Toowoomba Regional Council divisions: Councillors vote to explore major change

Despite warnings on the ‘ugly side’ of divisional councils, Toowoomba councillors have narrowly voted to continue exploring a move to carve up the council electorate.

Toowoomba Regional Council continues to be divided on a push to a divisional council, as councillors narrowly voted to continue exploring the concept.

On Tuesday, councillors agreed to engage a qualified consultant to prepare a proposed divisional election arrangement by June next year.

Following the report, the council would be required to undertake significant public consultation on the proposal before lodging a submission to the Local Government Minister.

The plan would then be assessed by the Change Commission to determine whether the divisional change was in the public interest.

But many councillors were not on board with the plan, which was expected to cost between $300-500k.

Councillor Bill Cahill said he had seen first-hand the “ugly side of divisions”, and claimed the change would result in “substantial” costs.

“There will be ongoing costs to council under this model over and above what we expect now,” he said.

“We have areas in growth, areas in decline and areas in static. The divisions will continue to have to be adjusted.”

Councillors Bill Cahill and Carol Taylor.

Councillor Carol Taylor emerged as another strong voice against a divisional Toowoomba council, claiming that some fellow colleagues did not “respect experience”.

“This is idealistic. If we were living in an ideal world then we would be able to have divisions,” she said.

“You will spend all your money trying to do it, and there’s no fair way you will do it.

“There are many other ways to represent our community and engage with them. I cannot see how divisions are ever going to work here.”

Mr Cahill and Ms Taylor were both council representatives prior to the 2008 local government amalgamation.

Kerry Shine, one of the most vocal proponents of divisional councils, said people in country areas saw the idea as a “salvation”, and the cost was small compared with the council’s $500m operating budget.

“Whenever I’ve been to country areas there has been overwhelming if not universal support for this concept,” Mr Shine said.

“It’s hard to put a price on democratic representation.”

Councillor Megan O’Hara Sullivan said people in regional areas had a “much, much harder” time getting elected over candidates based in Toowoomba.

“I don’t think there is a fair go for people living out in these regional areas,” she said.

“If we don’t even ask the question, we don’t know what the answer is. Let’s ask the question.”

The hour-long council debate included discussions on how the divisions would be shaped.

These will ultimately been determined by the Queensland Electoral Commission.

The first motion to take no further action was narrowly defeated 6-5, however a second motion to complete the report passed 8-3.

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