November 2017 | Sharon Webb

A MEANDER Valley Councillor has apologised publicly for making offensive comments about a community group campaigning against the use of the former Meander School property as a drug treatment facility.

A local government code of conduct panel required Cllr Tanya King to “sincerely and unreservedly apologise to members of Meander Residents and Ratepayers Association (MARRA Inc) for any offence or embarrassment” her comments at the council meeting of 15th November last year may have caused them.

The three-member panel also said Cr King should be cautioned against making inappropriate public statements which may cause offence or embarrassment to any individual or community group.

A hearing at the Westbury Community Health Centre on 5th July heard from MARRA spokesperson Bohdi McSweeney that its 70-person membership was “deeply offended and shocked by Cllr King’s reference to them”, and that her comments were “outrageous and humiliating.”

Cllr King told the panel that she had intended to alert ratepayers to the waste of time and funds that a former complaint by Meander resident Bronte Booth had caused council. She confirmed that “the context (of her comments) was correct but she believed she may have been misquoted.”

She said in hindsight she should have chosen her words more carefully, describing them as ‘cheeky’.

The panel found Cllr King had breached Local Government Act requiring councillors to “treat all persons with courtesy, fairness, dignity and respect” and “not cause any reasonable person offence or embarrassment”.

It found Cllr King’s comments “gratuitous and sarcastic” and had caused Mr Booth and one or more of the MARRA Inc members offence or embarrassment.