Pressure to disband OIA as more petty investigations come to light

Queensland’s council watchdog is embroiled in a growing crisis, as more examples of bizarre and frivolous complaints against councillors emerge.

The State Government is refusing to get involved in the growing crisis surrounding Queensland’s council watchdog, amid calls for it to be shut down over multiple bizarre probes into local councillors.

The Office of the Independent Assessor has been accused of threatening the free speech of local councillors following the revelation it was probing Barcaldine Mayor Sean Dillon after he questioned the Covid vaccine rollout in a public council meeting.

But while Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk conceded the probe was “ridiculous” and a “storm in a teacup”, her Government has washed its hands of the situation, with Deputy Premier and Local Government Minister Steven Miles resisting calls to launch a review into the watchdog.

Instead, Mr Miles said concerns should be raised with the Queensland Ombudsman.

Community leaders rallied around Cr Dillon following revelations in The Courier-Mail that he had been accused of potential misconduct by the OIA after he questioned the Central West Hospital and Health Service’s planned vaccine rollout.

LNP senator James McGrath called for the OIA to be reined in with tighter legislation or “ideally” be abolished.

“The OIA, the Gestapo of local government in Queensland, is alleging that (Cr Sean Dillon) made comments that could be considered detrimental to public confidence in our health service provider,” he said.

“The last time I checked, one of the primary roles of local government councils is to raise concerns on behalf of their local community.”

Barcaldine Mayor Sean Dillon

The OIA received 1074 complaints from across the state during 2020-21, which was a 4 per cent increase on the previous year, however it noted this was not unexpected because it was the first full year all 77 councils had come under its remit. It completed 187 misconduct investigations during 2020-21.

Former premier Campbell Newman labelled Cr Dillon’s matter as an “extremely sinister development” in Queensland’s democratic system.

“I think this office should be shut down and we should go back to local government legislation that was tried and tested and worked well for generations of this state,” he said.

Ms Palaszczuk said it was “a bit of a storm in a teacup”.

“I don’t think what he (Cr Dillon) said was unusual, I think it’s a bit ridiculous, but that’s a matter for the independent assessor,” she said.

“But those comments I think were made earlier this year and they’ve had great vaccination rates out there, and the mayor Sean, I know him, he’s done a great job.”

Deputy Premier and Local Government Minister Steven Miles said the Palaszczuk government supported the right of councillors to speak freely, but he resisted calls for a review.

“The Office of the Independent Assessor is an independent statutory body,” he said.

“If anyone has concerns about the actions of the OIA, they should raise those concerns with the Queensland Ombudsman.”

Former premier Campbell Newman

It is alleged Cr Dillon made comments about the CWHHS on February 17 “that could be considered detrimental to public confidence in a health service provider and lead agency in the rollout of the Covid-19 vaccination program in the region”. It came after he raised concerns at a public council meeting, including that his community couldn’t be vaccinated in the days allocated and that he had “no confidence in them”.

An OIA spokesperson said it did not comment on specific case, but that the following applied to matters involving a councillor’s implied right of political expression: “Local government councillors have the same right to implied freedom of political expression as all members of the community, however this right is not absolute for anyone and may be limited by legislation such as anti-discrimination and anti-racism laws or by a code of conduct.

“When taking office councillors declare they will uphold the code of conduct and the local government principles set out in the Local Government Act, and the OIA is legally required to assess all complaints against these legislated standards.”

LGAQ chief Greg Hallam said the body staunchly supported Cr Dillon’s “right to speak publicly” while calling on the OIA to withdraw its action.

Cr Dillon said he had been “almost overwhelmed” by the amount of support he has received from politicians and members of the community.

“Everyone has expressed their solidarity but also been checking in to make sure that I am doing OK,” he said.