Mayor Troy Thompson’s email to councillors reveals list of demands or he’ll ask Minister to dissolve council

A lengthy email from Mayor Troy Thompson pressuring his 10 councillors to pledge their loyalty and agree to a list of demands is understood to have been the final straw in the State Government intervening in a spiralling council. READ THE FULL EMAIL

Troy Thompson's list of demands to councillors has been revealed.

A lengthy email from Mayor Troy Thompson pressuring his 10 councillors to pledge their loyalty and agree to a list of demands is understood to have been the final straw in the State Government intervening in a spiralling council.

In the email obtained by the Bulletin, Mr Thompson gave councillors barely more than 24 hours to comply with a list of demands, threatening to ask Local Government Minister Meaghan Scanlon to dissolve the whole council and release a statement to the media accusing them of undermining and bullying behaviour if they did not sign their name.

In the email to councillors sent on Monday afternoon, Mr Thompson lists 19 requirements for his councillors to abide by, including demanding interim chief executive Joe McCabe’s application for the permanent role be withdrawn.

READ MORE: Mayor’s allegations against councillors ‘are untrue’: Legal boss

The embattled mayor is the subject of a Crime and Corruption Commission investigation, conceding on national television that he misrepresented his military and education claims in his mayoral campaign which was revealed in multiple Bulletin reports.

No action has been taken by the CCC and from media questioning, which in recent weeks has been directly to Premier Steven Miles, Deputy Premier Cameron Dick and Ms Scanlon, the government was unwilling to intervene or fast-track the CCC probe.

It is understood a copy of Mr Thompson’s letter was sent to Ms Scanlon’s office on Monday afternoon, who warned the council to “act like adults” as she declared on Thursday the State Government would appoint its own adviser to assist the Townsville City Council with its relationship dynamics.

In Mr Thompson’s email of demands he included an attached media statement, criticising their decisions such as rejecting his request to directly appoint staff dedicated to his office, which would include speech writing.

Many of his demands were addressed in his draft media release, including telling councillors to stop undermining his position, to stop directing council staff, to support his bid to appoint his own personal staff, and to abandon policies which he argued were designed to undermine his authority within the council.

The Townsville City Council forecourt. Picture: Evan Morgan

Other directives included that they regularly communicate with the mayor, participate in collaborative decision making, and “acknowledge and respect the mayor’s authority and leadership role”.

“Over the past few months, it has become increasingly clear that actions taken by some councillors are politically motivated and are hindering our ability to serve the people of Townsville effectively,” Mr Thompson said in the correspondence.

“To date, I have endured a significant level of attacks, undermining and bullying by councillors who have done their best to strip me of my responsibilities and give themselves more powers.

“The residents are starting to reflect this in their comments to me at my civic duties, and there is no doubt that council is not viewed by the residents as having their best interest at heart, and the residents are starting to view this council as being incapable of performing its responsibilities.”

His attached media release lists the challenges he faced, and accused the council of making “unlawful” decisions and discriminating against him because of his epilepsy.

The mayor also accused them of leaking private and confidential documents to the media.

Mr McCabe this week rejected the mayor’s accusations of leaking confidential information and urged Cr Thompson to provide any evidence to the council investigator or the Crime and Corruption Commission.

“I know that there is absolutely no such evidence,” Mr McCabe said via a statement on Thursday.

He also denied the allegation that he had misled the public regarding his intentions in the recruitment process for the permanent CEO position.

“I also refute the Mayor’s allegation that I misled the public in my response to a journalist’s question relating to the CEO recruitment,” Mr McCabe said.

“This is a confidential process on which I haven’t, and won’t be, making any comments.”

Mr Thompson also said the councillors had provided “constant referrals” to the Office of the Independent Assessor regarding issues he raised on his Facebook posts.

See the full email below.

Townsville City Council document written by Mayor Troy Thompson.

Townsville City Council document written by Mayor Troy Thompson.

Originally published as Mayor Troy Thompson’s email to councillors reveals list of demands or he’ll ask Minister to dissolve council