Bruce Devereaux ‘frustrated’ by latest watchdog complaint

An outspoken regional Qld councillor has been left ‘frustrated’ after copping his 12th misconduct complaint under the State’s controversial local government watchdog.

Councillor Bruce Devereaux has drawn his 12th complain of alleged inappropriate conduct after seeking informtaion from a Gympie council manager. This complaint was dismissed leass than two weeks after it was lodged.

Outspoken Gympie councillor Bruce Devereaux has been left “frustrated” after being accused of misconduct for chasing an answer from council staff months after it was due.

The latest complaint against Mr Devereaux, lodged on September 15, 2022 and dismissed by the State’s Office of the Independent Assessor watchdog 12 days later, accused the Division 4 representative of inappropriate conduct after he emailed a council manager.

This was considered inappropriate “due to the workload”, the OIA’s letter to Mr Devereaux said.

The OIA found Mr Devereaux’s request “did not make any unreasonable demands or requests”.

It was nothing more than a request for an update on a customer service question made three months earlier “and after you had been given a time frame of two weeks”.

Mr Devereaux said he understood staff may be under the pump but “don’t blame the councillor” for asking a question.

Councillor Bruce Devereaux has drawn his 12th complain of alleged inappropriate conduct after seeking information from a Gympie council manager. This complaint was dismissed less than two weeks after it was lodged.

He said he had waited more than three months past the original time frame because of the council’s staffing issues.

“I let it go for so long,” Mr Devereaux said.

Gympie Regional Council acting CEO David Lewis has been contacted for comment.

It is the 12th external complaint made against Mr Devereaux since he was elected in March 2020.

Ten were dismissed, and two more have been referred with no outcome yet revealed.

Eleven complaints against Gympie councillors have been dismissed by the OIA so far in 2022.

A State Parliamentary Inquiry into the OIA was launched in October 2021 following criticism of the system.

That same month Queensland local government officials including Gympie Mayor Glen Hartwig and Bundaberg Mayor Jack Dempsey flagged concerns the watchdog was stifling speech and being used as a political tool.

There has been a significant rise in complaints made about councillors following the creation of the OIA watchdog in December 2018, the group’s latest annual report reveals.

Mr Dempsey further criticised the system during the inquiry, saying in March 2022 it was open to abuse and failed to deal with vexatious complaints.

An OIA spokeswoman declined to comment, saying it was awaiting the outcome of a State Parliamentary inquiry into the complaints system.

Figures published in the OIA’s latest annual report revealed from its inception in December 2018 to June 30, 2022 the body received 3810 complaints.

More than half (53 per cent) were lodged by people within councils, including councillor self-referrals.

Nine out of 10 complaints were assessed within three weeks and almost two thirds (64 per cent) were dismissed or had no further action taken.

Acting Gympie council CEO David Lewis said there was “no doubt” staff were working “above what is expected”.

Mr Lewis said the OIA provided “a necessary level of oversight”.

“Anyone is entitled to lodge a complaint if they feel as though councillor conduct is inappropriate, unprofessional or unwarranted,” Mr Lewis said.

“Councillors themselves can self-report if they feel it necessary.

“Independence is key to the assessors’ function, as such I will not comment further.”

He said there was “no doubt” council staff were working “well above and beyond what is expected”.

“This organisation, despite years of neglect from the executive level of management has punched above its weight in terms of performance and outcomes for the community.

“Like many industries, we are struggling to attract staff suitable for the roles we have on offer.

“I am confident, once we get on top of our recruitment, workloads will ease.”