Tasmanian councillors may soon have to declare property ownership and sources of income through a personal interests return process, however, certain details will still be kept from the public.
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The Office of Local Government has released a discussion paper to firm up the handling of conflicts of interests for councillors following two Integrity Commission reports which found there were deficiencies in the current management system.
The government's Local Government Act review also identified that the current arrangements for conflicts of interest were confusing for councillors and difficult to manage, especially as pecuniary and non-pecuniary interests operated with different regulations and sanctions.
Tasmania is the only Australian jurisdiction that does not require councillors to lodge a personal interests return to declare interests in property, corporations and business partnerships, membership of certain organisations and sources of income.
The paper proposes that a councillor would need to submit a personal interests return to a council general manager shortly after their election.
They would need to update the general manager should any of their declared interests change.
Some of the details on the personal interests returns will be exempt from publication, including:
- the monetary value or amount of any income, shares, other beneficial interests and debt;
- the street address and number of any land owned by the councillor if the land is the principal place of residence;
- information which, if released, would be reasonably likely to place the personal safety of anyone else at risk;
- and private commercial information.
Local Government Minister Nic Street said at times, situations had arisen that have highlighted a need to revise the way councillors declare and manage their personal interests when fulfilling their public duties.
Submissions are open until 22 December 2023 and can be made via email to lgconsultation@dpac.tas.gov.au.
Political reporter for Australian Community Media, based in Hobart.
Political reporter for Australian Community Media, based in Hobart.
