The council’s Reconciliation Action Plan lapsed at the end of June 2023

While Sally Capp was making media appearances championing the yes vote in the referendum, the City of Melbourne had an out-of-date Reconciliation Action Plan.

Lord Mayor Sally Capp at the 2020 Invasion Day Dawn Service. Picture: David Geraghty

The City of Melbourne has had an out-of-date Reconciliation Action Plan for more than six months, during which time Town Hall was publicly lobbying for the Yes vote in the recent referendum.

The council’s Reconciliation Action Plan lapsed at the end of June 2023 and there does not appear to be any public progress reporting on the document – despite Town Hall committing to do so – and many key commitments have not been met.

As part of the plan, the council had committed to developing an Aboriginal Employment and Retention Strategy and increasing the percentage of Aboriginal staff employed at Town Hall.

The council also committed to delivering an Aboriginal Business Hub to provide low-cost office space, networking opportunities and advice to start-ups. However, it appears that those commitments were never delivered.

Sally Capp at the 2023 Invasion Day Dawn Service. Picture: David Crosling

The Herald Sun asked a series of detailed questions about why certain actions in the Reconciliation Action Plan weren’t delivered and why no progress updates were made public, but the council refused to comment.

Federation University Associate Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Reconciliation Andrew Gunstone said RAPs were important to drive accountability within organisations.

“Reconciliation Action Plans help to keep organisations honest and increase transparency about what they have achieved,” Professor Gunstone said.

“It is very important to keep RAPs up to date and if there are any delays in developing one an organisation should be upfront about it.”

The council refused to comment on the Herald Sun’s questions. Picture: Luis Enrique Ascui

Professor Gunstone, who also founded the National Centre for Reconciliation Truth and Justice, said it was critical to be transparent about targets not being met.

“There may be many genuine reasons for not hitting a target but it is critical to know why and assess where an organisation may have done better,” he said.

“Having that public accountability really helps to drive some of these outcomes.

“Unfortunately the commitment to a RAP can wax and wane a little bit, particularly if there’s a change in CEOs.”

The council’s current chief executive Alison Leighton started acting in the role in October 2022 – and was appointed permanently in July 2023 – and allowed the Reconciliation Plan to lapse.

Lord Mayor Sally Capp, who chairs the Aboriginal Melbourne portfolio, was a public backer of the Yes campaign and made several speeches and media appearances championing a yes vote while at the same time leading an organisation with an out-of-date RAP.

“The City of Melbourne stands firmly in the Yes campaign,” she said in a video posted to social media in the days before the referendum.

“We are absolutely behind Yes. It’s hard not to get emotional because there’s so much riding on this vote.”

A Reconciliation Australia spokesman said the organisation was working with the City of Melbourne to develop a new RAP.