As it happened: Melbourne lord mayoral debate

You can follow rewatch a recording of the debate here:

Well, that’s a wrap. We’ve heard from four of eleven candidates for the last hour. Whether it shifts the dial we’ll have to wait and see.

Thanks for following along with our live blog. Our extensive coverage of the City of Melbourne election and councils across Victoria is continuing until polls close on Friday. If you want to know The Age’s view on the lord mayoral candidates, it’s here.

Reminder, ballots need to be in the mailbox for all council elections by 6pm on Friday evening.

Until then, we’re keen to hear from readers on who they think should be the City of Melbourne’s lord mayor. Our usual caveats about our polls being entirely unscientific apply!

Finally, incumbent lord mayor Nick Reece is closing the debate:

Nick Reece ends the debate with his final pitch.Credit: Nine News

Melbourne is the greatest city in the world and our best days are ahead of us … The question in this election is whose got the plan to help deliver and take us forward. We heard a lot of people tonight describing the problems, talking Melbourne down. I’m the only candidate that’s got a detailed plan to deliver cost of living relief, activate our city economy and make us a garden city with 28 new parks. So I’ve got the energy, I’ve got the detailed plans that can be delivered. Please vote for Nick Reece and my team.

Greens candidate Roxane Ingleton’s sign-off promised electoral reform of the voting system in City of Melbourne:

Roxane Ingleton makes her closing remarks.Credit: Nine News

The Greens have the plan to put the people and the communities and the environment of Melbourne first. I know I ran a clean campaign. Town Hall must lead with integrity and trust. And unlike my opponents you can see who has donated to my campaign before you cast your vote and not after. If I’m elected lord mayor I will fight to make this election the last election where businesses and landlords have two votes against residents one.

The closing statement from former Carlton star player turned AFL candidate Anthony Koutoufides is focused on his fresh perspective:

Anthony Koutoufides outlines his plan.Credit: Nine News

Well, the people in the streets have said they’re fed up with the politicians and what is the decline for Melbourne for over a decade. I believe we need a fresh start with a new vision for the City of Melbourne. Our team are committed to doing that and making Melbourne the most liveable city again. With our policies we believe we can do that. We can get people back into the city with events. Opening up the streets and incentives for businesses which is important. So I look forward to the challenge, if I have that opportunity it will be an absolute honour.

We’re at closing remarks already. Arron Wood has gone first:

Arron Wood makes his closing statement.Credit: Nine News

Team Wood has a positive plan to help Melbourne’s economic recovery. [We are the] only team that the Victoria Chamber of Commerce has ticked all the policy areas in [an] independent assessment, the only team [that has] announced cuts to spending to enable us to fund our election promises. We love Melbourne, but we can’t have more of the same. We’ve got to get Melbourne back on track. If you want proven leadership to get the basics right to give Melbourne the fresh start it deserves vote one team Wood in this election.

Candidates are getting to turn the tables and ask questions of each other giving each a chance to tackle their rivals on a thorny issue.

Nick Reece has asked Arron Wood about his pledge to put homeless people in hotels asking whether he has actually spoken to any hotels about this. Wood said he has spoken to a couple of hotels who are interested.

“They’re willing to look at this and discuss this further,” Wood said.

“What we’re talking about actually is looking at a full range of emergency accommodation options. What I won’t do is, I won’t accept that we just have to [have] people sleeping on our streets.”

Greens candidate Roxane Ingleton asked Reece what cuts he is going to make to balance the City of Melbourne’s books. Reece said he planned “no cuts to front-line services” but for “further improvements in efficiencies”.

Wood interjected to say that Reece got a cross from the Victorian Chamber of Commerce in its candidate scorecard for his fiscal responsibility.

Anthony Koutoufides asked Wood about how he preferenced Labor and the Greens and asked how he would help businesses. Wood said he had the only set of policies fully ticked off by the Victorian Chamber of Commerce.

Wood’s question was for Reece and asked how can we trust the promises you are throwing out in the last month of the campaign when your track record has been anything else.

“I’ve been lord mayor for a number of months,” Reece said.

“I’m my own person. I have my own priorities. I said from the very start my pressing priority was city safety. I’ve gone after that pretty hard.”

The four candidates were all asked if there should be a permit system for CBD protests, which have become a weekly fixture in Melbourne, particularly since the outbreak of the war in Gaza.

Anthony Koutoufides says he wants to see a permit system, as did Wood who said “people are not wanting to come to the city because they don’t feel safe. The transport network shuts down because of these protests.”

A pro-Palestine protest outside Flinders Street Station in Melbourne in November 2023.Credit: Chris Hopkins

Reece didn’t answer directly, saying he supported the state government “looking at it” and that it was ultimately a decision for them.

Ingelton said “the right to peaceful protest is a core belief of the Greens” and noted she attended Sunday protests herself.

“I know it can be inconvenient for an hour or two for some people,” she said.

The panel has turned its discussion to The Age’s recent story on lord mayoral candidate’s promises and whether they can actually be delivered.

Arron Wood said when it comes to the remit of council, there are direct responsibilities that have to be focused on.

“We’ve been focused on that throughout the campaign,” he said.

“Things like city safety, cleanliness, managing the budget appropriately. One of the big roles of Town Hall is to speak on behalf of Town Hall is to speak on behalf of ratepayers and advocate for the best outcomes for the city.”

However, that hasn’t stopped Wood pledging to extend the free tram zone, an area that council has no remit over.

“The free tram zone would be a good outcome particularly for international students and tourists,” he said.

Incumbent Nick Reece has made a similar promise to extend the free tram zone and defended making the pledge.

“We had a former prime minister Scott Morrison who said ‘I don’t hold a hose mate’. You never hear me say that. I find a way to get things done.”

Anthony Koutoufides has pledged to cut fares on public transport and when pressed on who would foot the bill for this, he concedes it is the state government and public transport operators.

“There might be a company out there that might say I’ll endorse it and sponsor it,” he said.

“We never know with the generosity of the people in Melbourne and some of the people in Melbourne and some of the large businesses that may get behind it to get people back in the city.”

Alicia Loxley asked Reece if people get angry when he makes promises about changing things like fringe benefit tax and said it was disingenuous.

Reece defended this and said “it is a policy that makes absolute sense”.

In the group of four candidates we have at least one pro-scooter candidates and two anti-scooter candidates.

Reminder, Lime e-scooters were removed from the city in August.

Shared e-scooters have been banned in the City of Melbourne.Credit: Joe Armao

While City of Melbourne officers initially recommended e-scooters be permitted to remain with a range of measures to rein in bad behaviour, Lord Mayor Nicholas Reece moved an alternative motion to adopt “the Paris option” – banning e-scooters.

Notably, it came after Arron Wood promised to nix the scooters from the CBD.

Reece said he was initially a supporter of e-scooters but that he decided “something had to be done” for pedestrian and user safety.

“We needed a reset. That’s what I did. Prioritise safety,” he said.

Koutoufides said while he “wasn’t a big fan” of the scooters, he would advocate to bring them back in certain parts of the city.

“In an orderly manner we can bring the e-scooters back.”

Host Tom Steinfort has asked Nick Reece about his pledge to pursue previous lord mayor Sally Capp’s Greenline project along the river Yarra.

Steinfort described it as like “an albatross around your neck”.

An artist’s impression of how Greenline might look near Flinders Street Station.

When asked why he was so committed, Reece said he is in favour because it is a great project for Melbourne.

“It’s a 4 kilometre promenade and chain of parks from the town centre all the way down to the Docklands, doing for the north bank of the Yarra what we did at South Bank 30 years ago, transforming our Yarra corridor.”

Reece said he had already secured $20 million to get Greenline going and “it would be madness to rip that up now and walk away from it”.

However, rival Arron Wood said: “I think it’s not madness at all. We’re not into ripping up contracts. We said that we would honour the Birrarung Marr section that’s currently under way. But, you know, we’ve got to really think about this. $22.5 million of ratepayer money was spent without a sod being turned, and we need to think about, you know, what that $22.5 million could have done for tackling homelessness or small business and delivering parks and gardens in the suburbs across Melbourne that have been crying out for them.”