Bundaberg council continues to stonewall on aquatic centre costings

Concerns about Bundaberg council transparency and spending are escalating, with one councillor saying it was not the council’s job to give ratepayers detailed costings on projects like the aquatic centre, and another councillor told even he was not entitled to those details.

Bundaberg councillor Steve Cooper said providing detailed costings of the $83m Aquatic Centre to ratepayers was 'not counci's job'.

Questions of transparency and spending continue to plague Bundaberg Regional Council’s ‘cost of living’ budget which was brought down on June 27.

Detailed costings for the $83million Bundaberg Aquatic Centre were not included in the 2023-24 budget documents, despite requests from ratepayers seeking a costing breakdown of the most expensive project in the counci’s history.

Councillor Greg Barnes opposed the motion to adopt the budget, saying he had been trying “for some months” to obtain detailed costings of the Bundaberg Aquatic Centre project, and could not support the budget without knowing the details of “the largest project that we’ve ever had”.

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“This is not our money; we‘re here as trustees of the ratepayers’ funds,” Mr Barnes said.

“There’s no way that I can put my name to supporting a budget when I’m being denied access to critical information that I need to help me make an informed decision.”

Councillor Greg Barnes opposed the motion to adopt the budget in Tuesday’s meeting, saying he had been unable to obtain detailed costings of the $83m Bundaberg Aquatic Centre project.

Speaking at a media conference after the budget meeting, councillor Steve Cooper said “it’s not (council’s) job” to provide detailed costings to ratepayers.

“We‘re not going to give you a nuts and bolts,” he said.

“We manage the macro, not the micro – it‘s not our job to administer micro, the staff and the people do that.”

Councillor Steve Cooper said “it’s not (council’s) job” to provide detailed costings to ratepayers.

Mr Cooper said detailed costings of the project were reviewed and available only to those within the “confines” of the council, which did not have the resources to respond to ratepayer requests.

“We do that within our own confines, we have to do that,” he said.

“It’s a changing market, it changes by the minute. If you put all your people in there working on putting that sort of stuff out there you don’t get the job done.”

Bundaberg Regional Ratepayers Association president Helen Blackburn said the council was obliged by the local government principles of transparency and good governance under the Local Government Act to provide the detailed costings to ratepayers.

“I don’t think what (Mr) Cooper is saying in relation to showing us what are the line items for the budget is correct,” Ms Blackburn said.

“Because if they were abiding by the local government principles they would be providing every piece of information that they have, because it’s not their information, it’s rightly ours - the ratepayers.”

Bundaberg Regional Ratepayers Association president Helen Blackburn said Bundaberg council was obliged by the Local Government Act to provide the detailed costings to ratepayers.

In a statement following the budget meeting, Mr Barnes said his request for detailed costings had been denied by CEO Steve Johnston.

On escalating his request to the Qld government’s Chief Information Officer, Mr Barnes was told he would need to submit an RTI request in order to obtain the costings, which he has refused to do.

He said that without a full understanding of how ratepayer funds were being allocated he could not in good faith fulfil his duties as a councillor.

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“The fact is that if somebody stops me in the street and asks me questions about it I’ve got to turn around and say why I am supporting the budget,” he said.

“If I don’t know where the money is going ... then I’m not doing my job, simple as that.”

The Minister for Local Government has been contacted regarding Mr Barnes’ inability to receive the Aquatic Centre costings and the Chief Information Officer’s advice to submit an RTI.

Originally published as Bundaberg council continues to stonewall on aquatic centre costings