Adelaide City Council dinners should be capped at $25 a head and not include booze, councillor Arman Abrahimzadeh says

One elected member has proposed the return of sandwiches and wraps for Adelaide City Council dinners so councillors can “get to know each other”.

Free dinners for Adelaide City Council members should still go ahead but be capped at $25 per person and not include booze, councillor Arman Abrahimzadeh says.

Mr Abrahimzadeh believes elected members and senior staff should still receive a light dinner on meeting nights as a way to “get to know each other”.

It follows the previous council axing buffet-style meals – costing about $750 per dinner – in 2019 due to them being a “disgraceful waste of ratepayer money”.

Adelaide City councillor Arman Abrahimzadeh. Picture: Supplied

“I don’t think it’s fair for ratepayers to pay for lavish meals and alcohol and during the last term of council we did start off with a full buffet dinner,” Mr Abrahimzadeh said.

“After about a year councillors started receiving a modest meal during and after meetings of sandwiches, wraps and salads, and I’d like to see that continue.

“It’s not necessarily about the food, but the importance of breaking bread and having meals together as a group to give councillors the opportunity to debrief and get to know each other outside of the chamber.”

In a motion to be discussed at Tuesday night’s meeting, Mr Abrahimzadeh has proposed the dinner, capped at $25 per person, should be provided by a small local business within the council area.

He also said no free alcohol should be provided at the ratepayer-funded dinners.

“I don’t think it’s fair for ratepayers to pay for us to drink alcohol and if we do want to consume alcohol then members can bring it themselves,” Mr Abrahimzadeh said.

Adelaide City councillors (L-R) Jing Li, Mark Siebentritt, Simon Hou, Arman Abrahimzadeh, David Elliott, Carmel Noon, Lord Mayor Jane Lomax-Smith, Janet Giles, Henry Davis, Philip Martin, Mary Corous, Keiran Snape. Picture: City of Adelaide

“I hope that I do have the support of the chamber otherwise this council will end up spending tens of thousands of ratepayer dollars on lavish meals and alcohol, particularly at a time when majority of ratepayers are trying to recover from a pandemic that’s lasted nearly three years.”

The previous council had fed elected members and senior council staff at a cost of about $30,000 a year, before the meals were axed.

The two-course buffet dinners and wine had been held in the Queen Adelaide Room.

Councillors successful at the November elections have enjoyed a welcome dinner after their first council meeting and have an end of year dinner planned.