Dungog councillors won’t postpone their holiday plans to discuss a proposed merger with Gloucester council.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Mayor Cr Harold Johnston said state government assessors were scheduled to visit the council and consult with the community in January, but the councillors would not be talking about the plan until February.
“I’m not going to cancel my holiday plans and neither should any of the councillors,” he said.
“Very few rural councils have meetings in January.”
Cr Johnston was bemused the state government had put a merger with Gloucester on the table after it spent the year trying to push Dungog with Maitland council.
The government announced the move on Friday as part of its plan to make all NSW councils sustainable through the Fit for the Future program.
The news came hours before Dungog council’s Christmas party.
“I’m going to put it out of my mind,” Cr Johnston said.
“There’s nothing I can do about it right now.
“It’s a proposal that is not based on evidence. The business case hasn’t been examined, costed, or the possible benefits investigated.
“Putting two poor families together doesn’t make a rich family.”
The Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal deemed Dungog and Gloucester unfit for the future earlier this year.
Cr Johnston said both councils were in debt and the government’s decision to freeze rates within merged councils for four years was an unnecessary financial burden.
He said road maintenance was one of the biggest drags on their cash flow and the government needed to step in with funding for the roads it owned within the local government area.
“There is a community of interest between Dungog and Gloucester, but you can’t live on love,” he said
“I don’t know where the money is going to come from to make it work.”
