No confidence vote called after Randwick Mayor Philipa Veitch’s anti-Israel comments

A vote of no confidence in the Randwick Mayor Philipa Veitch is set for next week, following her ‘divisive’ anti-Israel comments.

The fallout over Randwick Mayor Philipa Veitch’s inflammatory anti-Israel comments continues, with a motion calling for a vote of no confidence in the mayor to be heard next week.

Randwick Councillor Daniel Rosenfeld, who is Jewish, has requested an extraordinary meeting at which he will call for a vote of no confidence in the mayor.

Mr Rosenfeld said the no confidence vote was in response to Ms Veitch’s “very inflammatory, inappropriate comments at the rally at UNSW”.

Liberal Councillor Daniel Rosenfeld. Picture: Daniel Rosenfeld/Facebook

“I’ve had a lot of complaints from members of the community, especially the Jewish community,” Mr Rosenfeld said.

“We’ve got a large Jewish community in the LGA, and it was widely reported in the media and it brought the council into disrepute. So due to that, I’m calling for a vote of no confidence in the mayor.

“It’s really important the mayor focuses on local issues that are covered under local government. The mayor is the official spokesperson for the council and people expect the mayor to be the spokesperson for local government issues in the Randwick LGA.”

Liberal Councillor Christie Hamilton added: “The mayor really hasn’t performed in the role as other mayors have. You need to separate your political views when you step into that most senior position. The residents are not happy. They’ve told us they’re very unhappy”.

One of the emails sent to councillors regarding the mayor's comments. Picture: Supplied

One of the emails sent by residents seen by this masthead slams the mayor’s conduct. It stated Ms Veitch’s “dissemination of a twisted narrative fuelled by a virus called (antisemitism) is irresponsible”.

New Randwick Mayor Philipa Veitch. Photo: Mark Bond

“I am embarrassed to be represented in this municipality by a woman with such a shallow appreciation for the depth of this situation and even less regard for the consequences of making hateful speeches,” the email states.

Another email suggested the mayor should “focus on council matters rather than foreign affairs”.

Ms Veitch said it was “disappointing to see this political game that is so commonly used against women who dare to take leadership positions in politics”.

“I’m out every week speaking to hundreds of members of our community and I fully intend to keep representing the community I live in and doing this important work,” she said.

“This is a political stunt. I think the community will see this baseless attack so close to an election for the grubby politics it is. Not to mention the waste of thousands of ratepayers dollars to call a full council meeting for the sake of a stunt that will change nothing.”

What brought about this motion

A few weeks ago at a Students for Palestine rally at the University of NSW, the Greens member made a speech where she accused Israel of “murdering babies” and that Israel had “completely destroyed every single” university in Gaza.

Randwick City Council's Mayor Philipa Veitch speaking at a Students for Palestine rally at the University of New South Wales on July 17. Picture: Facebook

While Ms Veitch reiterated on her Facebook posts that “this is a personal view and does not represent the views of Randwick Council”, there was call for increased security at the council meeting last month. This request was made by Mr Rosenfeld, who said his request was prompted by “inappropriate comments from the mayor.”

An inquiry was launched and Ms Veitch was told to include her disclaimer on past and future posts.

Randwick City Council July meeting where security was in place after comments made in relation to the Israel-Hamas war. Picture: Jonathan Ng

Ms Veitch had previously told The Daily Telegraph she stood by her comments and that “the views expressed are my own, but I believe that everyone has a duty to speak out and call for an end to the genocide that is happening in Gaza’.

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