Former mayor wants candidates to sign declarations on donors

A former Logan mayor says he wants all candidates in next year’s election to sign declarations listing their donors and conflicts of interest.

FORMER Logan City Council mayor John Freeman wants all candidates running in the 2020 local government election to sign declarations outlining their donors and any personal conflicts of interest.

Former Logan City mayor John Freeman wants all candidates in next year’s election to sign statutory declarations outlining their donors.

Mr Freeman, who has thrown his name into the ring as a mayoral candidate for the March 2020 election, said the statutory declaration asks candidates to list complete details of any people, companies, organisations with which they are, or have been, associated.

If the statutory declaration is not filled out comprehensively; a candidate could be charged with purjury under the Oaths Act.

The Statutory Declaration form.

Mr Freeman said he expected all candidates with integrity to sign.

Candidates would need to list all electoral donor information such as names, addresses, receipts, payments, other donations, gifts or loans and the personal interests of the spouse and any dependent children.

“It’s time for change and if they choose not to sign the Statutory Declarations, then there are strong grounds to suggest they are hiding something,” Mr Freeman said.

Last year, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced that $14.25 million would be provided to the Crime and Corruption Commission to clean up local councils.

Logan mayoral candidates in 2016 included from left, Steve Shoard, Ken Houliston, Luke Smith, Brett Raguse and John Freeman.

Mr Freeman said the government should not have to spend that amount of money to counter corruption in local government.

“That’s millions of tax payer’s dollars spent on something that should not be happening in the first place,” he said.

In 2018, suspended Logan City Mayor, Luke Smith, was charged on allegations he received a luxury boat from a Chinese developer along with receiving $377,000 from other businesses which was channelled into a campaign fundraising company called Logan Futures.

The passing of the Belcarra Bill in 2018 by the Queensland Government has tightened the regulatory controls in relation to political donations from property developers and seeks to strengthen processes associated with material of personal interest.

The signing is to take place at 11am tomorrow at Logan City Council Administration Building, 150 Wembley Rd, Logan Central at the office of JPs in the Community.

Logan City is still under investigation.