Adelaide radio host David Penberthy slams Mitcham Mayor Heather Holmes-Ross over controversial $4k Rio trip

Breakfast radio host David Penberthy apologised after a no-holds-barred interview with a council mayor who went on a controversial taxpayer-funded trip to Brazil. Hear the exchange.

A southern suburbs council mayor has been slammed over her “indulgent” taxpayer-funded Brazil trip, with a well-known Adelaide breakfast radio host saying she’s “completely out of touch”.

Mitcham Mayor and LGA SA president Heather Holmes-Ross travelled to Rio de Janeiro with the Adelaide and Onkaparinga mayors this month to attend the C40 World Mayors Summit.

The controversial trip, which sparked some councillors to call on their mayors to “return their focus to local matters”, cost taxpayers about $4000 each on tickets and accommodation.

Dr Holmes-Ross was probed by FIVEAA breakfast radio host David Penberthy on Monday about how Mitcham residents benefited from her trip.

Mitcham Mayor Heather Holmes-Ross is also the president of the Local Government Association. Picture: Supplied

A feisty war of words followed, particularly over the question of who funded the trip.

“Now you have to remember it’s not the City of Mitcham that’s funded this trip, I went there as president of the LGA,” Dr Holmes-Ross said.

“So the LGA is partly funded by councils … by ratepayers. But there’s also funding from the state government.”

Cutting the mayor off, Penberthy said it was funded by “state taxpayers and local government ratepayers”, to which the mayor responded: “They’re all the same thing”.

“I think you’d call them Flight Centre,” Penberthy said.

Adelaide Lord Mayor Jane-Lomax Smith, Mitcham Mayor Heather Holmes-Ross and Onkaparinga Mayor Moira Were at the C40 World Mayors Summit in Rio de Janeiro. Picture: Instagram

Dr Holmes-Ross was not impressed.

“And I think that’s really, really unfair of you to say, and I’m not quite sure why everybody, well not everybody, there’s tons of people that are supportive of this but I’m not quite sure why you’re so unsupportive of this,” she said.

Dr Holmes-Ross said she found it “annoying” that people – and in particular the media – were only “taking a one-sided look at this”.

FIVEAA radio host David Penberthy was highly critical of Dr Holmes-Ross’s controversial Rio trip. Picture: Matt Turner

“I don’t care that you’re annoyed by it,” Penberthy said in response.

“You should come and read the text line. As you were talking, it’s going ping, ping, ping, ping from people saying you’re completely out of touch.”

After Penberthy, who is also a News Corp columnist, said the trip was “indulgent”, the mayor said unhappy constituents would get a chance to “have their say at the election”.

“I’m getting texts that say we are really supportive of what you do,” Dr Holmes-Ross said.

Penberthy chided back: “What from other mayors?”

Defending her stance, the mayor said Penberthy was being “so rude”.

“You invited me on this program and I’m here answering your questions and I think it’s rude for you to be rude,” she said.

Penberthy said sorry to Dr Holmes-Ross, to which she replied: “No, I don’t think you are, but thank you for the apology anyway”.

The interview ended with Penberthy asking one last question, “did you offset (your carbon footprint for) the trip, because it’s a pretty lengthy flight to Brazil”.

Dr Holmes-Ross said she didn’t know because she didn’t book the flight.

Originally published as Adelaide radio host David Penberthy slams Mitcham Mayor Heather Holmes-Ross over controversial $4k Rio trip