Gold Coast councillor accuses Annastacia Palaszczuk’s state government of ‘Marxist takeover’

A councillor has accused the state government of a ‘Marxist takeover of local government’ after plans for a Gold Coast community forum were established.

Councillor Hermann Vorster. Picture: John Gass

A Gold Coast councillor has accused the Palaszczuk Government of a “Marxist takeover of local government” after it announced plans to set up a “Gold Coast community forum”.

Hermann Vorster says the move will create an unelected “shadow council” and has called on local councils throughout Queensland to fight the move, warning it sets an “undesirable precedent”.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced the community forum plan this week, saying it would “bring together residents, stakeholders, and Queensland Government representatives to identify opportunities to grow the local economy and to respond to emerging priorities”.

She said expressions of interest inviting local community representatives to become forum members would be launched in the coming weeks, with the first meeting to be held before the end of this year.

Gold Coast City Councillor Hermann Vorster. Picture: John Gass

“Appointed forum members will have opportunities to engage with each other, industry, and government to make their communities even better places to live and work,” Ms Palaszczuk said.

But Mr Vorster – a former Young LNP president who has been touted to replace Burleigh MP Michael Hart at next year’s state election – said the forum would “usurp” the council’s role.

“I thought there already was a Gold Coast community forum – Gold Coast City Council,” he told a council meeting on Tuesday.

“I was intrigued to hear that the government intends to develop a shadow council or a Gold Coast ‘Voice’, because the good ratepayers of our city already fund our organisation to represent their priorities and their collective aspirations.

Mr Vorster said the council was a democratically elected local government in line with the Queensland Constitution.

“So why on earth would the government need to establish a body that this body (council) does every day?” he said.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk. Picture: Brendon Thorne/Getty Images

“We don’t need the government to export its decision-making prowess from Brisbane to the Gold Coast because I can tell you, their decision-making processes don’t lead to good outcomes here.

“My deep concern is that what the government would do by progressing this plan for a shadow council is to actually undermine democratic representation by the people, for the people.”

Mr Vorster put forward a motion calling on council to “push back against the Marxist takeover of local government here in Queensland”.

The motion, calling on the Gold Coast council to object to the establishment of the community forum and for the Local Government Association to urgently take up the issue, was passed by councillors.