a confidential report into her obtaining legal advice without council permission.

Cr Selwood said council had declared it had no confidence in the Mayor.

“The subject matter of the original complaint remains confidential out of respect to the individuals involved.

“However, I would like to make it clear that I believe the resolutions are commensurate with the seriousness of the breaches and demonstrate council’s determination to ensure that we all uphold the values that underpin both our culture and our shared commitment to serve the Adelaide Hills community.”