Redlands Mayor Karen Williams could be sacked by Qld Govt

Local Government Minister Steven Miles has sought advice on whether embattled mayor Karen Williams can be dismissed through a largely untested law introduced four years ago.

Redlands Mayor Karen Williams could be sacked by the state government after she was charged with drink-driving, under rarely used powers granted to the local government minister.

Cr Williams, 55, has now been charged over registering a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.177 per cent after crashing a council-owned hybrid electric car after handing down the local budget and then participating in a road safety Zoom meeting on June 24.

She has ignored calls for her resignation but last night confirmed she would be taking unpaid leave from Monday until the matter was dealt with in court.

She also revealed she had been receiving death threats.

“I will undertake this personal leave to respond to the police charge and to receive counselling, as I committed to do last week,” she said.

Deputy Premier and Local Government Minister Steven Miles on Saturday said Cr Williams should step aside pending the court process.

Mr Miles also revealed he had already sought advice from his department about whether the state government could act to suspend or dismiss Cr Williams through a largely untested law introduced four years ago.

In 2018, the State Government passed laws allowing the local government minister to suspend or dismiss mayors and councillors facing serious integrity charges, or if it was “in the public interest” to do so.

Embattled Redlands Mayor Karen Williams

“The advice thus far has been that this particular offence would not trigger the integrity matters under the Act,” Mr Miles said.

“While that behaviour might not be appropriate, it does not trigger those integrity offences which would either provide me with justification to sack or suspend an elected mayor.”

But Mr Miles said the police charge and alleged 0.177 reading warranted obtaining new advice.

“Given those two new facts, I will now seek new advice from my department about whether that materially changes their advice to me about what action would be appropriate,” he said. “I think she should at … the very least step aside until the court processes are concluded.

“That’s what would be best for Redlands and probably best for Cr Williams.”

The powers Mr Miles can enact suspend mayors and councillors, including Logan mayor Luke Smith and councillor Stacey McIntosh, Doomadgee mayor Edric Walden and Ipswich mayor Andrew Antoniolli, when they were introduced in 2018.

Each official was facing a charge, which triggered automatic suspension.

Ms McIntosh was convicted of fraud while Mr Antoniolli was acquitted of fraud, and charges of uttering a forged document and misconduct in relation to public office against Mr Walden were dropped. Mr Smith has pleaded not guilty to one charge of official corruption.

Local Government Association of Queensland CEO Alison Smith warned Mr Miles against intervening to remove an elected mayor.

Judy Lindsay, whose daughter was killed by a drink-driver, at the scene of Redlands Mayor Karen Williams’ crash. Picture: Richard Walker

“Mayors and councillors, like their state and federal counterparts, are elected by the community to serve the community,” she said.

“It should therefore be for the community to decide whether or not they should remain when casting their vote at the next election.

“Ministerial powers to remove an elected mayor or councillor from office should only be used in the most serious of circumstances, involving serious integrity issues impacting public administration.”

Cr Williams’ alleged drink-driving and car crash happened about an hour after she took part in a Zoom meeting with families whose loved ones had died in road crashes and at the hands of juvenile offenders, including Ben Beaumont and Michelle Liddle, and Judy Lindsay.

Mr Beaumont, whose son Angus died in 2020 after being stabbed by youth offenders, is not calling for Cr Williams to resign but said he would not deal with her again if the allegations were proven.

Ms Lindsay, whose daughter Hayley Russell lost her life to a drink-driver, said it had been a week of pain for her family and Cr Williams had no choice but to resign. She said she was yet to receive an apology from the council.

“I would tell Karen: ‘Resign, stand down, move on with your life’,” she said. “I feel completely insulted.”

Cr Williams is due in court on August 1.