Dear Beagle Editor, Councillor Nathan’s public leaking of the results of Catherine Dale’s recent performance review is self-serving and potentially in breach of the Privacy and Personal Information Protection Act 1998. She uses her revelation of the general manager’s “outstanding” assessment result against the last council’s KPI requirements to justify the faulty process used for Dr Dale’s reappointment. Her letter to the Beagle also demonstrates her disdain for the way the community responds to council’s complex planning. The NSW Local Government Act and related guidelines require that the appointment of general managers is made using competitive, merit selection principles. It is open to councils to reappoint general managers by contract renegotiation, however, when this is done it is sound administrative practice to take account of changed, forward looking circumstances. In Eurobodalla in 2017 we have a new council and a buyers’ market for local government senior executives. The new council has neither articulated its requirements of the GM as new KPIs nor tested the market for promising external or internal applicants. So, the rushed decision to reappoint Catherine Dale is fundamentally flawed. Regrettably, had councillors spoken to informed members of the community about an appropriate response to Catherine Dale’s request for a five year extension they would have been advised to hasten slowly and consult widely. After all, a response did not have to be made until September. The only urgency attached to the decision appears to be Councillor Nathan’s insistence that it be made before her imminent departure for France. Serious reform of council to make it more open and responsive to community concerns is the only way to avoid poor governance manifest, yet again, by a deluge of leaks from councillors. Perhaps, Catherine Dale should take action against Councillor Nathan for her breach of her responsibility to uphold the State’s privacy law? Yours sincerely Paul Bradstreet Surf Beach
