Date September 27, 2016
Hon Paul Miles MLA
Minister for Local Government
8^th Floor Dumas House
2 Havelock Street
WEST PERTH, 6005

Dear Sir
Your Ref; - Department of Local Government and Communities Annual Report 2014–15, Page 45

Welcome to the office of Minister for Local Government. I hope it does not become a poison chalice.

To ensure that it does not- I suggest you read past press statements by the National Party’s, Vince Catania, and the Auditor General, Colin Murphy, regarding the efforts of your predecessor, Tony Simpson, in ensuring Local Government Area compliance with Local Government and Criminal Law.

Mr. Simpson’s ultimate failure can be attributed to the advice given to him by his Director General, Jennifer Mathews and her cohorts Brad Jolly and Jenni Law.

You may find the following response to a part of the Annual Report 2015-16, page 45 as slightly derogatory and facetious. It may well be, but it is a strong perception of the truth and in politics that is all that matters.

The fact that a National Party colleague seriously attacked the reputation of a Liberal Party Minister is not comforting leading up to a State Election just six months away. 

Mr. Catania’s statement was published on September 6, 2016 and Minister Simpson resigned 10 days later. Rest assured that this matter was raised by the Premiers Office with former Minister Simpson and may well have contributed to his resignation.

In your own best interest it may well be that you should go that extra mile and where possibly meet with councils to obtain their opinion of what is going so badly wrong.

Yours sincerely- 

David Taylor

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PAGE 45 

6.1.6 Specific local government issues

Shire of York (this is what the DLGC had to say- with an unambiguous York Council response that assisted in Simpson’s ultimate demise.)

a) What happened
as a result of winging, carping and whining from a number of disgruntled Councillors and bullying by a disgraced Chief Executive Officer, a couple of less than intelligent department hacks interfered in council business and decided to conduct a targeted Probity Compliance Audit without sound knowledge of what probity actually means. This obscenely rapid audit, taking just 16 hours, including coffee and lunch breaks, made a mockery of any form of due process and provided a prejudiced, jaundiced, misanthropic premeditated view of the processes and procedural standards of good governance shown by a local council.
a) What they said
as a result of a number of complaints from the public, the department monitored council meetings, and decided to conduct a targeted Probity Compliance Audit to determine if the Shire of York’s processes and procedures were of a standard expected of a local government for the provision of good governance to persons in its district. The Probity Compliance Audit was conducted on 15–16 September 2014.

b) What happened
this ridiculously short monitoring process identified serious concerns regarding the ability of Tony Simpson and his coven of nincompoops to operate as the governing body over anything, including a kids Xmas party.
b) What they said
the monitoring identified serious concerns regarding the ability of the council to operate as the governing body of the shire, and the council was issued with a Show Cause Notice under Section 8.15B of the Local Government Act 1995 on 20 November 2014.

c) What happened
following consideration of the Mathew Reid council’s appropriate response telling the DLGC, politely but firmly, to ‘piss-off’ ‘Tony Who’ spat-the-dummy. National Party MP, Vince Catania, has since stated bullying, financial mismanagement, vested self-interest and fraud had become rampant within rural local government because of the DLGC’s ineptitude. Simpson’s instinct was to lash out to try and save his political skin already scorched by his past failures with city councils and their amalgamation and from the day he entered office-his knowledge of what had happened in the previous councils dating back to 2008.
c) What they said  

following consideration of the council’s response, the Minister for Local Government determined that the seriousness and duration of the suspected failure of the council, to ensure the local government performed its functions properly, made it appropriate for intervention under section 8.15C of the Act.

d) What happened 
on January 7, 2015, by Governor’s Order, the council was suspended for a period of six months and Mr James Best, a small man with a big attitude towards municipal funding and the epitome of a local government ‘cling-on’ was appointed commissioner. Mr. Best brought with him visions, ideations and lots of butchers’ paper to scribble them on. He left, leaving a damage bill of around $1million.
d) What they said
on 7 January 2015, by Governor’s Order, the council were (should be was) suspended for a period of six months, and Mr James Best, an experienced former local government mayor, was appointed commissioner to act in place of Council for the period of suspension.

e) What happened
an incompetent Director General, Jennifer Matthews, her equally incompetent senior staff and WALGA, another local government ‘cling-on’ created a training program for the suspended councillors. Any positive end result of this has yet to be qualified and quantified.
e) What they said  The suspension order also required the four remaining councillors to undertake training in local government and council related functions as approved by the department. The training program for the suspended councillors was determined by the director general, and was provided by the Australian Institute of Company Directors, the Western Australian Local Government Association, and the department. It commenced on 1 April 2015 and concluded in early June 2015.

f) What happened
the council was reinstated on July 6, 2015 and was monitored by the same agents and agencies that initiated the problem. 
f) What they said

the council was reinstated on 6 July 2015. Upon its return to office, the department established a mentoring/monitoring panel to provide ongoing assistance to council for a six month period.

g) What happened
of the 16 recommendations contained in the probity compliance audit report how many of these recommendations have actually been completed successfully?
g) What they said
of the 16 recommendations contained in the probity compliance audit report, a number have been completed through the provision of elected member and staff training. The remainder of the recommendations is expected to be completed by November 2015.

h) What will continue to happen
the ratepayers will support the council and monitor its actions. They will also closely monitor the actions of the department and what positive support it actually gives to the shire.
h) What they said
the department is continuing to monitor and support the shire.