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The Advertiser
09-05-2025
- Business
- The Advertiser
Room to improve: public call Newcastle council's approach 'tokenistic' and 'superficial'
IT'S said communication is the key to a successful relationship, but with Novocastrians describing City of Newcastle's engagement as "tokenistic" and "superficial" with a "decide and defend" approach, it seems there's room for improvement. Transparency, communication and community trust were three of four key themes that emerged in public submissions to the highly anticipated independent probe into the council's policies, processes and procedures. The review was a key pillar of Independent lord mayor Ross Kerridge's election campaign, which promised a "thorough, forensic investigation into the Scott Neylon/Jeremy Bath/Jason Sivo letters saga". That issue has been a thorn in the side of the council and community since the Newcastle Herald launched its investigation into the letter to the editor writing campaign over a year ago. Extensive submissions were made about the letters to the editor palaver, which the firm responsible for the review, Davidson Business Advisory, looked into in great detail. It found investigations within City of Newcastle, the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) and the Office of Local Government (OLG) were undertaken by the appropriate authorities. Davidson noted ICAC and the OLG have both closed the matters, have "no further investigations under way" and do not consider them necessary. The firm's lead consultant Colin Jensen said the issue has caused "significant angst" to council, the community and council staff and encouraged City of Newcastle to "look at ways to draw a line in the sand on this and move forward for the benefit of the city". The 2023 council-commissioned independent investigation into the City of Newcastle CEO's links to a Herald letter writer found "no evidence that the CEO incentivised the author to write the articles". The Herald was not contacted during the council-commissioned investigation, nor were copies of the letters requested. The public overwhelmingly told reviewers they wanted greater transparency, clearer and more accessible reporting on council decisions, how ratepayers' money is spent and how the council measures its performance. The community called for more consistent and accessible communication, particularly around capital works, major projects, and changes as they happened. Mr Jensen said better communication would be "essential" to strengthen engagement and build trust in the council's activities. "Residents felt that clearer communication and more opportunities for dialogue are needed to strengthen trust," he said. "Good communication and ongoing communication is critical to building their trust, it ensures the community's needs are fully considered in your council decisions." More than 270 public submissions homed in on governance, highlighting issues around transparency, decision-making, meeting procedures, clarity in council meetings, and ensuring they are not only legally compliant but conducted in an orderly manner. Davidson found the council did not act outside the law in its council meetings, but that meetings could be better structured, particularly around adherence to speaking times and declaring whether councillors are speaking for or against an issue. Other areas for improvement included proactively releasing information to the public, communicating the outcomes of investigations and compliance and regulatory enforcement and managing conflicts of interest within the council. While the reviewers did not identify illegal activity or a lack of compliance when it comes to conflicts of interest, they found improvements could be made in how members of the public perceive the handling of those conflicts. Mr Jensen said there was evidence the council has a "good" community engagement policy, but feedback from submissions was that the way the council engages with the public feels "tokenistic and superficial, with an approach which is described as 'decide and defend'". "Community members seek clearer insights into the decision-making processes, council plans and long-term strategies," he said. "Concerns were also raised about poor access to councillors to raise issues or discuss the decisions already made by elected officials. "This is not an easy thing, but it is actually crucial to your success and the success of the council, as well as the city." More than 800 public submissions were made to the review, 548 of which were made by individuals. A number of people made multiple submissions on different issues. IT'S said communication is the key to a successful relationship, but with Novocastrians describing City of Newcastle's engagement as "tokenistic" and "superficial" with a "decide and defend" approach, it seems there's room for improvement. Transparency, communication and community trust were three of four key themes that emerged in public submissions to the highly anticipated independent probe into the council's policies, processes and procedures. The review was a key pillar of Independent lord mayor Ross Kerridge's election campaign, which promised a "thorough, forensic investigation into the Scott Neylon/Jeremy Bath/Jason Sivo letters saga". That issue has been a thorn in the side of the council and community since the Newcastle Herald launched its investigation into the letter to the editor writing campaign over a year ago. Extensive submissions were made about the letters to the editor palaver, which the firm responsible for the review, Davidson Business Advisory, looked into in great detail. It found investigations within City of Newcastle, the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) and the Office of Local Government (OLG) were undertaken by the appropriate authorities. Davidson noted ICAC and the OLG have both closed the matters, have "no further investigations under way" and do not consider them necessary. The firm's lead consultant Colin Jensen said the issue has caused "significant angst" to council, the community and council staff and encouraged City of Newcastle to "look at ways to draw a line in the sand on this and move forward for the benefit of the city". The 2023 council-commissioned independent investigation into the City of Newcastle CEO's links to a Herald letter writer found "no evidence that the CEO incentivised the author to write the articles". The Herald was not contacted during the council-commissioned investigation, nor were copies of the letters requested. The public overwhelmingly told reviewers they wanted greater transparency, clearer and more accessible reporting on council decisions, how ratepayers' money is spent and how the council measures its performance. The community called for more consistent and accessible communication, particularly around capital works, major projects, and changes as they happened. Mr Jensen said better communication would be "essential" to strengthen engagement and build trust in the council's activities. "Residents felt that clearer communication and more opportunities for dialogue are needed to strengthen trust," he said. "Good communication and ongoing communication is critical to building their trust, it ensures the community's needs are fully considered in your council decisions." More than 270 public submissions homed in on governance, highlighting issues around transparency, decision-making, meeting procedures, clarity in council meetings, and ensuring they are not only legally compliant but conducted in an orderly manner. Davidson found the council did not act outside the law in its council meetings, but that meetings could be better structured, particularly around adherence to speaking times and declaring whether councillors are speaking for or against an issue. Other areas for improvement included proactively releasing information to the public, communicating the outcomes of investigations and compliance and regulatory enforcement and managing conflicts of interest within the council. While the reviewers did not identify illegal activity or a lack of compliance when it comes to conflicts of interest, they found improvements could be made in how members of the public perceive the handling of those conflicts. Mr Jensen said there was evidence the council has a "good" community engagement policy, but feedback from submissions was that the way the council engages with the public feels "tokenistic and superficial, with an approach which is described as 'decide and defend'". "Community members seek clearer insights into the decision-making processes, council plans and long-term strategies," he said. "Concerns were also raised about poor access to councillors to raise issues or discuss the decisions already made by elected officials. "This is not an easy thing, but it is actually crucial to your success and the success of the council, as well as the city." More than 800 public submissions were made to the review, 548 of which were made by individuals. A number of people made multiple submissions on different issues. IT'S said communication is the key to a successful relationship, but with Novocastrians describing City of Newcastle's engagement as "tokenistic" and "superficial" with a "decide and defend" approach, it seems there's room for improvement. Transparency, communication and community trust were three of four key themes that emerged in public submissions to the highly anticipated independent probe into the council's policies, processes and procedures. The review was a key pillar of Independent lord mayor Ross Kerridge's election campaign, which promised a "thorough, forensic investigation into the Scott Neylon/Jeremy Bath/Jason Sivo letters saga". That issue has been a thorn in the side of the council and community since the Newcastle Herald launched its investigation into the letter to the editor writing campaign over a year ago. Extensive submissions were made about the letters to the editor palaver, which the firm responsible for the review, Davidson Business Advisory, looked into in great detail. It found investigations within City of Newcastle, the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) and the Office of Local Government (OLG) were undertaken by the appropriate authorities. Davidson noted ICAC and the OLG have both closed the matters, have "no further investigations under way" and do not consider them necessary. The firm's lead consultant Colin Jensen said the issue has caused "significant angst" to council, the community and council staff and encouraged City of Newcastle to "look at ways to draw a line in the sand on this and move forward for the benefit of the city". The 2023 council-commissioned independent investigation into the City of Newcastle CEO's links to a Herald letter writer found "no evidence that the CEO incentivised the author to write the articles". The Herald was not contacted during the council-commissioned investigation, nor were copies of the letters requested. The public overwhelmingly told reviewers they wanted greater transparency, clearer and more accessible reporting on council decisions, how ratepayers' money is spent and how the council measures its performance. The community called for more consistent and accessible communication, particularly around capital works, major projects, and changes as they happened. Mr Jensen said better communication would be "essential" to strengthen engagement and build trust in the council's activities. "Residents felt that clearer communication and more opportunities for dialogue are needed to strengthen trust," he said. "Good communication and ongoing communication is critical to building their trust, it ensures the community's needs are fully considered in your council decisions." More than 270 public submissions homed in on governance, highlighting issues around transparency, decision-making, meeting procedures, clarity in council meetings, and ensuring they are not only legally compliant but conducted in an orderly manner. Davidson found the council did not act outside the law in its council meetings, but that meetings could be better structured, particularly around adherence to speaking times and declaring whether councillors are speaking for or against an issue. Other areas for improvement included proactively releasing information to the public, communicating the outcomes of investigations and compliance and regulatory enforcement and managing conflicts of interest within the council. While the reviewers did not identify illegal activity or a lack of compliance when it comes to conflicts of interest, they found improvements could be made in how members of the public perceive the handling of those conflicts. Mr Jensen said there was evidence the council has a "good" community engagement policy, but feedback from submissions was that the way the council engages with the public feels "tokenistic and superficial, with an approach which is described as 'decide and defend'". "Community members seek clearer insights into the decision-making processes, council plans and long-term strategies," he said. "Concerns were also raised about poor access to councillors to raise issues or discuss the decisions already made by elected officials. "This is not an easy thing, but it is actually crucial to your success and the success of the council, as well as the city." More than 800 public submissions were made to the review, 548 of which were made by individuals. A number of people made multiple submissions on different issues. IT'S said communication is the key to a successful relationship, but with Novocastrians describing City of Newcastle's engagement as "tokenistic" and "superficial" with a "decide and defend" approach, it seems there's room for improvement. Transparency, communication and community trust were three of four key themes that emerged in public submissions to the highly anticipated independent probe into the council's policies, processes and procedures. The review was a key pillar of Independent lord mayor Ross Kerridge's election campaign, which promised a "thorough, forensic investigation into the Scott Neylon/Jeremy Bath/Jason Sivo letters saga". That issue has been a thorn in the side of the council and community since the Newcastle Herald launched its investigation into the letter to the editor writing campaign over a year ago. Extensive submissions were made about the letters to the editor palaver, which the firm responsible for the review, Davidson Business Advisory, looked into in great detail. It found investigations within City of Newcastle, the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) and the Office of Local Government (OLG) were undertaken by the appropriate authorities. Davidson noted ICAC and the OLG have both closed the matters, have "no further investigations under way" and do not consider them necessary. The firm's lead consultant Colin Jensen said the issue has caused "significant angst" to council, the community and council staff and encouraged City of Newcastle to "look at ways to draw a line in the sand on this and move forward for the benefit of the city". The 2023 council-commissioned independent investigation into the City of Newcastle CEO's links to a Herald letter writer found "no evidence that the CEO incentivised the author to write the articles". The Herald was not contacted during the council-commissioned investigation, nor were copies of the letters requested. The public overwhelmingly told reviewers they wanted greater transparency, clearer and more accessible reporting on council decisions, how ratepayers' money is spent and how the council measures its performance. The community called for more consistent and accessible communication, particularly around capital works, major projects, and changes as they happened. Mr Jensen said better communication would be "essential" to strengthen engagement and build trust in the council's activities. "Residents felt that clearer communication and more opportunities for dialogue are needed to strengthen trust," he said. "Good communication and ongoing communication is critical to building their trust, it ensures the community's needs are fully considered in your council decisions." More than 270 public submissions homed in on governance, highlighting issues around transparency, decision-making, meeting procedures, clarity in council meetings, and ensuring they are not only legally compliant but conducted in an orderly manner. Davidson found the council did not act outside the law in its council meetings, but that meetings could be better structured, particularly around adherence to speaking times and declaring whether councillors are speaking for or against an issue. Other areas for improvement included proactively releasing information to the public, communicating the outcomes of investigations and compliance and regulatory enforcement and managing conflicts of interest within the council. While the reviewers did not identify illegal activity or a lack of compliance when it comes to conflicts of interest, they found improvements could be made in how members of the public perceive the handling of those conflicts. Mr Jensen said there was evidence the council has a "good" community engagement policy, but feedback from submissions was that the way the council engages with the public feels "tokenistic and superficial, with an approach which is described as 'decide and defend'". "Community members seek clearer insights into the decision-making processes, council plans and long-term strategies," he said. "Concerns were also raised about poor access to councillors to raise issues or discuss the decisions already made by elected officials. "This is not an easy thing, but it is actually crucial to your success and the success of the council, as well as the city." More than 800 public submissions were made to the review, 548 of which were made by individuals. A number of people made multiple submissions on different issues.
The Advertiser
08-05-2025
- Politics
- The Advertiser
Details of council probe revealed: the public briefing as it happened
RESIDENTS will get their first look at findings from a City of Newcastle review tonight. A public briefing is being held on the independent inquiry into the council's policies, procedures, and processes which was designed to restore public trust and confidence in the council. The review was a key pillar of Independent lord mayor Cr Ross Kerridge's election campaign, which promised a "thorough, forensic investigation into the Scott Neylon/Jeremy Bath/Jason Sivo letters saga" which has beleaguered the council and community since the Newcastle Herald launched its investigation into the letter to the editor writing campaign over a year ago. A City of Newcastle (CN) code of conduct investigation carried out by external consultant Pinnacle Integrity found there was "insufficient evidence" that Mr Bath was involved in a misleading letter-writing campaign under his best mate Scott Neylon's name, or that he passed confidential information to his friend of 25 years, who has lived in Japan for decades. Only one of 19 letters submitted to the Herald over nine years was examined and the investigation process drew wide criticism from the community. Three months into the job and with no review yet pitched from Cr Kerridge, Liberal deputy lord mayor Callum Pull put forward his own motion in December 2024 calling for an independent probe into the council's policies, processes and procedures. Despite Cr Kerridge's attempt to postpone the decision until after the Christmas break, councillors forged ahead after arguing the continued threat of an investigation would be bad for staff morale and the council's reputation. The first public indication that Davidson had been approached about the review was in an "executive comment" report provided to councillors alongside Cr Pull's motion. The report said Davidson had been approached to understand the cost of a proposed independent review. Davidson was already involved with City of Newcastle, undertaking a benchmarking exercise to see how Newcastle council stacked up against other similar sized councils in NSW, Victoria and Queensland. The exercise was designed to look at how Newcastle council compared when it came to debt, grant revenue and procurement, including value for money. The executive report provided to councillors said that "familiarity" ensured a discounted total cost if Davidson undertook the review. The report said Davidson predicted the review would take eight weeks, starting January, and cost in the vicinity of $70,000 plus travel costs. "A $20,000 discount to this quote has been offered on the basis of the existing analysis of CN already undertaken as part of the benchmarking process," the report said. The review is being undertaken by Davidson Business Advisory, a consulting firm that is already undertaking a benchmarking exercise of the council's expenditure and operational performance. The Herald understands former Brisbane Council chief executive Colin Jensen, and former Melbourne City Council chief executive Justin Hanney are at the helm of the review. RESIDENTS will get their first look at findings from a City of Newcastle review tonight. A public briefing is being held on the independent inquiry into the council's policies, procedures, and processes which was designed to restore public trust and confidence in the council. The review was a key pillar of Independent lord mayor Cr Ross Kerridge's election campaign, which promised a "thorough, forensic investigation into the Scott Neylon/Jeremy Bath/Jason Sivo letters saga" which has beleaguered the council and community since the Newcastle Herald launched its investigation into the letter to the editor writing campaign over a year ago. A City of Newcastle (CN) code of conduct investigation carried out by external consultant Pinnacle Integrity found there was "insufficient evidence" that Mr Bath was involved in a misleading letter-writing campaign under his best mate Scott Neylon's name, or that he passed confidential information to his friend of 25 years, who has lived in Japan for decades. Only one of 19 letters submitted to the Herald over nine years was examined and the investigation process drew wide criticism from the community. Three months into the job and with no review yet pitched from Cr Kerridge, Liberal deputy lord mayor Callum Pull put forward his own motion in December 2024 calling for an independent probe into the council's policies, processes and procedures. Despite Cr Kerridge's attempt to postpone the decision until after the Christmas break, councillors forged ahead after arguing the continued threat of an investigation would be bad for staff morale and the council's reputation. The first public indication that Davidson had been approached about the review was in an "executive comment" report provided to councillors alongside Cr Pull's motion. The report said Davidson had been approached to understand the cost of a proposed independent review. Davidson was already involved with City of Newcastle, undertaking a benchmarking exercise to see how Newcastle council stacked up against other similar sized councils in NSW, Victoria and Queensland. The exercise was designed to look at how Newcastle council compared when it came to debt, grant revenue and procurement, including value for money. The executive report provided to councillors said that "familiarity" ensured a discounted total cost if Davidson undertook the review. The report said Davidson predicted the review would take eight weeks, starting January, and cost in the vicinity of $70,000 plus travel costs. "A $20,000 discount to this quote has been offered on the basis of the existing analysis of CN already undertaken as part of the benchmarking process," the report said. The review is being undertaken by Davidson Business Advisory, a consulting firm that is already undertaking a benchmarking exercise of the council's expenditure and operational performance. The Herald understands former Brisbane Council chief executive Colin Jensen, and former Melbourne City Council chief executive Justin Hanney are at the helm of the review. RESIDENTS will get their first look at findings from a City of Newcastle review tonight. A public briefing is being held on the independent inquiry into the council's policies, procedures, and processes which was designed to restore public trust and confidence in the council. The review was a key pillar of Independent lord mayor Cr Ross Kerridge's election campaign, which promised a "thorough, forensic investigation into the Scott Neylon/Jeremy Bath/Jason Sivo letters saga" which has beleaguered the council and community since the Newcastle Herald launched its investigation into the letter to the editor writing campaign over a year ago. A City of Newcastle (CN) code of conduct investigation carried out by external consultant Pinnacle Integrity found there was "insufficient evidence" that Mr Bath was involved in a misleading letter-writing campaign under his best mate Scott Neylon's name, or that he passed confidential information to his friend of 25 years, who has lived in Japan for decades. Only one of 19 letters submitted to the Herald over nine years was examined and the investigation process drew wide criticism from the community. Three months into the job and with no review yet pitched from Cr Kerridge, Liberal deputy lord mayor Callum Pull put forward his own motion in December 2024 calling for an independent probe into the council's policies, processes and procedures. Despite Cr Kerridge's attempt to postpone the decision until after the Christmas break, councillors forged ahead after arguing the continued threat of an investigation would be bad for staff morale and the council's reputation. The first public indication that Davidson had been approached about the review was in an "executive comment" report provided to councillors alongside Cr Pull's motion. The report said Davidson had been approached to understand the cost of a proposed independent review. Davidson was already involved with City of Newcastle, undertaking a benchmarking exercise to see how Newcastle council stacked up against other similar sized councils in NSW, Victoria and Queensland. The exercise was designed to look at how Newcastle council compared when it came to debt, grant revenue and procurement, including value for money. The executive report provided to councillors said that "familiarity" ensured a discounted total cost if Davidson undertook the review. The report said Davidson predicted the review would take eight weeks, starting January, and cost in the vicinity of $70,000 plus travel costs. "A $20,000 discount to this quote has been offered on the basis of the existing analysis of CN already undertaken as part of the benchmarking process," the report said. The review is being undertaken by Davidson Business Advisory, a consulting firm that is already undertaking a benchmarking exercise of the council's expenditure and operational performance. The Herald understands former Brisbane Council chief executive Colin Jensen, and former Melbourne City Council chief executive Justin Hanney are at the helm of the review. RESIDENTS will get their first look at findings from a City of Newcastle review tonight. A public briefing is being held on the independent inquiry into the council's policies, procedures, and processes which was designed to restore public trust and confidence in the council. The review was a key pillar of Independent lord mayor Cr Ross Kerridge's election campaign, which promised a "thorough, forensic investigation into the Scott Neylon/Jeremy Bath/Jason Sivo letters saga" which has beleaguered the council and community since the Newcastle Herald launched its investigation into the letter to the editor writing campaign over a year ago. A City of Newcastle (CN) code of conduct investigation carried out by external consultant Pinnacle Integrity found there was "insufficient evidence" that Mr Bath was involved in a misleading letter-writing campaign under his best mate Scott Neylon's name, or that he passed confidential information to his friend of 25 years, who has lived in Japan for decades. Only one of 19 letters submitted to the Herald over nine years was examined and the investigation process drew wide criticism from the community. Three months into the job and with no review yet pitched from Cr Kerridge, Liberal deputy lord mayor Callum Pull put forward his own motion in December 2024 calling for an independent probe into the council's policies, processes and procedures. Despite Cr Kerridge's attempt to postpone the decision until after the Christmas break, councillors forged ahead after arguing the continued threat of an investigation would be bad for staff morale and the council's reputation. The first public indication that Davidson had been approached about the review was in an "executive comment" report provided to councillors alongside Cr Pull's motion. The report said Davidson had been approached to understand the cost of a proposed independent review. Davidson was already involved with City of Newcastle, undertaking a benchmarking exercise to see how Newcastle council stacked up against other similar sized councils in NSW, Victoria and Queensland. The exercise was designed to look at how Newcastle council compared when it came to debt, grant revenue and procurement, including value for money. The executive report provided to councillors said that "familiarity" ensured a discounted total cost if Davidson undertook the review. The report said Davidson predicted the review would take eight weeks, starting January, and cost in the vicinity of $70,000 plus travel costs. "A $20,000 discount to this quote has been offered on the basis of the existing analysis of CN already undertaken as part of the benchmarking process," the report said. The review is being undertaken by Davidson Business Advisory, a consulting firm that is already undertaking a benchmarking exercise of the council's expenditure and operational performance. The Herald understands former Brisbane Council chief executive Colin Jensen, and former Melbourne City Council chief executive Justin Hanney are at the helm of the review.
The Advertiser
08-05-2025
- Business
- The Advertiser
Lord mayor says probe reveals need to better engage and build 'trust'
NOVOCASTRIANS did not hold back when it came to venting their concerns with City of Newcastle in public submissions to an independent probe into the council's policies, procedures and processes. Newcastle Airport expenditure and board appointments, the Scott Neylon/Jeremy Bath/Jason Sivo letters saga, Mr Bath himself, the council's Christmas parties and lavish lucky door prizes were just some of the issues raised in some 800 submissions to the review. The full report and finer details of the probe will be made available to the public on May 21, but Newcastle Independent lord mayor Ross Kerridge said on first glance he feels "reassured" the council is "functioning well". "I think the main thing that they've identified is the need for better engagement and trust with the community and communication, particularly early engagement about big projects, and then there are some issues around financial reporting," he said "It's going to take a long time to work on that [trust with community], and I think it would be dangerous, and I even think with some of the responses there that I worry people will say, 'Oh, it's a huge ringing endorsement'. "Yes, it is an endorsement, but that doesn't mean that there aren't areas for improvement, and they are serious areas for improvement." Cr Kerridge said discussions have already been had on strategies to build better communication and trust with the community and within the council. As part of the review process, Davidson Business Advisory had the task of wading through some 800 public submissions. At least 260 internal council documents were considered, including strategies, plans, budgets, policies, media clips and council reports. Davidson undertook 27 one-on-one consultations with corporate staff, the lord mayor and councillors, as well as three independent members of the council's Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee (ARIC). In response to a question from Liberal deputy lord mayor Callum Pull, Davidson confirmed that no matters raised amid the review needed to be referred to the Independent Commission Against Corruption or another external agency. There were "no matters of fraud or corruption identified" in the review. The council and a packed public gallery heard at Thursday's meeting that the review cost in the order of $80,000. More than 20 submissions were made about the Newcastle Airport, which focused mostly on board appointment processes and concerns about that, reports of decisions being made outside council delegations without council awareness and an increase in expenditure due to development. Davison's lead consultant Colin Jensen noted the airport board structure was "necessarily complicated" because of the joint ownership between City of Newcastle and Port Stephens Council. He said the "overarching observation" is that City of Newcastle has used its delegation to make "appropriate decisions" around the appointment of directors "currently, recently and in the past". A shortcoming was identified, which was that the council's Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee (ARIC) should receive regular briefings on the airport. Mr Jensen said it was "not appropriate" to go into further detail on the airport at this stage but said there is more to come in the report. The Scott Neylon/Jeremy Bath/Jason Sivo letters saga was a topic that came up frequently as part of the review process. Mr Jensen said Davidson found the investigations into the matter were "done appropriately" and by the "appropriate authorities". The 2023 council-commissioned independent investigation into the City of Newcastle CEO's links to a long-term Herald letter writer found "no evidence that the CEO incentivised the author to write the articles". The Newcastle Herald was not contacted during the investigation, nor were copies of the letters requested. Mr Jensen said many public submissions focused specifically on City of Newcastle chief executive Jeremy Bath, and in many instances referred to decisions "espoused" to have been made by the chief executive. However, Mr Jensen said that upon review, many of the decisions residents raised issues with were made prior to his appointment or were decisions made by the elected councillors. Issues were also raised with council decisions, but Mr Jensen said no instances were identified where those decisions fell outside regulatory or approval processes. "Findings highlight opportunities for improved communication, enhanced community engagement," he said. Mr Jensen said better engagement and communication would contribute to a "broader understanding of those council decisions". Davidson gave City of Newcastle's staff Christmas party expenditure the tick of approval. The Newcastle Herald revealed in January that City of Newcastle (CN) staff were treated to lavish lucky door prizes in a gift-giving frenzy in December. The items up for grabs included a hot air balloon ride, Dyson Airwrap hair stylers, skydiving, a walking pad, Nintendo Switch, power tools, theatre tickets, a Nutribullet, portable speaker, Yeti cooler, Cool Cabana, recliner camp chair, cinema and dining vouchers. Fellow Davidson consultant Justin Hanney said the cost-per-head of the council's Christmas party compared favourably with costs for other NSW councils' Christmas celebrations. "When you dig into this issue historically, each staffer was given a Christmas cake that was replaced with prizes in a raffle-type environment which reduced the cost by 50 per cent in expenditure overall," he said. Mr Hanney said there is a "direct link" between how staff are rewarded and organisational culture and congratulated the CEO on personally paying for an executive team Christmas gathering. No excessive spending was identified and there were no "adverse findings" on the Christmas bash. Davidson has found that while City of Newcastle has a "healthy organisational culture" the relationship between the CEO, councillors and lord mayor will be "critical" to the organisational success of the council. Members of the public raised concerns about leadership dynamics, the approach to political transitions and challenges with alignment between the council's leadership team and elected councillors. Mr Hanney said while a difference in opinion shows a healthy democracy, once a decision is made the CEO is accountable for ensuring that position is implemented across the board. He said the council should focus on strengthening the relationship between the CEO, executive team and councillors for a more unified approach. When it comes to staff, Mr Hanney said the council's staff engagement survey results indicated year-on-year improvement. The full report will be tabled at the May 27 council meeting, and with plenty of issues covered the Newcastle Herald will have more to come. To see live coverage of the public briefing, click here. NOVOCASTRIANS did not hold back when it came to venting their concerns with City of Newcastle in public submissions to an independent probe into the council's policies, procedures and processes. Newcastle Airport expenditure and board appointments, the Scott Neylon/Jeremy Bath/Jason Sivo letters saga, Mr Bath himself, the council's Christmas parties and lavish lucky door prizes were just some of the issues raised in some 800 submissions to the review. The full report and finer details of the probe will be made available to the public on May 21, but Newcastle Independent lord mayor Ross Kerridge said on first glance he feels "reassured" the council is "functioning well". "I think the main thing that they've identified is the need for better engagement and trust with the community and communication, particularly early engagement about big projects, and then there are some issues around financial reporting," he said "It's going to take a long time to work on that [trust with community], and I think it would be dangerous, and I even think with some of the responses there that I worry people will say, 'Oh, it's a huge ringing endorsement'. "Yes, it is an endorsement, but that doesn't mean that there aren't areas for improvement, and they are serious areas for improvement." Cr Kerridge said discussions have already been had on strategies to build better communication and trust with the community and within the council. As part of the review process, Davidson Business Advisory had the task of wading through some 800 public submissions. At least 260 internal council documents were considered, including strategies, plans, budgets, policies, media clips and council reports. Davidson undertook 27 one-on-one consultations with corporate staff, the lord mayor and councillors, as well as three independent members of the council's Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee (ARIC). In response to a question from Liberal deputy lord mayor Callum Pull, Davidson confirmed that no matters raised amid the review needed to be referred to the Independent Commission Against Corruption or another external agency. There were "no matters of fraud or corruption identified" in the review. The council and a packed public gallery heard at Thursday's meeting that the review cost in the order of $80,000. More than 20 submissions were made about the Newcastle Airport, which focused mostly on board appointment processes and concerns about that, reports of decisions being made outside council delegations without council awareness and an increase in expenditure due to development. Davison's lead consultant Colin Jensen noted the airport board structure was "necessarily complicated" because of the joint ownership between City of Newcastle and Port Stephens Council. He said the "overarching observation" is that City of Newcastle has used its delegation to make "appropriate decisions" around the appointment of directors "currently, recently and in the past". A shortcoming was identified, which was that the council's Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee (ARIC) should receive regular briefings on the airport. Mr Jensen said it was "not appropriate" to go into further detail on the airport at this stage but said there is more to come in the report. The Scott Neylon/Jeremy Bath/Jason Sivo letters saga was a topic that came up frequently as part of the review process. Mr Jensen said Davidson found the investigations into the matter were "done appropriately" and by the "appropriate authorities". The 2023 council-commissioned independent investigation into the City of Newcastle CEO's links to a long-term Herald letter writer found "no evidence that the CEO incentivised the author to write the articles". The Newcastle Herald was not contacted during the investigation, nor were copies of the letters requested. Mr Jensen said many public submissions focused specifically on City of Newcastle chief executive Jeremy Bath, and in many instances referred to decisions "espoused" to have been made by the chief executive. However, Mr Jensen said that upon review, many of the decisions residents raised issues with were made prior to his appointment or were decisions made by the elected councillors. Issues were also raised with council decisions, but Mr Jensen said no instances were identified where those decisions fell outside regulatory or approval processes. "Findings highlight opportunities for improved communication, enhanced community engagement," he said. Mr Jensen said better engagement and communication would contribute to a "broader understanding of those council decisions". Davidson gave City of Newcastle's staff Christmas party expenditure the tick of approval. The Newcastle Herald revealed in January that City of Newcastle (CN) staff were treated to lavish lucky door prizes in a gift-giving frenzy in December. The items up for grabs included a hot air balloon ride, Dyson Airwrap hair stylers, skydiving, a walking pad, Nintendo Switch, power tools, theatre tickets, a Nutribullet, portable speaker, Yeti cooler, Cool Cabana, recliner camp chair, cinema and dining vouchers. Fellow Davidson consultant Justin Hanney said the cost-per-head of the council's Christmas party compared favourably with costs for other NSW councils' Christmas celebrations. "When you dig into this issue historically, each staffer was given a Christmas cake that was replaced with prizes in a raffle-type environment which reduced the cost by 50 per cent in expenditure overall," he said. Mr Hanney said there is a "direct link" between how staff are rewarded and organisational culture and congratulated the CEO on personally paying for an executive team Christmas gathering. No excessive spending was identified and there were no "adverse findings" on the Christmas bash. Davidson has found that while City of Newcastle has a "healthy organisational culture" the relationship between the CEO, councillors and lord mayor will be "critical" to the organisational success of the council. Members of the public raised concerns about leadership dynamics, the approach to political transitions and challenges with alignment between the council's leadership team and elected councillors. Mr Hanney said while a difference in opinion shows a healthy democracy, once a decision is made the CEO is accountable for ensuring that position is implemented across the board. He said the council should focus on strengthening the relationship between the CEO, executive team and councillors for a more unified approach. When it comes to staff, Mr Hanney said the council's staff engagement survey results indicated year-on-year improvement. The full report will be tabled at the May 27 council meeting, and with plenty of issues covered the Newcastle Herald will have more to come. To see live coverage of the public briefing, click here. NOVOCASTRIANS did not hold back when it came to venting their concerns with City of Newcastle in public submissions to an independent probe into the council's policies, procedures and processes. Newcastle Airport expenditure and board appointments, the Scott Neylon/Jeremy Bath/Jason Sivo letters saga, Mr Bath himself, the council's Christmas parties and lavish lucky door prizes were just some of the issues raised in some 800 submissions to the review. The full report and finer details of the probe will be made available to the public on May 21, but Newcastle Independent lord mayor Ross Kerridge said on first glance he feels "reassured" the council is "functioning well". "I think the main thing that they've identified is the need for better engagement and trust with the community and communication, particularly early engagement about big projects, and then there are some issues around financial reporting," he said "It's going to take a long time to work on that [trust with community], and I think it would be dangerous, and I even think with some of the responses there that I worry people will say, 'Oh, it's a huge ringing endorsement'. "Yes, it is an endorsement, but that doesn't mean that there aren't areas for improvement, and they are serious areas for improvement." Cr Kerridge said discussions have already been had on strategies to build better communication and trust with the community and within the council. As part of the review process, Davidson Business Advisory had the task of wading through some 800 public submissions. At least 260 internal council documents were considered, including strategies, plans, budgets, policies, media clips and council reports. Davidson undertook 27 one-on-one consultations with corporate staff, the lord mayor and councillors, as well as three independent members of the council's Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee (ARIC). In response to a question from Liberal deputy lord mayor Callum Pull, Davidson confirmed that no matters raised amid the review needed to be referred to the Independent Commission Against Corruption or another external agency. There were "no matters of fraud or corruption identified" in the review. The council and a packed public gallery heard at Thursday's meeting that the review cost in the order of $80,000. More than 20 submissions were made about the Newcastle Airport, which focused mostly on board appointment processes and concerns about that, reports of decisions being made outside council delegations without council awareness and an increase in expenditure due to development. Davison's lead consultant Colin Jensen noted the airport board structure was "necessarily complicated" because of the joint ownership between City of Newcastle and Port Stephens Council. He said the "overarching observation" is that City of Newcastle has used its delegation to make "appropriate decisions" around the appointment of directors "currently, recently and in the past". A shortcoming was identified, which was that the council's Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee (ARIC) should receive regular briefings on the airport. Mr Jensen said it was "not appropriate" to go into further detail on the airport at this stage but said there is more to come in the report. The Scott Neylon/Jeremy Bath/Jason Sivo letters saga was a topic that came up frequently as part of the review process. Mr Jensen said Davidson found the investigations into the matter were "done appropriately" and by the "appropriate authorities". The 2023 council-commissioned independent investigation into the City of Newcastle CEO's links to a long-term Herald letter writer found "no evidence that the CEO incentivised the author to write the articles". The Newcastle Herald was not contacted during the investigation, nor were copies of the letters requested. Mr Jensen said many public submissions focused specifically on City of Newcastle chief executive Jeremy Bath, and in many instances referred to decisions "espoused" to have been made by the chief executive. However, Mr Jensen said that upon review, many of the decisions residents raised issues with were made prior to his appointment or were decisions made by the elected councillors. Issues were also raised with council decisions, but Mr Jensen said no instances were identified where those decisions fell outside regulatory or approval processes. "Findings highlight opportunities for improved communication, enhanced community engagement," he said. Mr Jensen said better engagement and communication would contribute to a "broader understanding of those council decisions". Davidson gave City of Newcastle's staff Christmas party expenditure the tick of approval. The Newcastle Herald revealed in January that City of Newcastle (CN) staff were treated to lavish lucky door prizes in a gift-giving frenzy in December. The items up for grabs included a hot air balloon ride, Dyson Airwrap hair stylers, skydiving, a walking pad, Nintendo Switch, power tools, theatre tickets, a Nutribullet, portable speaker, Yeti cooler, Cool Cabana, recliner camp chair, cinema and dining vouchers. Fellow Davidson consultant Justin Hanney said the cost-per-head of the council's Christmas party compared favourably with costs for other NSW councils' Christmas celebrations. "When you dig into this issue historically, each staffer was given a Christmas cake that was replaced with prizes in a raffle-type environment which reduced the cost by 50 per cent in expenditure overall," he said. Mr Hanney said there is a "direct link" between how staff are rewarded and organisational culture and congratulated the CEO on personally paying for an executive team Christmas gathering. No excessive spending was identified and there were no "adverse findings" on the Christmas bash. Davidson has found that while City of Newcastle has a "healthy organisational culture" the relationship between the CEO, councillors and lord mayor will be "critical" to the organisational success of the council. Members of the public raised concerns about leadership dynamics, the approach to political transitions and challenges with alignment between the council's leadership team and elected councillors. Mr Hanney said while a difference in opinion shows a healthy democracy, once a decision is made the CEO is accountable for ensuring that position is implemented across the board. He said the council should focus on strengthening the relationship between the CEO, executive team and councillors for a more unified approach. When it comes to staff, Mr Hanney said the council's staff engagement survey results indicated year-on-year improvement. The full report will be tabled at the May 27 council meeting, and with plenty of issues covered the Newcastle Herald will have more to come. To see live coverage of the public briefing, click here. NOVOCASTRIANS did not hold back when it came to venting their concerns with City of Newcastle in public submissions to an independent probe into the council's policies, procedures and processes. Newcastle Airport expenditure and board appointments, the Scott Neylon/Jeremy Bath/Jason Sivo letters saga, Mr Bath himself, the council's Christmas parties and lavish lucky door prizes were just some of the issues raised in some 800 submissions to the review. The full report and finer details of the probe will be made available to the public on May 21, but Newcastle Independent lord mayor Ross Kerridge said on first glance he feels "reassured" the council is "functioning well". "I think the main thing that they've identified is the need for better engagement and trust with the community and communication, particularly early engagement about big projects, and then there are some issues around financial reporting," he said "It's going to take a long time to work on that [trust with community], and I think it would be dangerous, and I even think with some of the responses there that I worry people will say, 'Oh, it's a huge ringing endorsement'. "Yes, it is an endorsement, but that doesn't mean that there aren't areas for improvement, and they are serious areas for improvement." Cr Kerridge said discussions have already been had on strategies to build better communication and trust with the community and within the council. As part of the review process, Davidson Business Advisory had the task of wading through some 800 public submissions. At least 260 internal council documents were considered, including strategies, plans, budgets, policies, media clips and council reports. Davidson undertook 27 one-on-one consultations with corporate staff, the lord mayor and councillors, as well as three independent members of the council's Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee (ARIC). In response to a question from Liberal deputy lord mayor Callum Pull, Davidson confirmed that no matters raised amid the review needed to be referred to the Independent Commission Against Corruption or another external agency. There were "no matters of fraud or corruption identified" in the review. The council and a packed public gallery heard at Thursday's meeting that the review cost in the order of $80,000. More than 20 submissions were made about the Newcastle Airport, which focused mostly on board appointment processes and concerns about that, reports of decisions being made outside council delegations without council awareness and an increase in expenditure due to development. Davison's lead consultant Colin Jensen noted the airport board structure was "necessarily complicated" because of the joint ownership between City of Newcastle and Port Stephens Council. He said the "overarching observation" is that City of Newcastle has used its delegation to make "appropriate decisions" around the appointment of directors "currently, recently and in the past". A shortcoming was identified, which was that the council's Audit, Risk and Improvement Committee (ARIC) should receive regular briefings on the airport. Mr Jensen said it was "not appropriate" to go into further detail on the airport at this stage but said there is more to come in the report. The Scott Neylon/Jeremy Bath/Jason Sivo letters saga was a topic that came up frequently as part of the review process. Mr Jensen said Davidson found the investigations into the matter were "done appropriately" and by the "appropriate authorities". The 2023 council-commissioned independent investigation into the City of Newcastle CEO's links to a long-term Herald letter writer found "no evidence that the CEO incentivised the author to write the articles". The Newcastle Herald was not contacted during the investigation, nor were copies of the letters requested. Mr Jensen said many public submissions focused specifically on City of Newcastle chief executive Jeremy Bath, and in many instances referred to decisions "espoused" to have been made by the chief executive. However, Mr Jensen said that upon review, many of the decisions residents raised issues with were made prior to his appointment or were decisions made by the elected councillors. Issues were also raised with council decisions, but Mr Jensen said no instances were identified where those decisions fell outside regulatory or approval processes. "Findings highlight opportunities for improved communication, enhanced community engagement," he said. Mr Jensen said better engagement and communication would contribute to a "broader understanding of those council decisions". Davidson gave City of Newcastle's staff Christmas party expenditure the tick of approval. The Newcastle Herald revealed in January that City of Newcastle (CN) staff were treated to lavish lucky door prizes in a gift-giving frenzy in December. The items up for grabs included a hot air balloon ride, Dyson Airwrap hair stylers, skydiving, a walking pad, Nintendo Switch, power tools, theatre tickets, a Nutribullet, portable speaker, Yeti cooler, Cool Cabana, recliner camp chair, cinema and dining vouchers. Fellow Davidson consultant Justin Hanney said the cost-per-head of the council's Christmas party compared favourably with costs for other NSW councils' Christmas celebrations. "When you dig into this issue historically, each staffer was given a Christmas cake that was replaced with prizes in a raffle-type environment which reduced the cost by 50 per cent in expenditure overall," he said. Mr Hanney said there is a "direct link" between how staff are rewarded and organisational culture and congratulated the CEO on personally paying for an executive team Christmas gathering. No excessive spending was identified and there were no "adverse findings" on the Christmas bash. Davidson has found that while City of Newcastle has a "healthy organisational culture" the relationship between the CEO, councillors and lord mayor will be "critical" to the organisational success of the council. Members of the public raised concerns about leadership dynamics, the approach to political transitions and challenges with alignment between the council's leadership team and elected councillors. Mr Hanney said while a difference in opinion shows a healthy democracy, once a decision is made the CEO is accountable for ensuring that position is implemented across the board. He said the council should focus on strengthening the relationship between the CEO, executive team and councillors for a more unified approach. When it comes to staff, Mr Hanney said the council's staff engagement survey results indicated year-on-year improvement. The full report will be tabled at the May 27 council meeting, and with plenty of issues covered the Newcastle Herald will have more to come. To see live coverage of the public briefing, click here.
The Advertiser
08-05-2025
- Politics
- The Advertiser
Public to be briefed on details of independent Newcastle council probe
RESIDENTS will get their first look at findings from a City of Newcastle review tonight. A public briefing is being held on the independent inquiry into the council's policies, procedures, and processes which was designed to restore public trust and confidence in the council. The review was a key pillar of Independent lord mayor Cr Ross Kerridge's election campaign, which promised a "thorough, forensic investigation into the Scott Neylon/Jeremy Bath/Jason Sivo letters saga" which has beleaguered the council and community since the Newcastle Herald launched its investigation into the letter to the editor writing campaign over a year ago. A City of Newcastle (CN) code of conduct investigation carried out by external consultant Pinnacle Integrity found there was "insufficient evidence" that Mr Bath was involved in a misleading letter-writing campaign under his best mate Scott Neylon's name, or that he passed confidential information to his friend of 25 years, who has lived in Japan for decades. Only one of 19 letters submitted to the Herald over nine years was examined and the investigation process drew wide criticism from the community. Three months into the job and with no review yet pitched from Cr Kerridge, Liberal deputy lord mayor Callum Pull put forward his own motion in December 2024 calling for an independent probe into the council's policies, processes and procedures. Despite Cr Kerridge's attempt to postpone the decision until after the Christmas break, councillors forged ahead after arguing the continued threat of an investigation would be bad for staff morale and the council's reputation. The first public indication that Davidson had been approached about the review was in an "executive comment" report provided to councillors alongside Cr Pull's motion. The report said Davidson had been approached to understand the cost of a proposed independent review. Davidson was already involved with City of Newcastle, undertaking a benchmarking exercise to see how Newcastle council stacked up against other similar sized councils in NSW, Victoria and Queensland. The exercise was designed to look at how Newcastle council compared when it came to debt, grant revenue and procurement, including value for money. The executive report provided to councillors said that "familiarity" ensured a discounted total cost if Davidson undertook the review. The report said Davidson predicted the review would take eight weeks, starting January, and cost in the vicinity of $70,000 plus travel costs. "A $20,000 discount to this quote has been offered on the basis of the existing analysis of CN already undertaken as part of the benchmarking process," the report said. The review is being undertaken by Davidson Business Advisory, a consulting firm that is already undertaking a benchmarking exercise of the council's expenditure and operational performance. The Herald understands former Brisbane Council chief executive Colin Jensen, and former Melbourne City Council chief executive Justin Hanney are at the helm of the review. RESIDENTS will get their first look at findings from a City of Newcastle review tonight. A public briefing is being held on the independent inquiry into the council's policies, procedures, and processes which was designed to restore public trust and confidence in the council. The review was a key pillar of Independent lord mayor Cr Ross Kerridge's election campaign, which promised a "thorough, forensic investigation into the Scott Neylon/Jeremy Bath/Jason Sivo letters saga" which has beleaguered the council and community since the Newcastle Herald launched its investigation into the letter to the editor writing campaign over a year ago. A City of Newcastle (CN) code of conduct investigation carried out by external consultant Pinnacle Integrity found there was "insufficient evidence" that Mr Bath was involved in a misleading letter-writing campaign under his best mate Scott Neylon's name, or that he passed confidential information to his friend of 25 years, who has lived in Japan for decades. Only one of 19 letters submitted to the Herald over nine years was examined and the investigation process drew wide criticism from the community. Three months into the job and with no review yet pitched from Cr Kerridge, Liberal deputy lord mayor Callum Pull put forward his own motion in December 2024 calling for an independent probe into the council's policies, processes and procedures. Despite Cr Kerridge's attempt to postpone the decision until after the Christmas break, councillors forged ahead after arguing the continued threat of an investigation would be bad for staff morale and the council's reputation. The first public indication that Davidson had been approached about the review was in an "executive comment" report provided to councillors alongside Cr Pull's motion. The report said Davidson had been approached to understand the cost of a proposed independent review. Davidson was already involved with City of Newcastle, undertaking a benchmarking exercise to see how Newcastle council stacked up against other similar sized councils in NSW, Victoria and Queensland. The exercise was designed to look at how Newcastle council compared when it came to debt, grant revenue and procurement, including value for money. The executive report provided to councillors said that "familiarity" ensured a discounted total cost if Davidson undertook the review. The report said Davidson predicted the review would take eight weeks, starting January, and cost in the vicinity of $70,000 plus travel costs. "A $20,000 discount to this quote has been offered on the basis of the existing analysis of CN already undertaken as part of the benchmarking process," the report said. The review is being undertaken by Davidson Business Advisory, a consulting firm that is already undertaking a benchmarking exercise of the council's expenditure and operational performance. The Herald understands former Brisbane Council chief executive Colin Jensen, and former Melbourne City Council chief executive Justin Hanney are at the helm of the review. RESIDENTS will get their first look at findings from a City of Newcastle review tonight. A public briefing is being held on the independent inquiry into the council's policies, procedures, and processes which was designed to restore public trust and confidence in the council. The review was a key pillar of Independent lord mayor Cr Ross Kerridge's election campaign, which promised a "thorough, forensic investigation into the Scott Neylon/Jeremy Bath/Jason Sivo letters saga" which has beleaguered the council and community since the Newcastle Herald launched its investigation into the letter to the editor writing campaign over a year ago. A City of Newcastle (CN) code of conduct investigation carried out by external consultant Pinnacle Integrity found there was "insufficient evidence" that Mr Bath was involved in a misleading letter-writing campaign under his best mate Scott Neylon's name, or that he passed confidential information to his friend of 25 years, who has lived in Japan for decades. Only one of 19 letters submitted to the Herald over nine years was examined and the investigation process drew wide criticism from the community. Three months into the job and with no review yet pitched from Cr Kerridge, Liberal deputy lord mayor Callum Pull put forward his own motion in December 2024 calling for an independent probe into the council's policies, processes and procedures. Despite Cr Kerridge's attempt to postpone the decision until after the Christmas break, councillors forged ahead after arguing the continued threat of an investigation would be bad for staff morale and the council's reputation. The first public indication that Davidson had been approached about the review was in an "executive comment" report provided to councillors alongside Cr Pull's motion. The report said Davidson had been approached to understand the cost of a proposed independent review. Davidson was already involved with City of Newcastle, undertaking a benchmarking exercise to see how Newcastle council stacked up against other similar sized councils in NSW, Victoria and Queensland. The exercise was designed to look at how Newcastle council compared when it came to debt, grant revenue and procurement, including value for money. The executive report provided to councillors said that "familiarity" ensured a discounted total cost if Davidson undertook the review. The report said Davidson predicted the review would take eight weeks, starting January, and cost in the vicinity of $70,000 plus travel costs. "A $20,000 discount to this quote has been offered on the basis of the existing analysis of CN already undertaken as part of the benchmarking process," the report said. The review is being undertaken by Davidson Business Advisory, a consulting firm that is already undertaking a benchmarking exercise of the council's expenditure and operational performance. The Herald understands former Brisbane Council chief executive Colin Jensen, and former Melbourne City Council chief executive Justin Hanney are at the helm of the review. RESIDENTS will get their first look at findings from a City of Newcastle review tonight. A public briefing is being held on the independent inquiry into the council's policies, procedures, and processes which was designed to restore public trust and confidence in the council. The review was a key pillar of Independent lord mayor Cr Ross Kerridge's election campaign, which promised a "thorough, forensic investigation into the Scott Neylon/Jeremy Bath/Jason Sivo letters saga" which has beleaguered the council and community since the Newcastle Herald launched its investigation into the letter to the editor writing campaign over a year ago. A City of Newcastle (CN) code of conduct investigation carried out by external consultant Pinnacle Integrity found there was "insufficient evidence" that Mr Bath was involved in a misleading letter-writing campaign under his best mate Scott Neylon's name, or that he passed confidential information to his friend of 25 years, who has lived in Japan for decades. Only one of 19 letters submitted to the Herald over nine years was examined and the investigation process drew wide criticism from the community. Three months into the job and with no review yet pitched from Cr Kerridge, Liberal deputy lord mayor Callum Pull put forward his own motion in December 2024 calling for an independent probe into the council's policies, processes and procedures. Despite Cr Kerridge's attempt to postpone the decision until after the Christmas break, councillors forged ahead after arguing the continued threat of an investigation would be bad for staff morale and the council's reputation. The first public indication that Davidson had been approached about the review was in an "executive comment" report provided to councillors alongside Cr Pull's motion. The report said Davidson had been approached to understand the cost of a proposed independent review. Davidson was already involved with City of Newcastle, undertaking a benchmarking exercise to see how Newcastle council stacked up against other similar sized councils in NSW, Victoria and Queensland. The exercise was designed to look at how Newcastle council compared when it came to debt, grant revenue and procurement, including value for money. The executive report provided to councillors said that "familiarity" ensured a discounted total cost if Davidson undertook the review. The report said Davidson predicted the review would take eight weeks, starting January, and cost in the vicinity of $70,000 plus travel costs. "A $20,000 discount to this quote has been offered on the basis of the existing analysis of CN already undertaken as part of the benchmarking process," the report said. The review is being undertaken by Davidson Business Advisory, a consulting firm that is already undertaking a benchmarking exercise of the council's expenditure and operational performance. The Herald understands former Brisbane Council chief executive Colin Jensen, and former Melbourne City Council chief executive Justin Hanney are at the helm of the review.
