Tea Tree Gully mayor Kevin Knight refuses to quit by the council’s deadline

Tea Tree Gully Council may take legal action as its embattled mayor refused to quit by deadline, after it came to light he called a female staffer a “$2 tramp”.

Court action now looms as the only way to remove Tea Tree Gully Mayor Kevin Knight after he refused to resign on Friday.

In a statement on its website, Tea Tree Gully Council said Mr Knight had not indicated by the 5pm deadline if he planned to step down following a request from elected members earlier this week.

The council had also asked the mayor issue an apology for his recent behaviour following an awkward interview with a TV news crew earlier this week.

“The independent report into Mayor Knight’s behaviour said the matters were serious enough for council’s CEO to lodge a complaint with the South Australian Civil and Administrative Tribunal,” the statement read.

“In the meantime, our focus remains on our core role of serving the community. No further comment will be provided.”

On Tuesday night, elected members unanimously called on Mr Knight to resign by Friday and apologise for his behaviour.

Tea Tree Gully Mayor Kevin Knight. Picture: Keryn Stevens

It also passed a motion of no confidence for the third time against Mr Knight.

It came after an independent investigation from Norman Waterhouse Lawyers found Mr Knight breached its code of conduct 31 times, including when he said a female staffer had been dressing like a “$2 tramp”.
It also been claimed the mayor inappropriately touched the female staffer on the backside. Mr Knight has “vehemently” denied all the allegations.

However, the council does not have the power to remove Mr Knight. A council spokeswoman said the Ombudsman, once it had carried out its own investigation, had power to require a council, via the chief executive officer, to lodge a complaint against an elected member in the SA Civil and Administrative Tribunal.

“The Local Government Act requires the Ombudsman or ICAC to undertake their own investigation first,” the spokeswoman said.

The Local Government Association of SA has also previously said SACAT was the appropriate place to deal with the matter.

On Tuesday night, Deputy Mayor Lucas Jones told The Messenger “the council is prepared to go to court to address this issue”.

Deputy Mayor Lucas Jones said on Tuesday night the matter was now out of the council’s hands. Picture: Matt Loxton.

However, he could not say when that may happen.

“That would have to be a matter for authorities higher than what we are,” Cr Jones said.

“Council has done everything within its powers to address these issues and these concerns.

“These matters are now out of our hands.”

Former Tea Tree Gully mayor Miriam Smith said she supported the council’s position, saying they had taken “very strong steps”.

“It’s fairly topical at the moment and people should be entitled to come in and do their job and know it’s a safe place to be in,” Ms Smith said.

However, she would not say if Mr Knight should resign. “That’s not my call to comment on,” she said.

“The council’s in a position where they have every right to ask the mayor to step down. I will withhold my views.”

Former Tea Tree Gully mayor Miriam Smith said she was glad the council had taken “strong steps” against Mr Knight. Picture Dean Martin.

Florey MP Frances Bedford, who has known Mr Knight for 30 years, said she was reluctant to advise him on the situation and get involved in “council affairs”.

“I don’t advise people about things like this,” Ms Bedford said. “I wouldn’t dare give people advice like that. And he hasn’t asked for that.

“He’s an elected mayor, there are processes to follow and everything will work out eventually.”

Mr Knight said he was unable to comment further and referred The Messenger to his previous statement through his lawyers.

On Monday, he said he “vehemently” denied all of the allegations, saying the invest­igation process was “flawed”.

He also said Norman Waterhouse had an “irreconcilable conflict of interest” investigating the matters.

Cr Peter Field said the matter would have been “nipped in the bud” if Mr Knight had apologised when the first complaint emerged. Picture: Matt Loxton.

Local Government Minister Vickie Chapman said the investigation’s findings “speak for themselves” and councils needed further tools to tackle poor behaviour.

She said the state government was proposing a behaviour standards panel that “would ensure complaints about serious or repeated misbehaviour are independently investigated quickly and effectively”.

“For too long, councils have been lacking the tools they need to tackle issues of poor elected member behaviour,” Ms Chapman said.

“It will allow councils to act immediately and help them to crackdown on unacceptable and unfavourable behaviour.”