Parramatta Council sacks suspended CEO Mark Stapleton

Parramatta Council has put an end to months of legal wrangling and upheaval by sacking its suspended chief executive officer, Mark Stapleton.

Mark Stapleton’s services as CEO were terminated at a council meeting last night.

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Parramatta Council last night put an end to seven months of upheaval and a huge hit to the hip pocket of ratepayers by sacking its suspended chief executive officer, Mark Stapleton.

Councillors finally gave Mr Stapleton the boot at a meeting where it was resolved to give him a golden handshake of 38 weeks’ pay — about $350,000.

It comes after Mr Stapleton was suspended on September 7 over allegations he faked his CV, which he denies.

Parramatta Lord Mayor Andrew Wilson with Mark Stapleton shortly after the latter’s appointment last year.

The independent report, which is understood to have been inconclusive, was tabled in a closed session of a council meeting on February 4. By then, Mr Stapleton had been paid about $200,000 for staying home.

It means he’ll been paid the equivalent of 27 community grants of $20,000 — which groups were struggling to secure funding for, a council meeting heard in December — for not having to show up for work.

He becomes the third consecutive council fat cat to secure a hefty six-figure payout.

The previous two CEOs, Greg Dyer and Dr Robert Lang, received a collective golden handshake of $535,869 over the past five years.

A council spokeswoman last night said the call to axe Mr Stapleton was “taken after careful consideration”.

“Council would like to reassure the community that it will continue its commitment to providing the highest level of service and represent their interests while achieving great outcomes for our city,” the spokeswoman said.

Mr Stapleton had been in the top job at council since July 10 last year, having previously held the position of Property and Significant Assets director.

He had taken the council twice to the Supreme Court over the past 10 days to try to prevent his axing.