Canning councillors vote against response to Perth Transport Plan then unsuccessfully try to debate item again

COUNCILLORS at the City of Canning voted down the City’s response to the State Government’s Perth Transport Plan for 3.5 Million People and Beyond and its submission to the Department of Transport before desperately scrambling to renege on the decision in a move chief executive Arthur Kyron called “highly unusual”.

Last night councillors suspended standing orders after all but councillors Pauline Tarrant, Paul Ng, Patrick Hall and Ben Kunze voted against submitting a response to the transport plan compiled with consultancy firm Jacobs to the State government.

Reasons for voting against the item were myriad, including opposition to Roe 8 and the wording in the recommendation.

Upon the voting down Mr Kyron advised the City would not make a submission to the State Government, sending the meeting into chaos with councillors asking to revisit the closed item.

Deputy Mayor Lindsay Holland, who cited wording for his reasons not to support the item, said it was important the council made a submission and motioned for standing orders to be suspended and asking to reword the item.

Cr Christine Cunningham, who spoke against the item, said she would not support an ad hoc decision to renegotiate an item.

“(The item) was lost, that’s the end of the issue… trying to make an ad hoc decision is not good,” she said.

Mr Kyron said the proceedings were unusual in his 20 years in local government, agreeing the item was not to be revisited.

“I joined local government in 1997 and this is highly unusual… the motion was voted down and we effectively have no submission; there is a process we need to go through and (at a Special Council Meeting) councillors can have a debate and make a decision,” he said.

Mr Kyron said the council had pushed its limits of standing orders, but the Local Government Act was not breached.

The councillors resumed standing orders and agreed to hold a Special Council Meeting to review a new item.

The submission deadline to the State Government is October 28.