Mayoral hopefuls tee off at Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore’s ‘lost touch’

With 10 candidates vying to be Sydney’s next lord mayor, a broad ideological range looking to dethrone Clover Moore argued from all angles that the 20-year incumbent had ‘lost touch’.

Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore. Picture: Jane Dempster

With 10 candidates vying to be Sydney’s next lord mayor, a broad ideological range looking to dethrone Clover Moore argued from all angles that the 20-year incumbent had “lost touch”.

Beginning proceedings with a seven-minute address, Ms Moore claimed an unprecedented sixth term under her government would deliver special entertainment precincts, social housing and an expansion of her cycleway passion project.

She placed a focus on the length of her term. “When I was first elected lord mayor, there was no vision or strategy for Sydney’s growth, and in the ’90s, the city had been on the brink of bankruptcy,” she said.

“I insisted on responsible fin­ancial management, and the city has delivered 20 years of surpluses. Our sound financial management ensures high quality services and funds our $2.2bn 10-year capital works program.”

She also signposted re­developments of Oxford Street and Chinatown as tenets of her government. She made no reference to the policy or campaigns of her contenders.

Independent Sydney lord mayor candidate Yvonne Weldon. Picture: NewsWire / Monique Harmer

“We need to give more people the choice to leave the car at home … like true global cities,” Ms Moore said. “Our priority is to maximise affordable and social housing. The most effective and responsible way is to do that with the city’s levies, grants and discounted land sales.

“They can develop housing for less … and housing will be ours in perpetuity. It can’t be sold off by a future government or council, as has occurred in the past.”

Candidates attacked Ms Moore on her opaque council management, her lengthy reign and the controversy of her overhauls to waste and cycleways.

Yvonne Weldon, a favoured independent candidate against Ms Moore, led her address on the argument the “time was right” for change, recommitting herself to a two-term campaign limit.

“After the election on 14th of September, co-operation and a new kind of leadership is going to be needed. The reality is, no party or group of independents will achieve a majority on council,” Ms Weldon said. “I’ve dealt both with Liberal and Labor ministers of state and federal governments, proper consultation and establishing a good working relationship has been essential.

“The current lord mayor does not have the capacity to lead Sydney for the next four years; even her remaining fans know Clover is inflexible, dogmatic and does not work collaboratively with her fellow councillors.”

Ms Weldon is hoping to make history twice, being elected as the first Indigenous councillor in NSW and if successful at the election, the state’s first Indigenous mayor.

Liberal candidate Lyndon Gannon said Ms Moore had tolerated the closure of iconic businesses from to noise complaints: “When we hear about 150-year-old pubs losing their outdoor dining entitlements … you know there’s something really wrong with the administration.”

Also in appearance were Libertarian candidate Sean Masters, Socialist Alliance candidate Rach­el Evans, We Love Sydney candidate Sam Danieli and independent Susan Ritchie.

Independent Baiyu Chen did not attend.

“Sydney has become the second most expensive city for housing in the world, and we’re in the eye of the storm here,” Greens candidate Sylvie Ellsmore said.

“That is not on track to change. It is projected to get worse, unless we start to do things very differently.”

Labor’s Zann Maxwell said the city needed a mayor who “wants Sydney to actually be great, not just look great”.

Mr Maxwell was one of the few candidates present without prior council experience.