· Web viewI note that the Commonwealth Government has indicated their support of $10 million in aid on behalf of the Australian citizens. I note the State Government is also looking

MINUTES OF PROCEEDINGS

The 4421 meeting of the Brisbane City Council,held at City Hall, Brisbaneon Tuesday 12 November 2013at 2pm

Prepared by: Council and Committees SupportChief Executive’s OfficeOffice of the Lord Mayor and the Chief Executive Officer

Dedicated to a better Brisbane


THE 4421 MEETING OF THE BRISBANE CITY COUNCIL,HELD AT CITY HALL, BRISBANE,ON TUESDAY 12 NOVEMBER 2013

AT 2PM

TABLE OF CONTENTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS_______________________________________________________________i

PRESENT:________________________________________________________________________1

OPENING OF MEETING:____________________________________________________________1

MINUTES:_______________________________________________________________________1

QUESTION TIME:__________________________________________________________________4

CONSIDERATION OF COMMITTEE REPORTS:___________________________________________28ESTABLISHMENT AND COORDINATION COMMITTEE__________________________________________28

A CONTRACTS AND TENDERING – REPORT TO COUNCIL OF CONTRACTS ACCEPTED BY DELEGATES FOR SEPTEMBER 2013_____________________________________________________________34

INFRASTRUCTURE COMMITTEE___________________________________________________________41A COMMITTEE PRESENTATION – WALTER TAYLOR BRIDGE_________________________________45B PETITION – REQUESTING COUNCIL TO UNDERTAKE A SAFETY AUDIT, INCLUDING A REDUCTION IN

THE 50KM/H SPEED LIMIT AT MOLLISON STREET, SOUTH BRISBANE, TO ENSURE SAFE MOVEMENT OF PEDESTRIANS_________________________________________________________________46

C PETITION – REQUESTING COUNCIL TO PROVIDE TIMING AROUND THE INVESTIGATION INTO A PEDESTRIAN/CYCLE BRIDGE BETWEEN BULIMBA AND TENERIFFE AS NOTED IN THE BRISBANE CITY PLAN 2013______________________________________________________________________48

PUBLIC AND ACTIVE TRANSPORT COMMITTEE_______________________________________________49A COMMITTEE PRESENTATION – RIDE2WORK DAY 2013___________________________________54B PETITION – REQUESTING COUNCIL TO TAKE ACTION TO ALLOW BOWEN HILLS BUS DEPOT TO

REMAIN OPERATIONAL FOR BRISBANE TRANSPORT_____________________________________55NEIGHBOURHOOD PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT ASSESSMENT COMMITTEE____________________56ENVIRONMENT, PARKS AND SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE____________________________________58

A COMMITTEE PRESENTATION – PARK CLASSIFICATION AND DESIRED STANDARDS OF SERVICE____65B PARK NAMING – PROPOSED NAMING OF THE PARK KNOWN AS ROGOONA STREET PARK, 47

THYNNE ROAD, MORNINGSIDE, AS ‘JOYCE WHITE PARK’_________________________________66C PARK NAMING – PROPOSED NAMING OF PARKLAND AT 71 TO 95 PINE ROAD, RICHLANDS, KNOWN

AS PINE ROAD PARK, AS ‘BILL GILLESPIE PARK’_________________________________________67D PETITIONS – CALLING ON COUNCIL TO DEVELOP AND IMPLEMENT A REHABILITATION AND FLOOD

MITIGATION PLAN FOR OXLEY CREEK_________________________________________________68E PETITION – REQUESTING THAT COUNCIL DIVIDE THE EXISTING DOG OFF-LEASH AREA AT

BOONDALL PARK, BOONDALL, INTO TWO SEPARATE PARTS_______________________________70FIELD SERVICES COMMITTEE_____________________________________________________________71

A COMMITTEE PRESENTATION – NATIONAL RECYCLING WEEK 2013__________________________72B PETITION – REQUESTING THE CONSTRUCTION OF A CONCRETE KERB AND CHANNELING TO

IMPROVE THE DRAINAGE OF LANDSDOWNE STREET COORPAROO_________________________73BRISBANE LIFESTYLE COMMITTEE_________________________________________________________75

A COMMITTEE PRESENTATION – MUSEUM OF BRISBANE__________________________________77FINANCE, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE_______________________78

A COMMITTEE PRESENTATION – BRISBANE MARKETING CONVENTION BUREAU UPDATE_________80B BUSHLAND PRESERVATION LEVY REPORT FOR THE PERIOD ENDED SEPTEMBER 2013__________80

CONSIDERATION OF NOTIFIED MOTION – Cease bonus payments to senior executives and request details of executive positions in Council’s Annual Report:_________________________81

[4421 (Ordinary) Meeting – 12 November 2013]




AT 2PM

PRESENTATION OF PETITIONS:_____________________________________________________91

GENERAL BUSINESS:______________________________________________________________91

ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS OF WHICH DUE NOTICE HAS BEEN GIVEN:________________________96

[4421 (Ordinary) meeting – 12 November 2013]




AT 2PM

PRESENT:The Right Honourable the LORD MAYOR (Councillor Graham QUIRK) – LNPThe Chairman of Council, Councillor Margaret de WIT (Pullenvale Ward) – LNP

LNP Councillors (and Wards) ALP Councillors (and Wards)Krista ADAMS (Wishart)Matthew BOURKE (Jamboree)Amanda COOPER (Bracken Ridge)Vicki HOWARD (Central)Steven HUANG (Macgregor) Fiona KING (Marchant) Geraldine KNAPP (The Gap) Kim MARX (Karawatha)Peter MATIC (Toowong)Ian McKENZIE (Holland Park)David McLACHLAN (Hamilton)Ryan MURPHY (Doboy)Angela OWEN-TAYLOR (Parkinson) (Deputy Chairman of Council)Adrian SCHRINNER (Chandler) (Deputy Mayor)Julian SIMMONDS (Walter Taylor) Norm WYNDHAM (McDowall)Andrew WINES (Enoggera)

Milton DICK (Richlands) (The Leader of the Opposition)Helen ABRAHAMS (The Gabba) (Deputy Leader of the Opposition)Peter CUMMING (Wynnum Manly)Kim FLESSER (Northgate)Steve GRIFFITHS (Moorooka)Victoria NEWTON (Deagon) Shayne SUTTON (Morningside)Independent Councillor (and Ward)Nicole JOHNSTON (Tennyson)

OPENING OF MEETING:The Chairman, Councillor Margaret de WIT, opened the meeting with prayer, and then proceeded with the business set out in the Agenda.

MINUTES:287/2013-14

The Minutes of the 4420 meeting of Council held on 5 November 2013, copies of which had been forwarded to each councillor, were presented, taken as read and confirmed on the motion of Councillor Ryan MURPHY, seconded by Councillor Kim MARX.

Councillor DICK: Point of order, Madam Chair.

Chairman: Yes, Councillor DICK.

MOTION FOR SUSPENSION OF STANDING RULES:288/2013-14

At that juncture, Councillor Milton DICK moved, seconded by Councillor Helen ABRAHAMS, that the Standing Rules be suspended to allow the moving of the following motion

That this Council sends their condolences to the people of the Philippines as they recover from the devastating effects of Typhoon Haiyan, and our thoughts and prayers are with the families and communities affected by this tragedy.

[4421 (Ordinary) Meeting – 12 November 2013]

Councillor DICK: Thank you, Madam Chair, and I won't take the full three minutes, but I think all of us have been touched in one way or the other by looking at the terrible tragedy that has been unfolding in the Philippines. This Council has had a long and proud history relationship with the Filipino community, particular in Brisbane. Some of the leaders I have spoken to are absolutely devastated by this disaster, and I think it would be a fitting and appropriate measure for this Council, on behalf of the citizens of our city, to show our support, particularly for a country in dire need at this moment, where we are looking at 10,000 very sadly confirmed as dead, and also 600,000 people displaced, and over 1,500,000 people affected. One of the worst tragedies in our region, and I would ask the Council's support today so that we can unite as one with this motion.

The Chairman submitted the motion for the suspension of the Standing Rules to the Chamber and it was declared carried on the voices.

Chairman: Councillor DICK, do you wish to speak further?

Councillor DICK: Thank you, Madam Chair, and I thank the Council for their support.

Chairman: Sorry, Councillor DICK; we have moved urgency. You need to move the motion and a seconder.

Motion moved289/2013-14

At that juncture, Councillor Milton DICK moved, seconded by the LORD MAYOR

That this Council sends their condolences to the people of the Philippines as they recover from the devastating effects of Typhoon Haiyan, and our thoughts and prayers are with the families and communities affected by this tragedy.

Chairman: Debate, Councillor DICK.

Councillor DICK: Thank you, Madam Chair. Looking at the images, looking at the reports that are unfolding, this disaster deserves the full attention I think of just about everyone around the world. In a disaster zone which is unparalleled from our recent memories, the impacts that this disaster is going to have will affect the Philippine community in their country and also around the world for many years to come.

I note that the Commonwealth Government has indicated their support of $10 million in aid on behalf of the Australian citizens. I note the State Government is also looking at similar funding on a smaller level to support the community. This Council has had a long and proud tradition of support of the Filipino community, and I know that there will be people touched in very serious ways, not just here in our capital city but also right throughout our state and also country.

Very sadly, it has been reported there is one confirmed Australian death, and I note with 600,000 people estimated to be displaced, and over 1,500,000 people affected in some way by the typhoon, the Philippines as a nation will need worldwide support. With no clean water, electricity and very little food, the story of that typhoon is nothing but utter destruction. It has been reported that the typhoon destroyed around 70 to 80 per cent of structures in its path. We know that the rebuilding process is a long way away, but in the immediate short-term, I know that aid agencies from across the globe are uniting, and Australia is playing its part in support for those victims, and particularly for those families affected around the globe.

We know that there will be destroyed homes, schools, and even airports have been destroyed as a result of this typhoon. So the recovery effort is going to be enormous. I look forward to the Australian Government playing a critical role in helping the country get back on its feet. I am hopeful that other state governments and particularly other local councils that have long associations with the Filipino community in Australia will also play their bit as well.


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So, Madam Chair, with those few remarks, I certainly thank the Administration for their support for this motion, and I think it is the least we can do for a tragedy of enormous proportions that are going to be felt right around that region for many years to come.

Chairman: Further debate on the motion; LORD MAYOR.

LORD MAYOR: Thanks very much, Madam Chairman. I am very happy to support the motion of the Leader of the Opposition here today in regards to Typhoon Haiyan, and particularly the devastation that it has caused to the people of the Philippines. Just by way of assistance, the key thing obviously is what to do when a situation like this emerges. There is always the spontaneous reaction, I suppose, to want to do certain things, and it is important that we make sure that we do the things that are necessary.

To that extent, I have been in discussions today with the Honorary Consul-General, Alan Grummert. He is in Canberra today. He is in talks as we speak in relation to the things that need to happen to meet the most emergent need. The discussions that I have had with him indicate that the most immediate need is for rice and water. They are the critical things. Obviously there is devastation there; there is significant hunger already emerging in the Philippines. There is some violence which is starting to emerge naturally out of frustration and hunger, and people's desperation in that place.

I also today spoke with Rena Johnson who acts as the Secretariat for the Honorary Consul-General, Alan Grummert, in Brisbane, and for Queensland. She has forwarded to me today the appeal number and the appeal, of course, being conducted through National Australia Bank. That appeal will provide funds directly to Red Cross.

There will be a lot of organisations who will clearly want to be a part of the response effort. I suspect service clubs, Red Cross, clearly will be the beneficiary of funds that will be raised that will go to Red Cross for distribution and application, but clubs like Lions and Rotary and others will no doubt be wanting to play a part. It is important that it be done in a coordinated way that gets to the people in need on the ground. Hence, the dialogue that I am having with Mr Grummert will certainly continue.

I hope that before the Council meeting concludes we will have more information from the meetings in Canberra today to give us a clearer indication to those immediate needs. Medical and building will obviously be important aspects down the track. In terms of the people of Brisbane, obviously not everyone will be in a position to contribute. I would certainly encourage everyone to contribute in whatever way they can. We have today set up a condolence book also at the front of City Hall for people to take an opportunity to express their support, their sympathy, their encouragement to the people of the Philippines in this, their hour of need.

Again I thank the Leader of the Opposition for the urgency resolution. We certainly join with him and the Opposition today as an Administration clearly in the plight of the people of the Philippines. We have a very big expat Filipino community here in Brisbane, with multiple community committees and organisations as part of their community infrastructure, and again, with them, we will continue to work to provide what assistance we can.

Chairman: Further debate on the motion; Councillor JOHNSTON.

Councillor JOHNSTON: Yes, I too would like to add my support to the motion moved by the Leader of the Opposition, Councillor DICK, offering our city's support, condolences and prayers to the people of the Philippines who have been affected by this horrific typhoon.

I have had the privilege of getting to know some of the Filipino community quite well as there is a large group that are based in southern suburbs of Brisbane, including the immediate past President of the Filipino Community's Council and the Filipino Teachers' Association who is one of my residents. I spoke to her yesterday about the situation and for those people who have


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families and they don’t know where they are, it's a very distressing time for them.

The Filipino people that I know are very compassionate, religious, deeply faithful people, and their family is by far and away the most important thing to them. I certainly hope that all near neighbours and those countries with the large balance sheets can open up their books and their resources to provide funding and in-kind support, on the ground support, to help this country deal with the immediate humanitarian crisis, and also to help rebuild over the longer term.

I know the Filipino community are used to terrible weather, and terrible natural disasters; unfortunately their islands are plagued with these sorts of terrible problems. I really just want to make sure that we as a city make a contribution, and I would hope that the LORD MAYOR is in a position very shortly to announce what that contribution might be. I note that the Premier announced $1 million yesterday, and I thank the State Government for that contribution. I note that the Federal Government announced $10 million yesterday.

I certainly hope that they will look at sending the Army and the Navy, at least offering that support. We know that our Armed Services can and do provide absolutely brilliant humanitarian support and rebuilding support, so I certainly hope those discussions continue, and if we can be of assistance with boots on the ground in the Philippines, that we do offer that support.

I certainly hope that the families of those people who are here in Brisbane wondering what's happened to their loved ones can get some clarity very soon, and I hope that all people in Brisbane can support any number of the charities out there that have set up fundraising accounts for assistance to the Filipino community in this terrible time. I think this is a very good motion, and I am very pleased to support it.

Chairman: Further debate on the motion; Councillor DICK?

Councillor DICK: No.

The Chairman submitted the motion to the Chamber and it was declared carried on the voices.

QUESTION TIME:Chairman: Are there any questions of the LORD MAYOR or a Chairman of any of the

Standing Committees? Councillor MARX.

Question 1Councillor MARX: Thank you, Madam Chairman. LORD MAYOR, flood resilience, improved

accessibility and efficiency are key factors in an efficient river-based transport network. Can you please detail for this Chamber what we are doing to ensure that our terminal and river infrastructure is better designed, equipped and constructed for the future benefit of our residents?

LORD MAYOR: Thanks very much, Madam Chairman, and thank you Councillor MARX for the question. Of course, following the January 2011 floods, this Council undertook the task of creating temporary terminals. We spent a sum of money around that immediate recovery to get those terminals back and operating again as quickly as possible, as part of the public transport network.

It is what it is; it was a temporary measure. We are now about the task of creating a permanent set of structures reflecting the needs of this city into the future. So it is that eight ferry terminals will be—well, seven re-builds and a new one there at Park Road, Milton, which will have a large, robust pier arrangement, and it will provide for the needs of this city into the future.

There was a design group, Cox Rayner, Derlot and Aurecon, that combined to create a template for seven terminals—those being at the University of Queensland, St Lucia; The Regatta; North Quay; Maritime Museum; QUT Gardens Point; Holman Street; as well as Sydney Street. Those terminals will provide significant flood immunity for our city.


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If you are looking at it, the way the terminals were previously designed, it was at a one in 100-year resilience. What we have now done is to build in a one in 500-year resilience to these terminals. Essentially the concept designs for all terminals, with the exclusion of the Maritime Museum, includes three key components: the first of those is a flood resilient dual-berthing platform; the second is a robust pier with the capacity to deflect heavy objects in floodwaters; the third is a state-of-the-art gangway that detaches from the waiting area in the event of a flood. Of course, that avoids it being struck by debris.

The Maritime Museum terminal is a smaller terminal that doesn't require a pier. Instead it will have radial arms which will rise with the river, preventing the platform or the pontoon from submerging.

What we are proposing to do also is to have these terminals constructed over the next two years. So Park Road, Milton, will be constructed next year, but all of the terminals will be in 2014 and 2015. Originally the price tag was some $90 million. We have reduced that with some designing changes down to $70 million. Again I want to acknowledge Federal and State Governments for the contribution through the National Disaster Relief and Recovery arrangements.

In terms of these designs, they will be going out to public consultation, and residents across the city are invited to view the designs and speak with Council officers at these times and locations: firstly, on Tuesday 19 November, we will be having a session at the Maritime Museum from 7.30am to 9.30am; at Sydney Street that same day from 4pm to 6pm. We will be going then on Wednesday 20 November, between 8am and 10am at the Queensland University of Technology; and between 4pm and 6pm at The Regatta.

On Thursday 21 November, it will be 8am to 10am at the University of Queensland followed by 4pm to 6pm at North Quay; Friday 22 November, 7.30am to 9.30am at Holman Street, and 4pm to 6pm at Smitty Park, Park Road, Milton. Then on Saturday 23 November, from 11am to 2pm at Smitty Park again, Park Road, Milton. That gives a range of opportunities and locations for people to view the various terminals and the various design components of those terminals.

Again, I think the critical thing is that we will have a design which will be a feature on the waterways of Brisbane. It will provide, importantly, that key flood resilience, and Madam Chairman, it provides a way forward after that disastrous January 2011 flood event.

Chairman: Thank you, LORD MAYOR. Further questions; Councillor DICK.

Question 2Councillor DICK: Thank you, Madam Chair; my question is to the LORD MAYOR. You spent

$18.4 million of ratepayers' money on Brisbane Marketing last year, an increase of 76 per cent in just one year. The Brisbane Marketing Annual Report also revealed a massive increase in executive and employee salaries by 33 per cent last year. LORD MAYOR, will you today commit to stop draining money away from bread and butter Council services like cutting public transport, storm water drainage and tree maintenance, instead of wasting millions of dollars on marketing?

LORD MAYOR: Madam Chairman, the one thing that I am committed to, and have never shied away from, since I became LORD MAYOR of this city is economic development and job growth. I will not apologise in any way for the amount of money that is being spent through what I refer to as my agents for action when it comes to economic development and growth in this city.

This is where this Administration and the Opposition differ. We are committed to the growth of the identity of this city. We are committed to making sure that we further the relationships that we have, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region. We are committed to growing the size of the economic cake of this city.

This Administration has a plan to grow the Brisbane economy to $217 billion by 2031. That will be because, not of itself, but of the job growth that it will create


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over that period of time. We are about seeking that unique window of opportunity to gain new opportunities for this city. It is a fact of life, through state governments since time immemorial in Queensland that we have, as a capital city, been in a cluster of other areas and locations for marketing purposes.

I just say this - and I have said this before in this place - when you go overseas, people know the name Sydney, Australia; they know Melbourne to a lesser extent, and Brisbane struggles. There is a very good reason for that. I guess in New South Wales, Sydney has been the focal point of promotion in terms of tourism. Melbourne has been the focal point in Victoria. It is a feature of our region, regardless of who was in State Government at any given time over history that Brisbane is in the mix with a whole lot of other places, like Cairns, the Barrier Reef and the Gold Coast.

We need, as a city, to be able to stand up and to make sure that we can get our growth of the cake. That is why I am committed through Brisbane Marketing to make sure that we get on and do what we need to do to create those growth opportunities. Whether we are talking about 'Choose Brisbane' campaigns, whether we are talking about 'Invest in Brisbane', whether we are talking about 'Study Brisbane', these things are all designed to create growth opportunities in our city.

When I announced the Asia-Pacific Screen Awards, and Brisbane being the permanent home of that event, it is about two things: development of relationships in the Asia-Pacific region; and it is about through those relationships, the development of more economic prosperity for this city and its people into the future. It is a vision for not only achieving some growth now but also to create long-term economic outcomes for Brisbane.

That is what I am on about. The Opposition Leader can sit there and talk about wasting money; I don’t think the Labor Party's track record of economic growth and development prosperity in this country, in this state, or in this Council, is very good. So the question comes from a history of failure by the Labor Party in terms of economic prosperity in this country. When you look back on history, it has been Liberal and Liberal National parties over the history of this country and this state that have created—

Councillors interjecting.

Chairman: Order!

LORD MAYOR: —the economic prosperity. Councillor DICK might want to answer, but when he was the State Director of the Labor Party, why did the State Government waste the opportunities of the last resources boom? Why did we not see some terrific outcomes?


Chairman: Order!

LORD MAYOR: The difference between this Administration and the Opposition is that we are about growing the pie, growing the size of the economic cake in our city. It is not about the class warfare that the Labor Party continually want to engage with. Madam Chairman, we are doing this for the right reasons, for the long-term interests of the people of this city, and I will continue to make sure that that vision, that pursuit of the unique window of opportunity is pursued.

Chairman: Further questions; Councillor HOWARD.

Question 3Councillor HOWARD: Thank you, Madam Chairman; my question is to the Chairman of the

Neighbourhood Planning and Development Assessment Committee, Councillor COOPER. This Administration, in contrast to those opposite, supports development, investment and creation of jobs in our city. Would you please outline to the Chamber the opportunities that have been created by this Administration to support the construction industry and create significant economic development across Brisbane?


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Councillor COOPER: Thank you very much, Madam Chair, and I thank Councillor HOWARD for the question. Certainly I think it is a very opportune chance to point out the differences between the LORD MAYOR and this Administration and those opposite. There are a number of ways, and I could spend many, many hours talking about the many initiatives that have been put in place by this Administration to try and encourage investment in our city.

For example, we have got a number of activities through Neighbourhood Planning and Development Assessment to help facilitate and attract investment in Brisbane. As everyone in this Chamber is well aware, we are currently reviewing the draft new City Plan. This document very clearly sets out where in the city we want growth to occur. It sends a very strong message, a very clear message, to potential investors as to what the LORD MAYOR and this Administration's vision is about development in this city.

Indeed, every development we assess and approve indicates our support for investment and support for jobs in this city.

In marked contrast, we look at the Australian Labor Party. In fact, they don't share our vision in any way, shape or form. In fact, they fail to have any vision whatsoever. You only have to look over their record of the last 12 to 14 months to see their lack of vision, their lack of support for investment and jobs in this city. September of last year - and let's look at the fact, rather than the nonsense that is spouted from the lips of those opposite. Let's look at the facts of the matter. September of last year, the giggles of Councillor DICK continue, but was it the Australian Labor Party who did not support a $450 million hotel and unit investment in our city to see the potential creation of 850 jobs in our city —

Councillor interjecting.

Chairman: Councillor DICK!

Councillor COOPER: —850 potential jobs in our city; 350 of those being construction jobs that would be created in stage 1 alone of that application.

In November of last year, the Australian Labor Party failed to support a multi-million dollar hotel, unit and retail investment in our city, and the hundreds of jobs that that would create. In December - so it is a calendar of horror from the Australian Labor Party - the Australian Labor Party failed to support an application for a waste transfer station, a multi-million dollar company listed on the stock exchange, who employ hundreds of people in our city as well as overseas, and would have dedicated over 20 hectares of land to Council - didn't support it.

As I recall, this was actually an application in Councillor DICK's own ward, and the advice was that he didn't actually say anything when the Council officers asked for his opinion. So he didn't really seem to have a view one way or the other - very disappointing. Even at a local level, they don't support investment and jobs in Brisbane.

In May of this year—the record continues—the Australian Labor Party failed to support not only the largest commercial office building in our state—


Chairman: Order!

Councillor COOPER: —and one of the largest in our country, but they said no to 5000 jobs. They said no to $600 million of investment in our city, and they said no to—

Chairman: Councillor FLESSER!

Councillor COOPER: —environmentally sustainable designs.

June of this year, yet again they failed to support a multi-million dollar residential and retail investment in our city, and the hundreds of construction jobs it would create. October of this year, the Labor Party tell investors again they don't support an $80 million investment in our city, 150 construction jobs that would be created, and 300 full time jobs that would be created off site and a four and five-star potential hotel for our city.


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Sadly this is nothing new from the Australian Labor Party, and we say, on this side of the Chamber, we want people to come and invest in Brisbane. We want to deliver thousands of jobs. Their record alone shows rejection of over $1 billion worth of investment in our city —


Chairman: Order!

Councillor COOPER: — $1 billion. What a disgrace, Madam Chair.

So it is disappointing to see that the Australian Labor Party have no vision. All they are doing is playing games, investigating their own political failings, it seems, and instead of representing their community, instead of being advocates, being leaders for the people of Brisbane, they have failed and continue to do so every single month of the year. Their record speaks for itself. Thank you.

Chairman: Thank you, Councillor COOPER. Further questions; Councillor DICK.

Question 4Councillor DICK: Thank you, Madam Chair. Talking about job growth, LORD MAYOR, your

Annual Report for Brisbane Marketing shows wages have increased to $8.6 million for 87 staff at Brisbane Marketing.


Councillor DICK: Yes, talk about job growth, all right. How on earth can you justify this obscene amount of money on marketing executives' salaries while at the same time residents in Council's Brisbane East region have to wait 12 months for permanent repairs to fix dangerous footpaths?


Chairman: Order! Councillor JOHNSTON!

LORD MAYOR: Madam Chairman, I thank Councillor DICK for the question. I wouldn't mind the question so much, but his own Deputy was only in the last few months asking Brisbane Marketing to do even more than what we have right now.


Chairman: Order!

LORD MAYOR: You see, Madam Chairman, this is the problem with the Labor Party.

Chairman: Order!

LORD MAYOR: They rarely discuss matters between themselves. The Opposition Leader off busy playing the role in Canberra, having to fix the problems of the Labor Party, examine the results of the failure at the federal election, and just unfortunately —


Chairman: Order!

LORD MAYOR: — in the last week hasn’t had time to catch up with his Deputy who has been out there calling for Brisbane Marketing to expand their operations, look for —


Chairman: Order!

LORD MAYOR: — look at a bit more expenditure down in her patch in West End —

Chairman: Just a moment, LORD MAYOR. Just a moment, please. There is too much noise. I'm finding it hard hearing what the LORD MAYOR is saying.


Chairman: There'll be warnings if you don't stop interjecting. LORD MAYOR.

LORD MAYOR: So, Madam Chairman, I do have some issue with Councillor DICK not talking to his Deputy. But look, that said, can I just remind people in the Chamber what Brisbane Marketing was when Labor were in power. We had the ferret, and


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inside we had the head ferret who was the Lord Mayor at the time in Tim Quinn. I don't think he invented the ferret; the ferret actually was invented during Councillor Soorley's time, but during Councillor Quinn's time, the ferret continued, and it was all about ferreting around Brisbane.

This was the great marketing that occurred at the time. We were apparently all supposed to ferret around and I'm not sure what we were supposed to do while we were ferreting, but we were doing quite a lot of ferreting, apparently.


LORD MAYOR: Perhaps we were making more ferrets out in the suburbs. But look this was the Labor Party's Brisbane Marketing. Fortunately we have moved on. We have matured a bit. We're no longer ferreting around. We are these days about a very serious campaign, and I have outlined some of the details of that in answering the first question.

The same answer that I gave to the first question, I give to this question. We have increased the operations of Brisbane Marketing quite deliberately, quite deliberately, because it is about getting out and getting some runs on the board. We are seeing many of those runs on the board being achieved.

The reality is that we have seen increased growth in a whole range of areas over the last few years. We have seen increased activity around hotel development. We have seen increased investment from offshore around that. For example, the Shayher Group being an example of that in terms of the District and Supreme Court building.

We are seeing through the Choose Brisbane campaign a much greater recognition of this city.


LORD MAYOR: We are seeing — oh, I get this continued blurble, blurble, blurble - Madam Chairman, they're still ferreting, that's the problem. They haven't stopped the ferreting. But I just say this: we have a very clear program, whether we are talking about doing business in Asia, whether we are talking about Study Brisbane and the attraction of international students to our city—


Chairman: Councillor FLESSER!

LORD MAYOR: Madam Chairman, I don't know why I bother to answer these questions sometimes, because they're rarely interested in listening. I listen intently to the question. But if you have a look at the sort of indicators that we are seeing - for example, over the last year alone, we had a budget expectation - and I invite Councillors to go and have a look in the budget document - $418 million of increased economic activity was what our expected result was from Brisbane Marketing.

We have verified actual economic benefit to this city over the last financial year, 2012-13, of $698 million. That is broken down through $26 million in the Asia project; it is broken down to include $34 million in Study Brisbane. It is including major events, which I have spoken about before in this Chamber. They don't just happen.

Councillor FLESSER: Point of order, Madam Chair.

Chairman: Point of order against you, LORD MAYOR. Yes, Councillor FLESSER.

Councillor FLESSER: Madam Chairman, I distinctly recall the question; it was about salaries and not being able to fix footpaths in the East region. The LORD MAYOR is not answering the question.

Chairman: LORD MAYOR.

LORD MAYOR: Madam Chairman, it was about salaries, and I am explaining why it is —

Chairman: And your time has expired; sorry, LORD MAYOR. Further questions; Councillor KING.


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Question 5Councillor KING: Thank you, Madam Chair; my question is to the Chairman of Parks and

Sustainability Committee, Councillor BOURKE. I understand that the Salvinia weed, Salvinia Molesta, is regarded as one of the most invasive aquatic weeds in Australia, and has considerable environmental and economic impacts as it floats on still or slow-moving water, grows rapidly to cover the surface like a thick mat, and blocks out submerged plant life. I also understand that this weed limits the transfer of oxygen making water unsuitable for fish and other animals. What solutions has Council found to address this issue for Brisbane residents?

Councillor BOURKE: Thanks very much, Madam Chairman, and I thank Councillor KING in particular for this question. As we all know in this place, invasive plant and animal species pose a significant risk to our natural area and waterways across the city. Brisbane is the most bio-diverse capital city in Australia. It is something that we hold uniquely above all other capital cities in Australia, and it is something that we, as an Administration, want to protect, something that we want to continue to enhance, and something that we continue as an Administration to invest in.

That is why, in this year's budget, there is some $700,000 alone invested in the implementation of Brisbane's Invasive Species Management Plan. It involves some key actions: improving community awareness through education activities and the supply of information; working with private property owners and other land managers in the city - so that is other government entities, other large landholders like the University of Queensland and other educational institutions across the city, to help make sure that they are managing their natural estates in the same way that we are as a Council.

We also undertake pest surveys in our key conservation areas across the city. So, Toohey 's Forest, White's Hill Reserve, Karawatha up in your part of the world, madam Chairman, through a quite large number of green spaces that we have up there. We also develop and maintain a consistent data capture system to help guide the investment of the removal of invasive species and invasive weeds.

That brings us to the investment that we make in wiping out these water weeds across the city. It is not just Salvinia; it is actually Salvinia, a water lettuce, and water hyacinth that pose the greatest threat. We do this in a very targeted way. We actually go to war. We deploy frontline troops. Each year we are there fighting in a very full-on way, the threat that is posed to our waterways across the city.

DEPUTY MAYOR: A war on weeds.

Councillor BOURKE: It is a war on weeds, it is, indeed, DEPUTY MAYOR, and we do deploy some 500,000 weevils. Some 500,000 weevils are deployed each year into our waterways to help remove these water weeds. These are not your common household weevils; these aren't the sort of weevils that you will find munching on your old cereal in your cupboard, Madam Chairman, but these are a targeted, specially bred, specially selected group of weevils that are aimed at removing water weeds from our waterways.

There is a flow-on effect here. The manual removal of these pest plants from our waterways costs thousands upon thousands of dollars each year. The threat for these pest plants to spread into other water bodies, into dams on private land, into our rivers and into our creek and into the bay is quite real. So the investment that we make as a Council goes a long way to helping to reduce that threat across the city.

So good is our program in this Council when it comes to managing waterway weeds, and when it comes to our weevil control, that we are now partnering with other councils in the region to help supply them with weevils. So Gold Coast, Moreton Bay, Sunshine Coast, Redlands City Council and even SEQ Water are working with us to help fight the good fight to protect our waterways.

All Councillors in this place would have residents that enjoy the recreational values of our waterways, be they rivers, creeks, or some of our natural water bodies like Enoggera Reservoir and Lake Manchester. We don't want those


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natural assets spoilt. We don't want those natural assets ruined for future generations because we did not act when we had the chance. That is why we as an Administration continue to invest more and more into this particular field.

So the $700,000 that we spend in our Invasive Animal Management Scheme, the $2 million plus that is in Wipe Out Weeds, and then the important work that we do as part of our weevil breeding program and water weed eradication program continue to see results on the ground protecting and enhancing the biodiversity of our city, protecting and preserving what makes this city unique from so many other cities around Australia, and making it a great place to live and a great place to go out and enjoy the environment.

Chairman: Further questions; Councillor DICK.

Question 6Councillor DICK: Thank you, Madam Chair; my question is to the LORD MAYOR. One of your

hand-picked and well-paid Directors of Brisbane Marketing pocketed an extra $5123 in consultancy fees paid last year for reviewing Brisbane Marketing strategies. Council paid over a quarter of a million dollars in Brisbane Marketing Directors' fees last year. Do you approve of this double-dipping for extra cash for your Directors, and if not, what have you done on behalf of the ratepayers to stop it?

LORD MAYOR: Madam Chairman, in relation to that question, can I say that the amount of money that Councillor DICK refers to was a specific task that was provided, which was external to the direct responsibilities of a Director on the Board of Brisbane Marketing. Again, I want to make clear that they are performing. They are delivering as a group. I think it is unfortunate that the Leader of the Opposition today has cast a slur on the Directors of Brisbane Marketing. I just want to reiterate: some of the —


Chairman: Order!

LORD MAYOR: — performance outcomes - we set them certain targets last year, and I want to reiterate the outcomes to those.

In terms of investment attraction, we set them a target of $140 million. They have achieved $430 million investment attraction directly through the engagement of Brisbane Marketing. What we have seen in the area of the conventions strategy, we have seen an outcome of $53 million this year. When it comes to that of the Asia project, as I mentioned earlier, $26 million, with $34 million for Study Brisbane. Major Events - $76 million - more than 50 per cent in excess of the target that we had set them. We know this year they are already in the space of over $50 million in the first four months of operation. So they are going to again have a bumper year —


LORD MAYOR: — and that maybe a laugh for the Labor Party, it is about real jobs for the workers of this city. As those conventions come to this city, as they fill hotel spaces —


Chairman: Order! Councillor CUMMING!

LORD MAYOR: They don't care about jobs; that is why they laugh. They are not in the jobs space; they never have been. It is not a passion of theirs, economic development and job growth.


Chairman: Order!

LORD MAYOR: It is about keeping people down. That is why they talk about class warfare every time they come into this place. I thought that might capture their interest. Madam Chairman, that is their track record.

Councillor JOHNSTON: Point of order, Madam Chairman.


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LORD MAYOR: I will not be distracted —

Chairman: Just a moment, LORD MAYOR; point of order against you. Yes, Councillor JOHNSTON.

Councillor JOHNSTON: Madam Chairman, the LORD MAYOR is not being relevant to the question asked, which was about what he would do to stop the double-dipping by directors. I appreciate the LORD MAYOR is outlining the achievements of the board, but that was not the question. The question was whether or not he was going to take action to stop the directors claiming both salary and consultancy fees.

Chairman: Thank you; LORD MAYOR.

LORD MAYOR: Madam Chairman, again I thank the Councillor for reminding me of the basis of the question. It comes from a wrong premise. To suggest that it is double-dipping is completely wrong—completely wrong. I had made it clear right at the very start of my answer that they were responsibilities which were above and beyond that of the requirement of a Director. So, again, the female Director concerned, who was given these extra responsibilities, it was for a—


LORD MAYOR: When they have finished; they either want to listen to the answer or they want to continue to interject. It is up to you. So Madam Chairman —


LORD MAYOR: Oh, they're not going to listen.

Chairman: Thank you, LORD MAYOR. Further questions; Councillor WINES.

Question 7Councillor WINES: Thank you, Madam Chairman; my question is to the Chairman of the Brisbane

Lifestyle Committee —


Chairman: Just a moment, Councillor WINES. Councillor DICK, I would ask you to withdraw that, please.

Councillor DICK: I'll withdraw that the LORD MAYOR is a chicken and say that he is gutless for not answering the question.

Chairman: Thank you, Councillor DICK. Councillor WINES, thank you.

Councillor WINES: My question is to the Chairman of the Brisbane Lifestyle Committee, Councillor ADAMS. The Writers in Residence program, which was launched last year, has been a terrific success and has encouraged both reading and writing across our city as well as ensuring libraries in Brisbane remain at the cutting edge of innovation. Can you please provide further details about this outstanding initiative?

Councillor ADAMS: Thank you, Madam Chairman, and I thank Councillor WINES for the question. We had a very informative presentation at this morning's committee, so I look forward to speaking about it now and again next week, about our fantastic program, Writers in Residence, that's been rolling out for the last nearly 18 months now in our libraries. The idea was to bring high profile authors into Brisbane, host their events, workshops, and programs to encourage people to read and write. It's not just about reading, but writing as well.

We have had authors that have had small functions in our smaller Brisbane libraries to ones that are so popular we have to bring them into City Hall because we can't fit them in any of our library spaces. An example of one of our recently very successful events was Mark Donaldson VC (Victoria Cross), who was awarded the VC in 2009. He came on Thursday night. We had over 320 residents come along to listen to his story—an amazing man who was the first man since Keith Payne in 1969 to be awarded the Victoria Cross, recognised for not only his extraordinary courage but also his background and his family life of where he came from to get to this point.


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He was awarded Young Australian of the Year in 2010, and his recently released biography, The Crossroad, obviously is a best seller now. We had plenty of people there to hear about it on Thursday night. As I said, over 320 people, and a lot of those were Army personnel, cadets and veterans, not usual library users, but it's great to see people accessing our programs we have in Brisbane City Council. We had a group of Vietnam Veterans who bought numerous copies of Mark's book and got them all signed.

I have to say, quietly, thank you very much to Mark; he stayed till 10 o'clock on Thursday night signing books and sharing stories with our veterans. This is a partnership for Council with Dymocks and Pan McMillan, their publishers, that we have seen some fantastic outcomes from our partnerships with Writers Festival, the Poetry Festival, and the Writer's Centre. Last year we had 44 events with 29 authors and over 3,600 attendees. This year, in just not quite six months yet, we have had 36 authors, 49 events and over 3,300 attendees, so we have doubled already what we were doing last year in the first six months of this year, which is fantastic to see.

Such success that we've had, that we now have a Reader in Residence, David Stavanger, who performs under the name of GhostBoy, and he is bringing the love of poetry back into our libraries. He is in residence at Brisbane Square Library every Thursday, and he interacts with those members of the public who do love our libraries and are sometimes lined up waiting to get into the library on a Thursday morning, and he recites his poetry and reads other poetry and gets people all involved. So it's fantastic to hear spontaneous events over the PA system, for example, the Up Jump, the Devil on Halloween, which 60 people actually attended that David put on as GhostBoy as well.

So all of these programs have been a fantastic opportunity not only as I said to promote our libraries, but we are now moving into the actual reading and writing, and David Stavanger himself, a real increase in our poetry collection to our customers as well.

We have got a couple of workshops that you can attend. We have got an hour of poetry slam workshop coming up on Saturday which is going to be presented, and the slam poetry heat where contestants get to actually compete. If they get in a place, they can go to the Woodford Folk Festival in January. So all of this being funded through the Writers in Residence program that was the brilliant idea of LORD MAYOR Graham QUIRK 18 months ago.

I have to say we've got some fantastic authors coming. Just shortly, at Sunnybank Hills, Councillor MARX is very excited to see Francis Whiting coming out there to launch her new book and speak about that. It should be very interesting. A few laughs, I imagine. Next Friday night - not as in this Friday but the Friday after - we've got Dr Karl coming out. He's got a new book as well that he's talking about. Obviously, it is the season to buy books for Christmas, so they're happy to come and speak to us in our libraries as well, and one of the biggest ones on the calendar this year, Matthew Reilly - and if you know Matthew Reilly, he's a huge best-seller. Matthew Reilly is coming Saturday week to City Hall as well. So we're going to have a fantastic turnout. That is actually in the auditorium, it's such a large event that we're having. So that is going to be a fantastic night of people being able to share the love of their books and a particular author's writing as we move forward.

Madam Chair, I am sure you would agree that the libraries are certainly innovative and thinking of new ways of introducing people to reading and writing. We've got a whole varied range of programs, and I think the beauty of the Writers in Residence is that we've got a range of authors that are also appealing to everyone. Different genres - fiction and non-fiction, and we are seeing a much broader base of the community coming in and using our beautiful community hubs. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Chairman: Councillor DICK


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Question 8Councillor DICK: Thank you, Madam Chair; my question is to the LORD MAYOR. In your

Annual Brisbane Marketing Report, it is revealed that ratepayers are paying $1.3 million to JC Decaux to run the CityCycle scheme. Given Council has fully funded CityCycle to the tune of $14 million, and approved and have funded CityCycle billboards throughout the city, why on earth do ratepayers have to cough up an additional $1.3 million to advertise on our own assets?

LORD MAYOR: Madam Chairman, this is why you cannot rely on the Leader of the Opposition. He is half doing his job as Opposition Leader, because he is spending his time around this country reviewing the Labor Party's election performance. If he understood, if he had read that document properly, this is not a payment that is being made to JC Decaux. This is an amount of money that we are getting free of charge for advertising the City of Brisbane across this globe. This is money in, not money out.


LORD MAYOR: This is what I have been talking about, and this is the trouble - the Opposition continually are sniping while I am giving answers in this place instead of opening their ears and listening to what I am saying. I have said here before that we have been in places like Paris, London, Madrid, Shanghai, Hong Kong —


Chairman: Councillor DICK!

LORD MAYOR: —and he is still interjecting instead of listening. This is his problem. Councillor Quinn, the former Lord Mayor of this place, once had a saying: two ears, one mouth, and they ought to be used in that proportion. That would be good advice to Councillor DICK during Question Time.

The amount of money, $1.3 million, is of no cost to the ratepayers of this city. It is an amount of money that we are getting towards billboard advertising of Brisbane as Australia's new world city in different places around the globe —


LORD MAYOR: — and he is still interjecting. So, Madam Chairman, he ought to be interjecting because he is clearly embarrassed. This question is wrong. It's wrong, wrong, wrong - and it's all because he is half doing his homework. It's the old story, a little information is dangerous. So, Madam Chairman, that is the answer to the question: zero cost from the ratepayers; a contribution which is getting that name ID: “Brisbane, Australia's new world city”, out to people so that they will find out our name and we hope that they will visit us and, indeed, invest with us to create the economic development prosperity and jobs for our future.

Chairman: Further questions; Councillor WYNDHAM.

Question 9Councillor WYNDHAM: Thank you, Madam Chair; my question is to Councillor McLACHLAN. I

understand the Field Services Group under your management has been improving waste services in this city, especially in regard to recycling of waste. Can you please detail recent awards and the prospective awards within your portfolio?

Councillor McLACHLAN: Thank you, Madam Chairman, and I thank Councillor WYNDHAM for the question. Obviously we are not in the business of waste management, resource recovery and litter control for the purpose of winning awards, but it is good to see the hard work of our staff and contractors, and that hard work of our staff and contractors based on the policy directive that we've provided to them, getting recognised for great outcomes.

I have said in this place previously that the business of waste management, resource recovery and litter prevention are like races that you never win. But awards that are picked up during the race are recognition that we are on the right path. The most recent awards were bestowed by the Keep Queensland Beautiful organisation. Madam Chairman, I think you were the recipient of these awards, if I understand correctly, at the Local Government Association of Queensland


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(LGAQ) conference, including the most prestigious of those awards, The Most Sustainable City Award - the 2013 winner for sustainable cities bestowed on us by the Keep Queensland Beautiful organisation. As a consequence of that, we are in the running for the national Keep Australia Beautiful titles to be judged in the City of Cockburn in Western Australia next week. The City of Cockburn won that award last year.

The state awards were presented at the LGAQ conference in Cairns, and apart from the overall winner for Most Sustainable City, the three category awards were: Energy Innovation, Community Action and Partnerships, and Litter Prevention - four great awards that are a consequence of the great work that our team are putting in place.

The competition for the national title of Most Sustainable City will be a pretty stiff competition, so our fingers are crossed. Brisbane will be represented at that national award presentation by Councillor WYNDHAM as the Deputy Chair of Field Services and Aaron Lee from City Waste Services. The National Chief Executive of Keep Australia Beautiful, Peter McLean, had this to say recently about the chances of Brisbane taking out the national award for Most Sustainable City, 'Brisbane City Council's efforts are an outstanding example of how cities around the nation are implementing practical projects that help local communities achieve an efficient and sustainable future. This includes their litter prevention performance, as directed and set out within the Litter Prevention Strategy and Action Plan 2009.'

This is still quoting Mr McLean, 'Since the commencement of this strategy and action plan, there has been more than a 50 per cent reduction in on-ground litter around the CBD and Fortitude Valley in 2012-13. Littering behaviour surveys conducted in 2012 and 2013 indicate that almost 90 per cent of people in Brisbane demonstrate positive disposal behaviour ' - end quote from Peter McLean, the National Chief Executive Officer of Keep Australia Beautiful.

If the national title for Most Sustainable City 2013 were to go to another city, I am sure it will be well deserved, but other award categories that Brisbane could pick up include litter prevention, community action and partnerships, and resource recovery and waste management. Awards like this don't come out of thin air. We do support the principles outlined by the Keep Australia Beautiful organisation. Awards are the third arm of the Keep Australia Beautiful objectives, to strive for sustainable and litter-free environment through research and communication programs. KAB is Australia's peak national body on litter prevention, with over four decades' experience in helping Australians to care for the environment.

We will be keen to show them, when the judges are here for next year's awards, the new Willawong Resource Recovery Centre, which is a new state-of-the-art recycling centre, where residents will be able to drop off a load of fully recyclable or reusable items for free. You will recall, Madam Chairman, that the Willawong Resource Recovery Centre is the first of four that will be located at our transfer stations by 2016, with the objective of increasing both awareness of recycling and the amount of materials that are being recycled. These initiatives, Madam Chair, stand in stark contrast to what we know the Labor proposals will be at the next election, which is to reduce the bin pickups in this city from 52 per year per household to 26 per year and that would be, Madam Chair, an absolute disgrace.

Chairman: That ends Question Time.

Councillor SIMMONDS: Point of order, Madam Chairman.

Chairman: Yes Councillor SIMMONDS.


At that juncture, Councillor Julian SIMMONDS moved, seconded by Councillor Ryan MURPHY, that the Standing Rules be suspended to allow the moving of the following motion


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That this Chamber confirms its commitment to economic development and sends a strong message to Canberra that we support the findings of the Deloitte Access Economic Analysis that found that Kevin Rudd's proposed airport curfew would cause a loss of $13.6 billion in economic growth and 7000 jobs. This chamber supports the 24 hour operation of Brisbane Airport along with the new parallel runway as a key driver in the long-term growth of Brisbane's economy.


Councillor SIMMONDS: Will I read the motion, Madam Chair?

Chairman: Well I don't need your assistance Councillor SUTTON. Councillor SIMMONDS you have three minutes to establish urgency. You need to advise what the motion is about and why it's urgent.

Councillor SIMMONDS: Happy to, Madam Chairman. The motion that I intend to put to the Chamber relates to this Chamber rejecting any proposal for a curfew at the Brisbane Airport. In so doing so support the continued 24 hours of the operations of the airport as it currently exists. I will be brief in terms of urgency. It is obviously urgent that we debate this now because this is a matter of public discussion as we speak. We saw a proposal put forward just on Sunday, two days ago, for the member for Griffith for a curfew. We have since seen debate around the economic impact that that would have on our city, a very detrimental economic impact on our city. It's been a subject —


Chairman: Point of order against you Councillor SIMMONDS. Yes Councillor JOHNSTON?

Councillor JOHNSTON: Madam Chairman, he has to establish urgency, not tell us about economic development and funding. So I'd ask you that you bring him back to the urgency requirement under the new rules.

Chairman: I don't uphold your point of order Councillor JOHNSTON. Councillor SIMMONDS has three minutes to establish urgency and my understanding is that that is what he's doing.

Councillor SIMMONDS: Madam Chairman, it's urgent because it's in debate at the moment. We saw the proposal put up on Sunday and we've since seen articles and commentary on it in numerous media organisations. It's been the subject of some significant talkback. It is imperative, an urgent imperative that this Council enter that debate. I hope that we will enter it with a bipartisan and a unanimous position but there can certainly be no argument that the strongest format this Chamber can offer in terms of entering the debate is a motion. We need to do that urgently so I would seek Council support in this place to debate it now.


Chairman: Councillor SIMMONDS could you move the motion please?

Motion moved291/2013-14

At that juncture, Councillor Julian SIMMONDS moved, seconded by Councillor Angela OWEN-TAYLOR

That this Chamber confirms its commitment to economic development and sends a strong message to Canberra that we support the findings of the Deloitte Access Economic Analysis that found that Kevin Rudd's proposed airport curfew would cause a loss of $13.6 billion in economic growth and 7000 jobs. This chamber supports the 24 hour operation of Brisbane Airport along with the new parallel runway as a key driver in the long-term growth of Brisbane's economy.

Chairman: Debate Councillor SIMMONDS.

Councillor SIMMONDS: Thank you very much, Madam Chairman. Thank you to Councillor OWEN-TAYLOR for seconding it. I thank through you, Madam Chairman, all of the


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councillors for their indulgence in debating this matter urgently. We've heard a lot today about economic development and the importance of jobs. Here is a perfect example of it. We know that the around the clock operations at Brisbane Airport are something that sets this city apart from other state capitals in Australia. It is one of our key strategic economic development advantages that we have over other capital cities in Australia.

We know that it helps us when we go out there and promote the need for more direct flights. We know that it helps with strong tourist growth and we know that it promotes direct international investment. It also importantly keeps the operational cost of airlines down so they continue to be a strong employer in our city. So, Madam Chairman, knowing all of that and of course this administration supports economic development, it's very, very disappointing when you see the Labor Party continually playing politics with the economic growth of our city.

We saw that today in Question Time where again it's all about the politics for them, not about jobs and real economic growth. We've seen that with this issue, with the article regarding Kevin Rudd's or the member for Griffith's proposal on Sunday. Here it is a very poorly thought out curfew between 11pm and 6am. We know it's not really about his constituents because if it was about his constituents and the issues affecting them he would have done something about it when he was PM. This is about politics, Madam Chairman, politics for the Labor Party. Even The Courier-Mail editorial agrees, Madam Chairman, when yesterday — no here we go — when yesterday they said —


Chairman: Order.

Councillor SIMMONDS: As a backbencher once more Mr Rudd has returned to airport noise as the —

Chairman: Order.

Councillor SIMMONDS: — for breaking his long silence since the —

Chairman: Just a minute Councillor SIMMONDS. There is too much noise. Keep the noise down and the interjections. Thank you Councillor SIMMONDS.

Councillor SIMMONDS: Does this mean that he's starting all over again rebuilding from the ground up? Well here it is the member of Griffith relaunching his political career for the nth time. I've lost count, Madam Chairman. It's all about the politics for them. What we saw yesterday is a very clear indication of what such a proposal would do to this city. It was concerning, incredibly concerning. Let me read this, again from The Courier-Mail yesterday in an article entitled, plane stupid. Kevin Rudd's bid to impose a curfew on Brisbane Airport will cost the local economy more than $13 billion and nearly 7000 jobs.

Independent analysis of the impact of an 11pm to 6am blackout by Deloitte Access Economics reveals an enormous cost to the city and the state's future growth. On it goes, Madam Chairman, it details some of that, including the loss of some 6800 associated fulltime jobs. Brisbane would miss out on some 216,000 passengers each year, each year. That's 216,000 people that won't be coming to Brisbane to spend money in our retail outlets, to spend money in our Convention Centre, Madam Chairman, to support the local economy because of a proposal from the Labor Party. It has to be rejected.

Even his beloved public aren't with him on this; even his beloved public aren't with him on this. We saw the voxpop from yesterday where five out of six people didn't support his proposal; five out of six people didn't support it. What we are seeing and again from Council's own submission that we spoke about last week, is the severe economic impacts that will come about from the curfew proposal. Some of those and I'm just reading from, this is from the Council officers who are diligently within the economic development section of Council, put together a response to what a curfew would do for our city.

So don't take our word for it Labor councillors opposite, have a listen to what the impact that Council officers think it would have on our city. Reduced growth potential of long haul flights. Given the distance to Brisbane, flights departing


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these international locations will arrive in Brisbane at late hours. If Brisbane Airport has a curfew these flights would either be cancelled or rescheduled to be within curfew hours.

The next impact, it limits the operation of low cost carriers. Low cost carriers operate within these proposed curfew hours and provide inexpensive flights for travellers who do not mind the hours of operation. What we know from their efforts on the carbon tax that they don't mind lumping the people of Brisbane with extra costs, Madam Chairman, but we would ask them not to do it here. Freight movement is also impacted, limiting the hours these freight movements can occur may influence the cost of freight movement and impact the supply chains of businesses shipping and receiving freight. So making it harder for our local businesses and our local economy to do business interstate and internationally.

Increased cancelations — if flights are delayed for legitimate or unforseen reasons it may extend their departure time past the curfew. This often leads to the cancelation of flights. So now we've got Brisbane business people missing important meetings, Madam Chairman, because they can't do business under a curfew. Daylight savings, if the curfew was imposed, again another impacting factor, if the curfew was imposed many flights could not leave Brisbane in the early morning and would not arrive in the southern states for the start of the business day.

Again, how much burden do they want to put on Brisbane businesses, Madam Chairman, how hard do they want to make it to do business in this city? Finally growth for the airport, we know reduced employment growth, reduced economic output of one of our key economic drivers. So the challenge, Madam Chairman, the challenge for Labor councillors with this motion is to reverse their current position. We know that they support a curfew, they've said it before. Here we go in an article titled noise, what noise by Tony Moore in 2009. Brisbane residents make few complaints about aircraft noise according to Brisbane City Council. But then we've got Councillor SUTTON as a dissenting voice saying, Councillor SUTTON says she would support a night-time curfew.

Here are her direct quotes, you might be interested in this. She said she attended a meeting with Brisbane Airport Corporation and Seven Hills residents who live under the flight path three weeks ago. This is her direct quote. It happened to be on a night when there weren't that many planes overhead disappointingly. It is disappointing that you didn't get to prove your political point isn't it? Isn't it? Don't worry that there wasn't actually any planes to disturb people. It's more important, Madam Chairman, through you that Councillor SUTTON to make an important political point.

We were then, Madam Chairman, we were then in the lead-ups to the last election in February 2012, chastised by Councillor DICK when he said in this place looking at this document, we were debating the economic policy at the time. He says looking at this document we are in for bumpy ride. We have just heard the LNP's latest policy is a 24 hour a day airport access. Well don't worry that's the current policy. But alright we'll take Councillor DICK's credit. He says we just heard the LNP's latest policy is 24 hour a day airport access. This is the new policy for the LNP.

This is the new policy that they will be ensuring in Councillor FLESSER's ward, in Councillor SUTTON's ward, in Councillor Cumming’s ward. So when we're reminding voters about how committed they are well yes we are committed to that, Madam Chairman, and the important economic growth that it brings. Here you see the duplicity of the Australian Labor Party councillors on the other side and the hypocrisy, because they claim to be the party of the workers but then they don't support jobs. They are happy to use the workers to score political points.

Here's an example of Councillor SUTTON in 2010 using the very staff, the staff of Qantas. She says here and I quote, talking to Councillor McLACHLAN, I can tell him that it was just fabulous to be able to watch John Travolta fly in on his personal Qantas jet and to celebrate with the workers of Qantas and all of their


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families. So here she is embracing the Qantas workers and then she turns around and last week says this, Madam Chairman, that she supports the curfew because I quote, when I take my rubbish out to my bin of an evening I can actually see the lights flashing on my pavers.

Madam Chairman, talk about selling these people down the river because it's the very people like the Qantas employees, the people who are employed in the aviation industry, Madam Chairman, who this proposal would affect. It will make their job security — it will drive up the costs of the airlines — making their jobs far more insecure, causing insecurity for their families, Madam Chairman. Far from supporting the families that she talks about, Madam Chairman, Councillor SUTTON is actively doing the opposite because she's worried about seeing the lights of the planes from her house, Madam Chairman.

So this is the challenge for the Australian Labor Party today. Reverse back flip, do a back flip, a high somersault on your current position of supporting a curfew and support this motion. Support economic growth for our city. Support the jobs that you say you're committed to but you so regularly sell down the river because this administration stands with those people. This administration stands with the people involved in the airport industry, Madam Chairman. We stand with the people that are employed in the retail industry who see these visitors come and spend money.

We stand with, Madam Chairman, the businesses whose —

Chairman: Councillor SIMMONDS your time has expired. Further debate? Councillor SUTTON.

Councillor SUTTON: Thank you, Madam Chair, I rise to speak against this motion. Madam Chair, as the scarecrow said to Dorothy ‘…some people without brains do an awful lot of talking’. Never have we seen a finer example of that than Councillor SIMMONDS' contribution to this debate this afternoon. It showed a complete and utter lack of understanding about the issues that are being raised in this public discussion about an airport curfew. Madam Chair, there are a number of issues that need to be canvassed when we start talking about the curfew. There is no suggestion that this curfew is to commence immediately.

This discussion about the curfew is about when the second parallel runway becomes operational, if and when Brisbane Airport Corporation ever gets around to building it, Madam Chair. It is going to be important once that parallel runway becomes operational that we balance the impact of that on the local community. If Councillor SIMMONDS is seriously getting up here today and saying that we should holus bolus go forward and do whatever any business wants without any mitigating impacts for the local community that are affected by these decisions, that is quite frankly completely and utterly irresponsible.

I spoke last week on this matter very briefly to talk about balance. The Sydney Airport has a curfew, Madam Chair. You know why it has a curfew? It was after a lengthy debate with local residents about the impact that it was having on their lifestyle. It was supported by John Howard, Councillor SIMMONDS. It was supported by John Howard in bringing this is. Why? Was he anti-business Councillor SIMMONDS through you, Madam Chair, is John Howard anti-business? No, it is about the fact that people —


Councillor SUTTON: Yes. Did the Sydney economy grind to a halt when this was implemented was it?

Chairman: Councillor SUTTON through the chair.


Chairman: Yes Councillor DICK?

Councillor DICK: Will Councillor SUTTON take a question?

Councillor SUTTON: Of course I will.

Chairman: Councillor DICK.


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Councillor DICK: Madam Chair, Councillor are you aware that there are other capital cities that don't have curfews such as Adelaide and could you inform the Chamber if those economies have ground to a halt?

Councillor SUTTON: Well that's correct, Madam Chair. Can I just say in the case of the Sydney Airport that curfew was supported by John Howard and the Sydney economy did not grind to a halt? Madam Chair, can I just say the houses and the homes in Sydney because of the weather conditions down there are a lot different from the houses that we have in Brisbane City Council. I looked at this matter in detail in terms of the decibel levels that could be heard in the average Sydney home compared to the decibel levels that can be heard in the average Queenslander or houses built for the Queensland weather.

The decibel levels are significantly higher in the types of housing that we have here in Brisbane. Councillor SIMMONDS if you are seriously saying that those impacts should not be considered as we go down this track when this second parallel runway is completed, that is irresponsible, I believe it is economically irresponsible. Madam Chair, the homes that these flights come over they are occupied by workers. They are occupied by families. Do you know what causes learning difficulties in children? Sleep deprivation. So if you seriously think that it is a healthy state of affairs for Brisbane residents and children living under these flight paths to be woken by aeroplanes throughout the night, that is irresponsible —

Chairman: Through the Chair. Thank you, Councillor SUTTON.

Councillor SUTTON: —from a social perspective. What a shock that Rupert Murdoch agrees with the position of the LNP. What a shock that Rupert Murdoch and his papers —

Chairman: Order.

Councillor SUTTON: —are leading a campaign against the former Labor Prime Minister. Madam Chair, knock me down with a feather, I didn't see that one coming. He's seriously using The Courier-Mail as a guideline for a standard of public debate on this particular issue. He is going to be found sorely wanting. I don't know what's in Council's submission on the Brisbane Airport. Do you know why? Because it was never brought to this Chamber, it was never around for debate. Had we had the opportunity to make a contribution we would have, rather than secret squirreling, making this submission behind closed doors without actually telling the Brisbane public about what it was that you were putting forward in your submission, and having the courage to bring that submission to the Chamber.

I would have been happy to have that debate at that time Councillor SIMMONDS but the bottom line is Kevin Rudd has proposed a trial. He has proposed a trial, a trial two year curfew. Do you know what he's proposed? It is a curfew from 11pm to 6am in the morning. I actually don't think waiting until 6am in the morning is going to cause the cataclysmic economic losses and job losses that they are purporting to profess here. They claim on that side of the chamber that we are being dramatic in terms of our interpretation. Talk about Chicken Little, the sky is falling, if there's a curfew.

He's sitting over there in the Chairperson for Finance and Economic Development's chair. Madam Chair, a curfew is the responsible thing to do. It is a balance. It is a balance between the economic growth that this city needs to achieve. It is a balance between the support that needs to be given to families living under those flight paths that have higher decibel levels in their homes than what are in the homes in Sydney and other capital cities, in terms of the noise that people hear in those homes.

It will affect the learning performance of children. How do I know that? We already know it's affecting the learning performance of children in schools underneath the flight paths during the day.

Chairman: Councillor SUTTON to the Chair.

Councillor SUTTON: That is why they have funded air-conditioning in schools. That is why they have been doing a whole heap of work to schools that are under the flight path to limit that noise so that it does not interfere with their learning capabilities during the


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day. They need to be protected at night too. Children need to be rested. Talk about the economic performance of people who get a disturbed night's sleep when they have to go to work and function as a fully functioning adult in their workplace. I'm sorry, Councillor SIMMONDS, through you Madam Chair, I understand the economic benefits of the Brisbane Airport.

I understand the need to progress with the parallel runway. I understand that, I get that. But these projects must be considered and developed and progressed with a view to the impact that they will have on affecting residents. If it is good enough for Sydney it is good enough for Brisbane. We need to protect our residents. It is not all about the money. The minute our city is hijacked by money, by simply the need for money and money and all else that is where we have gone in the wrong direction. We need to start looking after our people first and making sure they have the lifestyle that they need to say that they can go out and contribute to well-paid jobs.

Councillor SIMMONDS if you were really concerned about job growth in this city —

Chairman: Through the chair Councillor SUTTON.

Councillor SUTTON: Madam Chair, through you, go up and speak to your mate Campbell Newman in George Street and tell him to stop sacking public servants all over the place and few more people might have a few more jobs to go to.

Chairman: Further debate? Councillor JOHNSTON.

Councillor JOHNSTON: Thank you, Madam Chairman, and I rise to speak on the motion that's been put forward today. I'll keep it brief. How bereft of any agenda is this LNP administration that it has to bring forward such a politically motivated and inept motion today as a matter of urgency. This Chairman, Madam Chairman, is an embarrassment to this city that he has put forward —

Councillor ADAMS: Point of order, Madam Chair.

Chairman: Point of order against you Councillor JOHNSTON. Yes Councillor ADAMS?

Councillor ADAMS: I believe it's inappropriate behaviour to not speak to the actual motion before us. I ask her to come back to the motion and not talking — Councillor SIMMONDS is not in the motion.

Chairman: Yes. Thank you Councillor ADAMS. Councillor JOHNSTON to the motion please.

Councillor JOHNSTON: Point of order, Madam Chairman. Just to be clear, are you saying that I was not speaking to the motion then?

Chairman: Well I think you started off by criticising Councillor SIMMONDS instead of discussing the motion. The content of the motion Councillor JOHNSTON.

Councillor JOHNSTON: Righto, Madam Chairman, I thought that's what Councillor SIMMONDS was doing himself. But, Madam Chairman, what I'm saying is that this motion reflects the inept and politically incompetent abilities of the LNP administration that have put it forward today. Madam Chairman, we don't really have much on the Council agenda today. Civic Cabinet pretty much has delegated away —

Chairman: Councillor JOHNSTON do you want to talk about the motion or don't you? If not resume your seat.

Councillor JOHNSTON: Yes, Madam Chairman.

Chairman: Well talk about the motion.

Councillor JOHNSTON: Thank you, Madam Chairman, and I'm attempting to, thank you very much. Madam Chairman, I think we can see in the motion that's been put forward before us today that the LNP administration is bereft of any agenda for this city —

Chairman: Resume your seat Councillor JOHNSTON. You were told to speak to the content of the motion. You are debating everything, as such you are talking about the


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civic cabinet, you're talking about the content of the meeting Agenda, you're supposed to be referring to the motion before us. Resume our seat.


Chairman: I told you to resume your seat. Do not debate my ruling.


Chairman: Yes Councillor JOHNSTON?

Councillor JOHNSTON: Madam Chairman, just for the record are you saying that I was not, in that last statement about the motion, were you saying that I was not debating the motion itself?

Chairman: I'm certainly saying that Councillor JOHNSTON because that is not what you were doing. You were nowhere near it as the LORD MAYOR just said.

Councillor JOHNSTON: Well point of order then, Madam Chairman.

Chairman: No just — I'm not debating the issue. I told you to resume your seat. I've told you why and I'm not debating it and you know according to the rules you do not debate the ruling of the chairman. Further debate?


Chairman: It had better be a real point of order Councillor JOHNSTON.

Councillor JOHNSTON: I move dissent in your incompetent ruling.

The dissent motion lapsed for want of a seconder.

Chairman: Further debate? Councillor DICK.Councillor DICK: Thank you, Madam Chair, I too will be brief. If we can't criticise

Councillor SIMMONDS in his remarks then I think that is a sad day for democracy because his whole speech was about criticising Councillor SUTTON. Madam Chair, this motion today is nothing today than a political action by the LNP. I've got a very clear message that I want to put on the record today to the LNP. You are in charge of the Commonwealth government. You control what happens. This LNP is so used to the default of finding someone else to blame, they're now looking at any Item to discuss in this chamber moved by a federal backbencher. That is how threatened they are and —

Chairman: Councillor DICK are you going to speak to the content of this motion?

Councillor DICK: The content of the motion includes Kevin Rudd's name who is a federal backbencher, Madam Chair. That is a statement of fact. The fact that the LNP are hanging this entire motion on a submission from a federal backbencher is absolutely ridiculous and shows just how out of touch these people are. Because, Madam Chair, if they were serious about this motion, if they were serious about standing up about what they believe in, they would have put a notice of motion on and they would have come together with a report to this Council chamber. But no, not the LNP. They are so bereft of ideas that they have nothing to talk about except other things than the Brisbane City Council.

Chairman: Councillor DICK do you have anything to say about the content of his message or are you going to be like Councillor JOHNSTON and just criticise other people and the LNP?

Councillor DICK: Well, Madam Chair, let me talk about what this curfew will mean. We are talking about eight flights. We are talking about flights between 11pm and 6am. Listening to the LNP you would think with the trial curfew the entire Brisbane and Queensland economy will completely come to a standstill. As Councillor SUTTON outlined in her remarks today, what happened when Sydney introduced a curfew in 1995? Did the whole of New South Wales grind to a halt? Did the economy go backwards? Has there been a call from the state government, the state Liberal government or the Commonwealth Liberal government, national government to release that curfew?


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The LNP is all over the place on this. The fact that they had to come and move this motion this afternoon without any reference, without any ideas about how to take this city forward speaks volumes about what their vision is for this city. They are so out of touch with day to day issues in this city they are now hanging their hat on what a federal backbencher is issuing in reports. Madam Chair, this is a joke, this is an abuse of this Council chamber for an LNP who have run out of ideas in our city that are desperate to score political points and the ratepayers of Brisbane will see through them right here right now.

Chairman: Further debate? DEPUTY MAYOR?

DEPUTY MAYOR: Yes, Madam Chairman, it gives me great pleasure to speak on this very important issue, which is an important issue for the City of Brisbane and indeed the residents of the City of Brisbane. Now we've heard of Mr Rudd's suggestion that there should be a curfew. There are two issues in this motion —

Chairman: Councillor JOHNSTON. Sorry DEPUTY MAYOR.

DEPUTY MAYOR: Thank you. There are two issues in this motion. One is the curfew and the impact of the curfew and the second is the construction of the new parallel runway. Both are very important and linked issues. Now in relation to comments that we've heard various councillors make today, I have to say I've been disappointed so far with the tone of the debate. Councillor SUTTON got up straightaway and her first reaction was to attack Councillor SIMMONDS. She accused him of being stupid. That was her first reaction and I've got the quote written down here which was quite offensive and arrogant.

Some people without brains do an awful lot of talking. She was referring to Councillor SIMMONDS. We had Councillor JOHNSTON also get up and claim that Councillor SIMMONDS is an embarrassment. So unfortunately these people can't contribute anything serious to this debate other than personal attacks. That is the first sign that you are losing an argument or you don't have anything to contribute, the first sign. Let's have a look at the actual facts on this issue. Now we've heard about the economic importance of the airport to our city and we've heard about the potential economic impacts to our city.

But Labor speculates that it's no big deal. Look, other cities have introduced curfews and there have been no problems but we have the economic impacts already occurring as a result of the actions of the Labor Party. I would say in particular one Labor Party MP and that is Kevin Rudd, who as we know for years and years and years has led the charge against any expansion of the Brisbane Airport and in particular led the charge against the construction of a second runway. Now this year our local newspaper in Brisbane, The Courier-Mail ran a very concerted series of articles, a campaign about delays at the airport and what it was costing our economy.

Labor likes to attack The Courier-Mail. I think that's disappointing on their part but we saw for example one article from April this year saying, Brisbane Airport delays are costing airlines $75 million a year. Now one of the key reasons for those delays is a lack of a second runway and the fact that flights are queuing up or wanting to get in and out at certain times of the day and there simply is not the capacity in the existing runways available.

Councillor SUTTON: Point of order, Madam Chair.

Chairman: Point of order against you DEPUTY MAYOR. Yes Councillor SUTTON.

Councillor SUTTON: Madam Chair, this motion is clearly about the curfew. It is not about the benefits or otherwise of the second runway. The point is we're getting the second runway. This is about the curfew. Madam Chair, he does not need to, in his debate, need to be dwelling on the second runway or the history around that because —

Chairman: Councillor SUTTON —

Councillor SUTTON: I'm just outlining why I think that it's not relevant to the debate and asking you to call him back, Councillor SCHRINNER back.

Chairman: I don't uphold your point of order Councillor SUTTON. If you read the last sentence of this motion it said this Chamber supports the 24 hours operation of


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Brisbane Airport along with the new parallel runway. That to me is the second runway isn't it? Am I misunderstanding that? Thank you DEPUTY MAYOR.

DEPUTY MAYOR: Absolutely, Madam Chairman, you are correct and this motion does support, does express Council support for the construction of the second runway. That's why it's very relevant that I speak on this issue because the lack of a second runway is already costing our economy right now and according to The Courier-Mail $75 million in the last 12 months. That is a significant cost, that is the real cost and one which unfortunately Kevin Rudd is partially responsible for. His opposition for years after years against this runway, in fact four separate court cases, indicated his view of the second runway and his ability to push very vocally to try and stop this from happening.

So he ran four separate court cases and he lost them but the reality is his actions have led to costs on our economy. Now he wants to impose further costs on our economy through this curfew. This is why the administration is standing up for the people of Brisbane, the City of Brisbane and the economic future of our city by saying it's not on. We support the effective operation of our airport. It is a key economic asset for our city. It is vital in terms of the health of the economy, the creation of wealth and the creation of jobs.

It's easy for some people to try and exist in a vacuum to suggest that the economy doesn't affect them, economic activity doesn't affect them but it does. This is an example of a particular part of the economy which has a big effect on all of us. Now it's interesting because Councillor SUTTON made a reference to the people living in the houses where planes are flying over and the affect that it had on them. She said these homes they're occupied by workers and families. We always like to hear Labor talk about workers and families but guess what, guess who are in the planes? Workers and families.

Councillor SUTTON obviously hasn't travelled very regularly because every time I go on a plane I see heaps of people in fluoro vests and I see lots of families travelling. The reality is, air travel is something that almost all Brisbane residents do from time to time. It brings big benefits to our community, not only just economic benefits but a whole range of other social benefits as well. It connects people across Australia and also across the globe. It's interesting to see people like Councillor SUTTON and Kevin Rudd so actively opposed to air travel and aircraft noise, particularly when Kevin Rudd was one of the most well-travelled federal parliamentarians in our city's history.

But I did want to draw councillors' attention to an article that appeared on 18 March written by a guy called Paul Colgan, and it says, let the aircraft noise roar. That's the title of the article. It says here, but for those who perceive every overhead jet as some kind of violation of their right to peace and quiet, I have a suggestion. Try thinking of the sound of those big Rolls Royce beasts as the noise of a cash register turning over as passengers aboard blow some cash and support your local economy. Because when we hear the sound of a jet turbine engine, it's the sound of the wheels of the economy turning, especially when the jet is full of hundreds of big-spending tourists.

That is an interesting perspective because air travel and particular the travel, the jets that arrive late at night or in the early hours of the morning are the jets that are bringing in overseas tourists. They are from the regions of the world where people are coming here to enjoy our city and to spend money in our local economy. Madam Chairman, there is a whole heap of research that indicates the importance of keeping 24 hour operations and it's not just us that are saying that. It's also Melbourne Airport. On Melbourne Airport's website it says here the ability of the Melbourne Airport to operate without any capacity constraints and its curfew free status provides significant benefits to the local regional and state economy.

They estimate that it's $1.3 billion to their economy as well so it's not just us saying that. Melbourne knows the importance of it. Other cities know the importance of it and we are keen to support an airport that can operate effectively. Most importantly also there's been some community research done by a company called TNS, a polling company. They recently polled 1400


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residents to ask them about Brisbane's 24 hour airport operation. Interestingly enough 74 per cent of those polled did not support a curfew because it believed it would make the airport even busier than it is currently because if you chop off certain hours of operation, it condenses all the flights into a smaller period of time.

The reality is the majority of complaints received about aircraft noise are between the hours of 6pm to 9pm. Guess what, if you want a curfew in there's going to be even more flights during those periods where the complaints are received. This Administration fully supports a curfew free airport and I move that the motion be put.

292/2013-14Motion be now putIt was moved by the DEPUTY MAYOR, Councillor Adrian SCHRINNER, seconded by Councillor Ryan MURPHY, that the motion be now put. Upon being submitted to the Chamber, the motion, that the motion be now put, was declared carried on the voices.

Thereupon, Councillors Ryan MURPHY and Andrew WINES immediately rose and called for a division, which resulted in the motion being declared carried.

The voting was as follows:

AYES: 19 - The Right Honourable the LORD MAYOR, Councillor Graham QUIRK, DEPUTY MAYOR, Councillor Adrian SCHRINNER, and Councillors Krista ADAMS, Matthew BOURKE, Amanda COOPER, Margaret de WIT, Vicki HOWARD, Steven HUANG, Fiona KING, Geraldine KNAPP, Kim MARX, Peter MATIC, Ian McKENZIE, David McLACHLAN, Ryan MURPHY, Angela OWEN-TAYLOR, Julian SIMMONDS, Andrew WINES, and Norm WYNDHAM.

NOES: 6 - The Leader of the OPPOSITION, Councillor Milton DICK, and Councillors Helen ABRAHAMS, Kim FLESSER, Steve GRIFFITHS, Victoria NEWTON, and Shayne SUTTON.

Chairman: The motion is carried. Councillor SIMMONDS.

Councillor SIMMONDS: Thank you very much, Madam Chairman. Just quickly to sum up. Look, like Councillor SCHRINNER I was a little disappointed with the debate today. What I heard—

Chairman: Order.

Councillor SIMMONDS: What I heard in the debate today, Madam Chairman, was the arguments against the curfew. The arguments against the curfew were from sound economic modelling from Deloittes Access. There was some sound economic modelling from our own Council officers. As the DEPUTY MAYOR pointed out, it's the opinion of Melbourne Airport, as the DEPUTY MAYOR, pointed out it's the opinion of the people, the wider people who are in support of it. I've even got —

Councillor FLESSER: Point of order, Madam Chair.

Chairman: Point of order against you Councillor SIMMONDS. Yes Councillor FLESSER?

Councillor FLESSER: Councillor SIMMONDS is referring to some analysis done by Council officers and Deloitte, a report, Madam Chair. Does he have them to table in Council so councillors can see what he's actually talking about?

Councillor SIMMONDS: Madam Chairman, he can find details of both of those reports in media articles if he chose to read them.

Chairman: Thank you Councillor. Order.

Councillor SIMMONDS: Madam Chairman, I've even got the Australian Airports Association here who represent some 260 airports and aerodromes Australia-wide saying that they are strongly against any proposal —

Chairman: Order. Councillor SUTTON and Councillor NEWTON, be quiet.


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Councillor SIMMONDS: — for a curfew calling it counterproductive for many reasons including the cost of the operational impediment, that it will reduce the value and efficiency of the entire aviation and transport network, is likely to make unjust infrastructure demands on smaller communities that can't afford it, jeopardise flights that represent the most value to Australia, those that are long haul flights, Madam Chairman, to name just a few.

So you have a load of evidence, a load of evidence from varied sources on this side. On the other side, Madam Chairman, all you have are personal insults. It's disappointing. It's disappointing as the DEPUTY MAYOR pointed out. I was called stupid while another person who has been called stupid in this debate, and of course it's none other than Kevin Rudd but The Courier-Mail when they did an article called Plane Stupid, about his desire to see a curfew trial including that we would miss out on some 216,000 passengers each year.

I love it how when The Courier-Mail is helping Kevin Rudd as a backbencher to lead the charge and retake over the leadership they're a very good paper. When they turn against him ,now it's Rupert Murdoch at his maniacal best, Madam Chairman. They can't have — I love how we're not meant to pay attention to a humble backbencher. I wonder if Councillor DICK will take his same advice when he writes the report on the federal election. Will he give a mention to that humble backbencher Kevin Rudd I wonder, Madam Chairman? Such is the hypocrisy.

Look the point is this, the weight of all this economic, Madam Chairman — look and the other point that they raised was that the economy of Sydney hasn't fallen down, Madam Chairman. Well it has been impacted, it absolutely has. I'd like to read you an article here called, Qantas Hurt by Tighter Curfew at Sydney Airport, on August 20 2013, not long ago at all, where it talks about the impacts under the federal Labor government. Under Mr Albanese's watch this has been wound back, this the number of flights, from 24 to 21, even though each international daily flight into Sydney pumps some $388 million a year into the economy and creates 500 jobs.

It goes onto say Mister — and why is this the case? Well the article proposes, Mr Albanese's electorate of Grayndler in Sydney's inner west is affected by aircraft noise, Madam Chairman. It goes to show that Labor at any level of government is happy to sacrifice economic growth in jobs for the sake of political expediency. The federal government did it in Sydney, now they want to do it here in Brisbane. We won't let them, Madam Chairman. Our point is this, the point is that this kind of decision goes into every facet of the economy.

Councillor SUTTON talked about those people living in their homes and those families. Those families need jobs, Madam Chairman. If they are going to stay in their homes they need jobs, they need to be able to conduct their business. This kind of proposal goes into every facet of business, into retail because those visitors are prepared to spend money, into businesses who live or die on the cost of freight within our network, Madam Chairman, not to mention the people directly employed in the aviation industry.

So Councillor SUTTON of course there are solutions to be found to issues like aircraft noise but a curfew is not it. Work in your local community to find another solution because the impact of the curfew is just too great on this city. You must recognise that. The Labor councillors must recognise that on the weight of the evidence that has been put in front of them today and the lack of evidence for their various arguments when all they have been able to resort to is petty insults. They need to look and to look at the evidence provided by people like the aviation industry, by economists who have taken a detailed look into how this will affect our city.

You can see why the figure that they have used of $13.6 billion effect on our city, how wide the impact. It's not just about, Madam Chairman, a flippant, it's only a trial, it's okay, it's only for a few hours. They're flippant about it. They're flippant about the potential loss of some $13.6 billion, Madam Chairman, and 7000 jobs to our local economy over the next few years I think to 2034, Madam Chairman. It's an incredibly serious issue. They talked about economic


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development and jobs today. Well let's see them stand for economic development and jobs. Let's see them put their money where their mouth is and back flip on their current desire to see a curfew.


Thereupon, Councillors Ryan MURPHY and Kim MARX immediately rose and called for a division, which resulted in the motion being declared carried.


AYES: 19 - The Right Honourable the LORD MAYOR, Councillor Graham QUIRK, DEPUTY MAYOR, Councillor Adrian SCHRINNER, and Councillors Krista ADAMS, Matthew BOURKE, Amanda COOPER, Margaret de WIT, Vicki HOWARD, Steven HUANG, Fiona KING, Geraldine KNAPP, Kim MARX, Peter MATIC, Ian McKENZIE, David McLACHLAN, Ryan MURPHY, Angela OWEN-TAYLOR, Julian SIMMONDS, Andrew WINES, and Norm WYNDHAM.

NOES: 6 - The Leader of the OPPOSITION, Councillor Milton DICK, and Councillors Helen ABRAHAMS, Kim FLESSER, Steve GRIFFITHS, Victoria NEWTON, and Shayne SUTTON.


Chairman: Yes Councillor DICK.


At that juncture, Councillor Milton DICK moved, seconded by Councillor Helen ABRAHAMS, that the Standing Rules be suspended to allow the moving of the following motion

That this Council urgently debate the 2012-2013 Brisbane Marketing annual report to highlight the extreme waste of ratepayer's money whilst bread and butter Council services are being cut.

Chairman: You have three minutes to establish urgency Councillor DICK.

Councillor DICK: Well, Madam Chair, we just had a debate where it was urgent because of a newspaper article on the weekend, Madam Chair, about economic development. There can be nothing more important and urgent as this Council has ground to a halt to talk about economic matters that, as we heard in Question Time, from the LORD MAYOR today, that we debate the annual report of Brisbane Marketing. Economic development is so important for our city and is the number one priority for this administration they will have no complaints whatsoever to debate this this afternoon.

Just as we are always ready to debate the LNP, my challenge to the LORD MAYOR is have the guts to put your money where your mouth is and actually stand up today and back up what you're saying, because we know there is extreme waste inside the annual report. We know there are millions of dollars being pumped into executive salaries as we heard in Question Time today without any explanation. Madam Chair, this is urgent because the LORD MAYOR's own lips today said there can be nothing more important than economic development.

We've just heard the chair of Finance talk about how important economic development is. Well, Madam Chair, let's forget the federal government, let's talk about the Brisbane City Council and how we are wasting millions of dollars into Brisbane Marketing. Madam Chair, if the LORD MAYOR and the LNP are so proud of this report and they've got nothing to hide, they will take my challenge right now and debate the annual report. Because I want to place on record how bread and butter services are being cut. Our frontline services are being reduced simply to prop up Brisbane Marketing, to make this LORD MAYOR look good.


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Well, Madam Chair, the ratepayers are waking up to it and we need to debate this urgently because we just stopped a whole Council to talk about economic development, the billions of dollars that could be lost as a result of the curfew. Well this LORD MAYOR now needs to get up and actually start debating this. I know that they're afraid. I know each week they never take my challenge to actually debate the issues of the day because they put nothing on the Agenda, although we know things are secretly decided in the Establishment and Coordination Committee.

But, Madam Chair, we now need to urgently debate this because of the economic imperatives that I believe are being lost as a result of millions of dollars going into staff executive bonuses at Brisbane Marketing, the millions of dollars that are being wasted on glossy advertising publications. If what I'm saying is not true the LORD MAYOR will debate this, he will take my challenge and debate it immediately because ratepayers deserve to have this debate. This report has just come to light, Madam Chair. We've had Question Time today where the LORD MAYOR was all over the place, couldn't answer the most basic questions.

Well now is the opportunity where he's had time for his researchers to prepare his speeches. They never take these debates on because they're not prepared. They can't stand up and actually argue —

Chairman: Councillor DICK to the urgency motion.

Councillor DICK: Well, Madam Chair, they've had time now since I've raised this for the —

Chairman: Your time has expired, thank you.

Councillor DICK : — research to happen and we need to debate this.

Chairman: Your time has expired.

The Chairman submitted the motion for the suspension of the Standing Rules to the Chamber and it was declared lost on the voices.

Thereupon, Councillors Helen ABRAHAMS and Milton DICK immediately rose and called for a division, which resulted in the motion being declared lost.


AYES: 7 - The Leader of the OPPOSITION, Councillor Milton DICK, and Councillors Helen ABRAHAMS, Peter CUMMING, Kim FLESSER, Steve GRIFFITHS, Victoria NEWTON, and Shayne SUTTON.

NOES: 19 - The Right Honourable the LORD MAYOR, Councillor Graham QUIRK, DEPUTY MAYOR, Councillor Adrian SCHRINNER, and Councillors Krista ADAMS, Matthew BOURKE, Amanda COOPER, Margaret de WIT, Vicki HOWARD, Steven HUANG, Fiona KING, Geraldine KNAPP, Kim MARX, Peter MATIC, Ian McKENZIE, David McLACHLAN, Ryan MURPHY, Angela OWEN-TAYLOR, Julian SIMMONDS, Andrew WINES, and Norm WYNDHAM.

CONSIDERATION OF COMMITTEE REPORTS:

ESTABLISHMENT AND COORDINATION COMMITTEE

The Right Honourable the LORD MAYOR (Councillor Graham QUIRK), Chairman of the Establishment and Coordination Committee, moved, seconded by the DEPUTY MAYOR (Councillor Adrian SCHRINNER), that the report of the meeting of that Committee held on 4 November 2013, be adopted.

LORD MAYOR: Thanks very much, Madam Chairman, before coming to the Contracts and Tendering report, Madam Chairman, I just wanted to make a few comments. Firstly we have National Recycling Week happening at the moment. Down in Brisbane Square, Madam Chairman, in Reddacliff Place, there is a display happening right now which is covering all sorts of opportunities that people have


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in terms of recycling, whether we're talking about e-waste or the various other forms of recycling and reuse opportunities, Madam Chairman.

That's something that all of us as councillors I think can do in our local communities to improve the outcomes around that. We've had significant gains already that we know but there is still a journey to go on to make sure that people maximise their recycling and reuse opportunities in our city.

Madam Chairman, we launched the Christmas in the City last Thursday. Madam Chairman, we are going to see a refresh of the displays in the Queen Street Mall. There will be a number of new parts to the Christmas program, commencing with the lighting of the Christmas tree on 29 November and I just invite all councillors and their communities to participate in those events.

We have, Madam Chairman, we have also in the last few days had the Active School Travel Awards. I want to congratulate Everton Park State School on being awarded the 2013 School of the Year for their exceptional Active Travel achievements, Madam Chairman, the first year of the program. That was their first year of the program obviously. The 2013 School of Excellence went to Buranda State School. They have been an active participant in this program for some time. Overall we've had 157 schools now and 87,000 students participate in this program since it was introduced in 2004.

The 2014 participating schools will be Junction Park State School, Mount Oliver Plunkett School, Nundah State School, St Columba's Primary School, Corinda State School, Middle Park State School, Geebung State School, Nashville State School, Brisbane Christian College, Kenmore State School, Somerset Hills State School and Milton State School.

Madam Chairman, I also wanted to indicate that I have established an app called LORD MAYOR Graham QUIRK. This is about an opportunity again, a further opportunity for people to stay in contact with me across different platforms. It's a simple app, Madam Chairman, it also directs people to other parts, other opportunities to learn more information about the Council and that can be downloaded through iTunes.

Madam Chairman, I think probably in the interests of time I will proceed to the E&C Contracts and Tenders document. Madam Chairman, the first one of those is Stage 2 of the Gap Creek Reserve Amenities Upgrade so that's been won by Naturform Proprietary Limited, $207,000. The next one is Ferry Terminals and Marine Infrastructure Constructions and Upgrades. Madam Chairman, there is a whole series of organisations, businesses that have been listed here. I might just give Council a little more detail around this for explanation purposes.

The panel—there are several companies listed—will be used to construct Council’s entire maritime infrastructure. Due to the volume of maritime infrastructure construction anticipated for the next three to five years, seven panel members have been selected to undertake major work such as multiple packages, ferry terminal projects, long and complex boardwalks et cetera. There are seven major contractors which is considered a sufficient number to allow Council to achieve best value for money and achieve the construction targets that we have set.

Madam Chairman, in addition to that some smaller construction contractors have been included on the panel for minor works. This could be works such as new and upgraded revetments, it could be boat ramps, boardwalks, pontoons, that type of thing. Some of the major contractors also have the ability to undertake these minor works projects. But we want to spread that work around and give everyone an opportunity, Madam Chairman, as a part of that panel provides Council with a broad range of capabilities and demonstrated their experience to undertake all of the ferry terminal and marine infrastructure projects, and rapid flood and storm event reconstruction to the required level of quality.

Madam Chairman, the next Item there is Bus Stop Disability. This is obviously to meet our compliance requirements. AECOM Australia Proprietary Limited have been the selected tenderer. Now, Madam Chairman, they are not the cheapest. They have however achieved the best value for money. Just again to


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give Council some explanation as to why we have departed in this instance from the cheapest tenderer. Council is working towards obviously achieving 100 per cent compliance with our DDA (Disability Discrimination Act) and DSAPT (Disability Standards for Accessible Public Transport) by December 2017, ahead of the legislative requirements of 2022.

Many bus-stops already meet these standards but continued upgrades are required to achieve 100 per cent compliance. Council has appointed a consultant to undertake an audit of all Brisbane bus-stops to determine which stops need to be upgraded and to develop an order of priority for the upgrades. The upgrades will be prioritised based on patronage, disabilities, services, Council priorities, land use and whether the stops are in high priority areas and other factors. So, Madam Chairman, there was across the index, we look at a number of things. Price is one factor but the overall value for money is the key thing with these and AECOM achieved that higher value for money.

The next one is the structural refit program. Hawley Construction Proprietary Limited received that tender of $952,000. A number of clubs will benefit, be a beneficiary of that—Newmarket Football Club, Western Districts Baseball Club, Nundah Memorial Hall, Robertson Scout Hall, Grovely Girl Guide's Hut, all beneficiaries.

Old Cleveland Road Culvert Upgrade Project, Civcorp Proprietary Limited has won that job at $961,000 with a value for money index well ahead of any other competing tenders.

Skate Shapes Landscaping Proprietary Limited won the tender for Frew Park, Milton redevelopment. Of course, Madam Chairman, it's been a well-publicised redevelopment of that site. So that's an $8.2 million job that they have in front of them.

Seawall repairs, this is an exciting one, Madam Chairman, down there are at Sandgate and Shorncliffe, $129,000 but it's about using the company Elite Retaining Systems Proprietary Limited to undertake the restoration works there, Brighton of course is included as well as another two suburbs along foreshores.

$189,000 is the estimated contract sum for Service Stream Holding Proprietary Limited, that's a civic pit and conduit installation work at Willawong.

Kookaburra Park which suffered in the 2013 flood event, Madam Chairman, $769,000, Epoca I think it's pronounced, Epoca Constructions Proprietary Limited will do that job.

The Royal Parade Pedestrian and Cycle Bridge at Ashgrove — ah la la — down in the Gap ward there, Doval Constructions, $499,000 job, Madam Chairman, which is about on the money what we thought, a half a million is where we were estimating that one would be.

Electronic Home Energy Assessment Tool Priority Group Australia, Madam Chairman, have got that job, $100,000 in work, $92,500 is their expected cost. Supply and delivery of the two new slipform kerbing machines, this is Delwuck Proprietary Limited, $172,800 is the expected cost there. There are two machines however so that will take $345,000 estimated contract sum.

Provision of computer hardware and associated services that is being provided by Dell Australia Proprietary Limited, there are a number of categories there, Madam Chairman, however. The next one is civil pit and conduit installation work — I've mentioned that one sorry, that's going backwards. The final one, Madam Chairman — that was the final one. There are a number of categories there on that final one the provision of computer hardware and associated services. They are listed there, differing amounts for different companies that will be engaged. Dell —

Chairman: LORD MAYOR.

LORD MAYOR: Thanks, Madam Chairman.

Chairman: Your time has expired. Councillor MURPHY.


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ADJOURNMENT:294/2013-14

At that time, 4.02pm, it was resolved on the motion of Councillor Ryan MURPHY, seconded by Councillor Andrew WINES, that the meeting adjourn for a period of 15 minutes, to commence only when all councillors hade vacated the chamber and the doors locked.

Council stood adjourned at 4.08pm.

UPON RESUMPTION:

Chairman: DEPUTY MAYOR, Infrastructure Committee.

DEPUTY MAYOR: Thank you, Madam Chairman. I move: that the Report of the Infrastructure Committee meeting —

Councillor JOHNSTON: Point of order! We're in the middle of Establishment and Coordination Committee (E&C), Madam Chairman.

Chairman: Just a moment. Oh, sorry, my apology. Sorry, DEPUTY MAYOR. Further speakers. Sorry, Councillor DICK.

Councillor DICK: You're all right; I'll be very, very brief. Well, there's not much in the report for me to speak about, Madam Chair, unfortunately, because we know there is only one item for the E&C. I suspect there were other items discussed at the E&C, but we don't have them today.

I want to make just some very quick remarks about the $1.934 million on the bus stop Disability Discrimination Act defined upgrade project. This is a very important project for our city, and I would appreciate the LORD MAYOR outlining a little more information about this project. I know we are now getting at least some information on the item. Once upon a time we used to be glossed over, but this is, I think, an important project that all Councillors across the city are paying very close attention to.

It was a couple of weeks ago where I put in an upgrade for a bus stop in my own area near a retirement village, and in the body of the report - I am summarising here - it did mention he was going to fund it for upgrades to bus stops. So I certainly hope that we will be able to fast track some of those projects. If there is more detail that the LORD MAYOR can do vis-à-vis time lines with particular regions or with particular areas, I know there are certain areas in our own local communities.

If the LORD MAYOR would like to announce today that he is happy to take those submissions, to take that feedback, I know I speak on behalf of Labor Councillors that we will be able to assist him with some of that work. If we can just get some broader parameters about that project, or Councillor MATIC, we're offering support for this project. We simply want to make sure that it's delivered on time.

There was some debate last year about projects running over time, particularly around some inner city bus stops in Councillor ABRAHAMS' ward, I think it was, at the time. We want to make sure that this project is fast tracked.

We certainly don't want any delays, and if we could get some information - perhaps this would be a great presentation that all Councillors could receive on a Tuesday about the implementation of this project and how we can ensure that our bus stops are complied with as quickly as possible.

Chairman: Further debate; Councillor MATIC.

Councillor MATIC: Thank you, Madam Chairman. I just rise to speak in respect of the matter, and particularly the issue around the DDA compliance. Just to inform the Chamber, the purpose of the audit report is to make sure that we have addressed every single bus stop across the city. It is certainly a huge task, but we are addressing it urgently. There are 6000 plus bus stops around the city that we need to deal with on a DDA compliance issue. The matter is being dealt with urgently, and


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once the bus stops have been fully audited, we're then going to outline a program of rolling out the DDA compliance as each bus stop is required.

The report will also outline some of those key criteria around that. Of course, issues such as volume of use, but also, importantly, to prioritise around certain infrastructure and assets and local community groups that would require DDA compliance around those bus stops. Certainly, Madam Chairman, once that report is out, and the schedule has been established, then we will be rolling that out across all of the city and advising local Councillors in their wards of which bus stops are obviously being done and in what order in their own wards, and then being able to roll those out as quickly as possible to meet our statutory requirements.

Chairman: Further debate; Councillor JOHNSTON.

Councillor JOHNSTON: Yes, Establishment and Coordination Committee report; meeting held on Monday 4 November 2013 to be presented to Council on Tuesday 12 November 2013: Dedicated to a Better Brisbane. Table of Contents. Clause A. Title: Contracts and Tendering - Report to Council of contracts accepted by delegates for September 2013. Page number 1.

Establishment and Coordination Committee report; meeting held on Monday 4 November —

DEPUTY MAYOR: Point of order, Madam Chairman.

Chairman: Yes, point of order against you, Councillor JOHNSTON. Yes, DEPUTY MAYOR.

DEPUTY MAYOR: Councillors can all read the same thing that we are just hearing now. Has the Councillor got anything to contribute to the debate?

Chairman: Yes, it would be interesting to see Councillor JOHNSTON actually get to the substance of the report, please. Thank you Councillor JOHNSTON.

Councillor JOHNSTON: Thank you, Madam Chairman. Meeting held on Monday 4 November 2013 to be presented to Council on Tuesday 12 November 2013: Dedicated to a Better Brisbane. Attendance; the Right Honourable LORD MAYOR, Councillor Graham QUIRK, Chairman; DEPUTY MAYOR, Councillor Adrian SCHRINNER, Acting Chairman; and Councillors Krista ADAMS, Matthew BOURKE, Amanda COOPER, Peter MATIC, David McLACHLAN, and Julian SIMMONDS.

A. Contracts and Tendering - Report to Council of contracts accepted by delegates for September 2013. 109/695/568/2

1. The Chief Executive officer provided the information below.

2. The report of contracts accepted by delegates for September 2013 is submitted for the information of Council.

3. Sections 238 and 239 of the City of Brisbane Act 2010 provide that Council may delegate some of its powers. Those powers include the power to enter into contracts under section 242 of the City of Brisbane Act 2010.

4. Council has previously delegated some powers to make, vary or discharge contracts for the procurement of goods, services or works. Council made these delegations to the Establishment and Coordination Committee, Chief Executive Officer and permanent heads of the units of administration.

5. City of Brisbane Act Regulation 2012 (the Regulation) was made pursuant to the City of Brisbane Act 2010. Section 227 in Chapter 6, part 4 of the Regulation provides that:

(i). The Council must, as soon as practicable, after entering into a contract under this Chapter worth $200,000 or more (exclusive of GST) publish relevant details of the contract on the Council's website;

(ii). The relevant details must be published under section (1) for a period of at least 12 months;


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(iii). Also, if a person asks the Council to give relevant details of a contract, the Council must allow the person to inspect the relevant details at the Council's public office. Relevant details is defined in section 227, Chapter 6 (part 4(iv)) as including:

(a) A person with whom Council has entered into the contract;

(b) The value of the contract; and

(c) The purpose of the contract (e.g. the particular goods or services to be supplied under the contract.)

6. It is therefore recommended that Council notes the report of the contracts accepted by the delegates for September 2013 as set out under attachment A hereunder, financial impact.

7. Funding for the accepted contracts has been provided in the divisional budgets.

8. Therefore it is recommended that Council note the report of the contracts accepted by delegates for September 2013.

9. Accordingly the Chief Executive Officer submits the following the recommendation with which the Committee agreed.

10. Recommendation; the report to Council of contracts accepted by delegates for September 2013, as detailed in the schedule submitted hereunder, be noted.

Attachment A. City of Brisbane Act Regulation 2012 - Chapter 6 - Contracting. Details of contracts accepted by delegates of Council for September 2013. Contract/quote number and successful contractors, delegate, price accepted and type of arrangement, contract quote purpose, unsuccessful tenderers and quoters, prices tendered, approval, start/end dates and term.

Brisbane Infrastructure A100016-09/10/13 Naturform Pty Limited, $207,652. Achieved [twice] value for money index (VFM) of 8.8. EM City Projects Office, $207,652 (estimated contract sum). Stage 2, Gap Creek, reserve amenities upgrade. Dig It Landscapes, achieved value for money index VFM of 6.6. Price tendered, $255,540. Approved 26.08.13 Start, 02.09.13. End, expect a completion within 14 weeks.

Bl130224-12-13 Recommended tenderers Major Projects. Scope includes packages of multiple ferry terminal reconstruction or maritime infrastructure projects including onshore civil works, McConnell Dowell Constructions Australia Pty Ltd achieved a score of 73.0. JF Hull Holdings Pty Ltd achieved a score of 68.7. Smithridge Group Pty Ltd achieved a score of 67.9.

CEO. $158 million estimated expenditure under maximum term of the panel arrangement. Ferry terminal and maritime infrastructure construction and upgrades. Tenderers not recommended Major Projects. Baulderstone Pty Ltd achieved a score of 63.3; John Holland (Qld) Pty Ltd achieved a score of 71.5. Did not agree to BCC's essential terms and conditions. NA approved: 3.09.13. start, 13.09.13. End, initial term 09.09.16; maximum term 5 years. Recommended tenderers Minor Projects. Scope includes single ferry terminal construction, boardwalks, jetties, pontoon, boat ramps, revetments and DDA upgrade on existing ferry terminals.

The Marina Specialist Pty Ltd t/a The Jetty Specialist achieved highest score of 63.6. Atlas Marine International Pty Ltd t/a Superior Jetties, specialist pontoon expertise achieved a score of 59.9. Sand Queensland Pty Ltd t/a Pacific Pontoon and Pier Specialist Pontoon Expertise achieved a score of 53.9. Bellingham Marine Australia Pty Ltd, specialist pontoon expertise, achieved a score of 53.5.

Tenderers not recommended Minor Projects. Envirostruct Services Pty Ltd achieved a score of 52. O'Connor Kelly Pty Ltd achieved a score of 49.8. Starlight Engineering Pty Ltd achieved a score of 45. TodKills Marine Specialist t/a Towing and Marine Services Pty Ltd achieved a score of 44.3. Building Solutions Pty Ltd achieved a score of 36.8. Pride Fabrication Pty Ltd achieved a score of 28.5.


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Recommended tenderers Major and Minor - I'm sorry, I forget the dash. Recommended tenderers - Major and Minor Projects; Waterway Constructions Pty Ltd achieved a highest score of 84.1. Brady Marine and Civil Pty Ltd achieved a score of 74.7. Golding Contractors Pty Ltd achieved a score of 67.2. York Civil Pty Ltd achieved a score of 65.9. Tenderers not recommended Major and Minor Projects. Abergeldie Construction Pty Ltd achieved a score of 63. Moggill Constructions Pty Ltd achieved a score of 62.65. Dempsey Australia Pty Ltd achieved a score of 62.3. SMC Marine Pty Ltd achieved a score of 61.4. Construction Pty Ltd achieved a score of 60.7.

J. Hutchinson Pty Ltd t/a Hutchinson Builders achieved a score of 57.85. Dobell Construction Queensland Pty Ltd achieved a score of 55.15. Crosana Pty Ltd achieved a score of 46.6. [Hugh Port Marine Services Pty Ltd] achieved a score of 43. 4. Dynamic Marine Services Pty Ltd achieved a score of 42.1. Walz Construction Co Pty Ltd achieved a score of 36.5. Tompkins Commercial and Industrial Builders Pty Ltd achieved a score of 36.05. Elite Retaining Systems Pty Ltd achieved a score 35.55. Dickinson Constructions Pty Ltd achieved a score of 33.9.

Cuchulainn Constructions Pty Ltd achieved a score of 15.3. CPQ140011-13/14 —

Chairman: Councillor JOHNSTON, your time has expired. Further debate on the E&C? LORD MAYOR.

LORD MAYOR: Madam Chairman, just in response to Councillor DICK, as was indicated in the report, we are proposing to have this work completed by 2017. That is our target. We have, of course, under legislation until 2022 to complete that work. There are around 6000 bus stops across the city, some of those will be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to achieve under DDA compliance, and there is a process that the Federal Government has in place through that legislation to look at that through things that are simply not possible because of historical arrangements, in terms of the way some of those old bus stops and that were developed long before disability access was, I suppose, an important issue in society's eyes.

But obviously, as we roll out this program, we will provide information to local Councillors so they can be aware of what is happening in terms of that compliance task. As an Administration, we will continue to strive to achieve those fairly probably almost leading targets, I think, across the nation in terms of what governments are doing. Again, we have until 2022, but we want to do it a lot faster than that. I thank him for his contribution.

Upon being submitted to the Chamber, the motion for the adoption of the report of the Establishment and Coordination Committee was declared carried on the voices.

The report read as follows

ATTENDANCE:

The Right Honourable the Lord Mayor (Councillor Graham Quirk) (Chairman), Deputy Mayor (Councillor Adrian Schrinner) (Deputy Chairman), and Councillors Krista Adams, Matthew Bourke, Amanda Cooper, Peter Matic, David McLachlan, and Julian Simmonds.

A CONTRACTS AND TENDERING – REPORT TO COUNCIL OF CONTRACTS ACCEPTED BY DELEGATES FOR SEPTEMBER 2013109/695/586/2

295/2013-141. The Chief Executive Officer provided the information below.


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2. The report of contracts accepted by delegates for September 2013 is submitted for the information of Council.

3. Sections 238 and 239 of the City of Brisbane Act 2010 provide that Council may delegate some of its powers. Those powers include the power to enter into contracts under section 242 of the City of Brisbane Act 2010.

4. Council has previously delegated some powers to make, vary or discharge contracts for the procurement of goods, services or works. Council made these delegations to the Establishment and Coordination Committee, Chief Executive Officer and permanent heads of the units of administration.

5. The City of Brisbane Regulation 2012 (the Regulation) was made pursuant to the City of Brisbane Act 2010. Section 227 in Chapter 6 (Part 4) of the Regulation provides that: (1) The Council must, as soon as practicable after entering into a contract under this chapter worth $200,000 or more (exclusive of GST), publish relevant details of the contract on Council’s website; (2) The relevant details must be published under subsection (1) for a period of at least 12 months; (3) Also, if a person asks the Council to give relevant details of a contract, the Council must allow the person to inspect the relevant details at the Council’s public office. ‘Relevant details’ is defined in section 227 Chapter 6 (Part 4) (4) as including: (a) the person with whom Council has entered into the contract; (b) the value of the contract; and (c) the purpose of the contract (e.g. the particular goods or services to be supplied under the contract).

6. It is therefore recommended that Council note the report of contracts accepted by delegates for September 2013, as set out in Attachment A, hereunder.

Financial impact

7. Funding for the accepted contracts has been provided in divisional budgets.

8. It is therefore recommended that Council note the report of contracts accepted by delegates for September 2013.

9. Accordingly, the Chief Executive Officer submits the following recommendation with which the Committee agreed.

10. RECOMMENDATION:

THAT THE REPORT TO COUNCIL OF CONTRACTS ACCEPTED BY DELEGATES FOR SEPTEMBER 2013, AS DETAILED IN THE SCHEDULE SUBMITTED HEREUNDER, BE NOTED.

Attachment ACity of Brisbane Regulation 2012 – Chapter 6 - Contracting

Details of Contracts Accepted by Delegates of Council for September 2013Contract/Quote No. &

Successful Contractor/sDelegate Price Accepted

& Type of Arrangement

Contract/Quote Purpose Unsuccessful Tenders& Quoters

Prices Tendered

Approval,Start/End

Dates & TermBRISBANE INFRASTRUCTUREA100016-09/10-13.

Naturform Pty Ltd - $207,652.Achieved Highest Value for Money Index {VFM} of 8.8

EM City Projects Office.

$207,652.(estimated contract sum).

Stage 2 Gap Creek Reserve Amenities Upgrade.

Dig-it Landscapes.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 6.6.

$255,540. Approved:26.08.13.Start:02.09.13End:Expected completion within 14 weeks.

BI130224-12/13. CEO. $158,000,000.(estimated expenditure

Ferry Terminal and Maritime Infrastructure Construction and Tenderers not recommended - Major

N/A Approved:03.09.13.Start:


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Contract/Quote No. &Successful Contractor/s

Delegate Price Accepted & Type of

Arrangement


Prices Tendered

Approval,Start/End

Dates & TermRecommended Tenderers - Major Projects:(Scope includes packages of multiple ferry terminal reconstruction or major maritime infrastructure projects including onshore civil works).

McConnell Dowell Constructions (Aust) Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 73.9.

JF Hull Holdings Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 68.7.

Smithbridge Group Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 67.9.

Recommended Tenderers - Minor Projects:(Scope includes single ferry terminal construction, boadwalks, jetties, pontoons, boat ramps, revetments and DDA upgrade on existing ferry terminals).

The Marina Specialist Pty Ltd t/a The Jetty Specialist.Achieved highest score of 63.7.

Atlas Marine International Pty Ltd t/a Superior Jetties. (Specialist pontoon expertise).Achieved score of 59.9.

Sand Queensland Pty Ltd t/a Pacific Pontoon and Pier. (Specialist pontoon expertise).Achieved score of 53.9.

Bellingham Marine Australia Pty Ltd.(Specialist pontoon expertise).Achieved score of 53.5.

Recommended Tenderers - Major and Minor Projects:

Waterway Constructions Pty Ltd.Achieved highest score of 84.1

Brady Marine & Civil Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 74.7.

Golding Contractors Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 67.2.

York Civil Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 65.9.

under maximum term of the Panel Arrangement).

Upgrades. Projects:

Baulderstone Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 63.3. John Holland Queensland Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 71.5.(did not agree to BCC essential Terms and Conditions).

Tenderers not recommended - Minor Projects:

EnviroStruct Services Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 52.0.

O’Connor Kelly Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 49.8.

Starlight Engineering Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 45.0.

Todkills Marine Services t/a Towing and Marine Services Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 44.3.

Building Solutions Brisbane Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 36.8.

Pryde Fabrication Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 28.55.

Tenderers not recommended - Major and Minor Projects:

Abergeldie Constructions Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 63.0.

Moggill Constructions Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 62.65.

Dempsey Australia Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 62.3.

SMC Marine Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 61.4.

Epoca Constructions Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 60.7.

J Hutchinson Pty Ltd t/a Hutchinson Builders.Achieved score of 57.85.

Doval Constructions (Qld) Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 55.15.

Crosana Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 46.6.

QPort Marine Services Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 43.4.

Dynamic Marine Services Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 42.1.

Walz Construction Co Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 36.15.

Tomkins Commercial and Industrial Builders Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 36.05.

Elite Retaining Systems Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 35.55.

13.09.13.End:(initial term)09.09.16.Max. Term(5) years.


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Arrangement


Prices Tendered

Approval,Start/End

Dates & Term

Dickinson Constructions Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 33.9.

Cuchulainn Constructions Pty Ltd.Achieved score of 15.3.

CPO140011-13/14.

AECOM Australia Pty Ltd $1,934,373.Achieved Highest Value for Money Index {VFM} of 396.

CEO. $1,934,373(estimated contract sum).

Bus Stop Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (DDA) Compliance Upgrade Project.

Shortlisted Tenderers:

Lambert & Rehbein (SEQ) Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 388.

GHD Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 254.

Sinclair Knight Merz Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 209.

ARUP Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 160.

SMEC Australia Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 109.

Tenderers not shortlisted:(Value for Money Index {VFM} not calculated).

Dickinson Construction Pty Ltd.Pryde Fabrication Pty Ltd.

Non-conforming Tenderers:

Geomatic Technologies Pty Ltd.Rapid Map Services Pty Ltd.URS Australia Pty Ltd.

$1,754,170.

$2,642,129.

$3,439,206.

$4,261,928.

$4,477,361.

$11,265,104.$542,642.

$493,200.$1,713,458.$3,731,516.

Approved:17.09.13.Start:27.09.13End:Expected completion within 5 months.

CPO140016-13/14.

Hawley Constructions Pty Ltd - $952,718.Achieved Highest Value for Money Index {VFM} of 8.98.

CPO. $952,718.(estimated contract sum).

Structural Repair Program – Package 10.Newmarket Football Club, Western Districts Baseball Club (Darra), Nundah Memorial Hall, Robertson Scout Hall (MacGregor), Grovely Girl Guides Hut (Keperra).

Maicon Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 7.81.

PBI Australia Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 7.67.

Box and Co Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 6.56.

$888,859.

$1,034,255.

$1,148,255.

Approved:05.09.13.Start:24.09.13End:Expected completion within 24 weeks.

CPO140021-13/14.

Civcorp Pty Ltd - $961,824.Achieved Highest Value for Money Index {VFM} of 68.6.


Old Cleveland Road Culvert Upgrade Project


Abergeldie.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 35.9.

Bothar Boring.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 33.0.

Tenderers not shortlisted:

Entracon Civil Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 19.0.

Rob Carr Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 12.0.

Rob Carr Pty Ltd (alternative offer)(non-conforming Value for Money Index {VFM} not calculated)

$1,588,145.

$1,361,768.

$1,896,126.

$2,335,930.

$1,377,328.


CPOQ130236-12/13.

Scape Shapes Landscape Pty Ltd - $8,230,705.Achieved Highest Value for Money Index {VFM} of 9.43.

CEO. $8,230,705.(estimated contract sum).

Frew Park Milton Redevelopment – Engagement of a Construction Principal.


JMAC Constructions.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 8.92.

Pensar Civil.

$8,992,771.

$8,705,934.

Approved:24.09.13.Start:21.10.13End:Expected completion within


- 37 -



Arrangement


Prices Tendered

Approval,Start/End

Dates & TermAchieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 8.48.

Landscape Solutions Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 8.14.

Cockram Constructions Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 8.12.

Tenderers not shortlisted:

Naturform Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 6.33.

Non-conforming:(Value for Money Index {VFM} not calculated)

Abyss Demolition P/L.(Part offer for demolition work only).

$7,344,187.

$8,989,598.

$11,531,648.

$189,750.

48 weeks.

FSG140005-13/14.

Elite Retaining Systems Pty Ltd - $129,480.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 1.63.

EM Field Services Group


Seawall Repairs and Restoration – Brighton, Sandgate and Shorncliffe.

Thorndale Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 1.59.

Building Solutions Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 1.3.

Bland2Brilliant Landscapes Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 1.2.

Moggill Constructions Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 1.1.

Pensar Building Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 1.0.

Crosana Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 0.9.

Doval Construction Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 0.8.

Entracon Civil Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 0.6.

Queensland Heritage Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 0.3.

Skeen Constructions.(Tender incomplete - Value for Money Index {VFM} not calculated).

O’Connor Kelly Pty Ltd.(Offer withdrawn)

$88,511.

$158,527.

$181,176.

$205,994.

$209,541.

$235,449.

$230,384.

$314,316.

$338,713.

$109,371.

$69,022.

Approved:05.09.13.Start:23.09.13Expected completion:5 weeks.

FSG140039-13/14.

Service Stream Holdings Pty Ltd t/a SEQUD - $189,482.Achieved Highest Value for Money Index {VFM} of 371.7.

EM Field Services Group.


Civil Pit and Conduit Installation Willawong.


Civex Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 230.9.

Sheriff Drilling and Excavations Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 152.9.

Tenderers not shortlisted:(Final Tendered Price and Value for Money Index not calculated).

Integra Contracting Pty Ltd.

$153,701.

$203,054.

N/A.



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Arrangement


Prices Tendered

Approval,Start/End

Dates & Term(Excluded from evaluation due to price exceeding budget).

V110211-10/11-50.

Epoca Constructions Pty Ltd - $769,405.Achieved Highest Value for Money Index {VFM} of 8,058.


Kookaburra Park – 2013 Australia Day Storm Event – Flood Recovery.

Abergeldie Constructions Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 5,325.

Moggill Constructions Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 7,992.

McIllwain Civil Engineering Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 6,312.

Civil Contractors (Aust) Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 3,534.

Brittwood Constructions Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 2,489.

$694,866.

$813,287.

$879,316.

$1,047,105.

$1,104,872.


V110211-10/11-54.

Doval Constructions (Qld) Pty Ltd - $499,121.Achieved Highest Value for Money Index {VFM} of 13.424.

CPO. $499.121.(estimated contract sum).

Royal Parade Pedestrian & Cycle Bridge – Ashgrove.

Davbridge Constructions.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 9.536.

McIllwain Civil Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 7.436.

Epoca Constructions Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 11.513.

Moggill Constructions Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 8.268.

Queensland Bridge & Civil (Alternative 2).Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 12.543.

Abergeldie Constructions Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 9.646.

Non-conforming Tenders:(Value for Money Index {VFM} not calculated).

Queensland Bridge & Civil.Queensland Bridge & Civil (Alternative 1).

$487,637.

$524,467.

$573,285.

$586,852.

$605,890.

$632,354.

$526,910.$542,860.


BRISBANE LIFESTYLENil.BRISBANE TRANSPORTNil.CITY PLANNING & SUSTAINABILITYOS140003-13/14.

Priority Group Australia Pty Ltd - $92,500.*Achieved Highest Value for Money Index {VFM} of 0.90.

*Final tendered price is for training, software modification, application of tool in 1000 homes and outright purchase of devices (ie. tablets). Estimated contract expenditure includes additional items negotiated with the successful contractor.

CPO. $100,010.*(estimated contract sum).

Electronic Home Energy Assessment Tool.

Steplight Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 0.70.

Local Government Infrastructure Services.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 0.18.

$92,000.*

$455,555.*

Approved:03.09.13.Start:17.09.13.End:16.02.15.(17 months)

DISASTER RESPONSE & RECOVERYNil.OFFICE OF THE LORD MAYOR & CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICERNil.ORGANISATIONAL SERVICESSPO130150-12/13.

Delwuck Pty Ltd t/a Arrow Machinery -

CPO. $345,600.(estimated contract sum for

Supply and Deliver of up to two New Slipform Kerbing Machines.

Arc Technology Systems Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 4.0.

$216,000.* Approved:12.09.13.Start:


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Arrangement


Prices Tendered

Approval,Start/End

Dates & Term$172,800.*Achieved Highest Value for Money Index {VFM} of 7.2.

*Price is tendered price per machine.

up to two machines). Non-conforming Tenderers:

Aran Australia Pty Ltd.Gomaco Corporation.

N/A.N/A.

18.09.13.End:Upon delivery.

SPO130251-12/13.

CATEGORY 1A - Desktops & Laptops:

Dell Australia Pty Ltd - $1,690,074* #

Achieved Highest Value for Money Index {VFM} of 40.54.

CATEGORY 1B - Installation Decommissioning Services:

Dell Australia Pty Ltd - $96,000*Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 63.77.

CATEGORY 2 - Server Hardware:

Dell Australia Pty Ltd - $1,161,569* #

Achieved Highest Value for Money Index {VFM} of 69.77.

*Final tendered price calculated using tendered rates measured against the volume of computer hardware purchased 2012/13 financial year.

# Rates offered where a preferred supplier arrangement is given for all categories.

CEO. $14,700,000.(Estimated expenditure under maximum term of the Preferred Supplier Arrangement).

Provision of Computer Hardware & Associated Services. CATEGORY 1A - Desktops & Laptops:

Datacom Systems Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 38.66.

Acer Computer Australia Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 35.72.

Data#3 Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 29.03.

CATEGORY 1B - Installation Decommissioning Services:

ACT Logistics Pty Ltd.Achieved Highest Value for Money Index {VFM} of 66.38.

Buyequip Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 57.81.


Acer Computer Australia Pty Ltd.Achieved Value for Money Index {VFM} of 49.06.


CATEGORY 2 - Server Hardware:



$1,639,036.*

$1,894,081.*

$2,244,790.*

$103,200.*

$111,600.*

$120,000.*

$126,922.*

$138,000.*

$1,294,842.*

$1,319,634.*

Approved:17.09.13.Start:01.10.13.End:(initial term)30.09.16.Max. Term(5) years.

ADOPTED.

INFRASTRUCTURE COMMITTEE

DEPUTY MAYOR, Councillor Adrian SCHRINNER, Chairman of the Infrastructure Committee, moved, seconded by Councillor Ian McKENZIE, that the report of the meeting of that Committee held on 5 November 2013, be adopted.

Chairman: Is there any debate?

DEPUTY MAYOR: Yes, Madam Chairman. We had a presentation last week on the new public tours that are available in the Walter Taylor Bridge, on the Indooroopilly side of the bridge. This is a very positive development in relation to opening up our city's history, and a particularly unique part of our city's history. As councillors would be aware, the Walter Taylor Bridge is unique in the fact that it was originally built as a privately built and funded and operated toll bridge. So anyone who


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thinks that private toll roads is something new to our city is absolutely incorrect; they have a long history, and the Walter Taylor Bridge is part of that history, and an important part, indeed.

Essentially, as councillors would have heard at the Committee presentation last week, the internal part of the bridge has been vacant for a number of years. Prior to that, there were actually people living in the bridge. I understand they were relatives of the original toll collectors of the Walter Taylor Bridge, and they had an ongoing contract in place which allowed them to reside in the bridge. After the bridge was sitting vacant for a number of years, Council obviously investigated some options on what could be done to activate that bridge and potentially open it up to the public.

We looked at things like whether it could be either re-activated as a residential tenancy or whether it could be activated as a café or a restaurant. In assessing some of those options, the best option that was put forward was to make some minor improvements to make the internal part of the Indooroopilly tower safe, and then to open it up for public tours. So that is exactly what has happened, and I commend the officers in the Asset Management Branch for the work they have done to open this particular asset of our city to the public.

I am pleased to report that we have already had around 1000 visits into the bridge. There has been absolutely great feedback. There is a visitor book that people can sign when they come on the tour, and having a look through the signatures we have got in that book so far, there are people from all around Brisbane that have come, and there are also people that have travelled from further afield. Indeed, one person visited from Thursday Island to come and see the Walter Taylor Bridge.

I encourage all councillors, if you haven't had the opportunity already, to please sign up for a tour. Go and experience the inside of a very unique part of Brisbane's history, and also encourage your residents to do the same. Let them know about this opportunity. The tours book up very quickly, and I understand we are booked out until mid-December at the moment. Obviously, the tours are offered on an ongoing basis, thanks to the Brisbane Greeters program. As I said, I encourage people to take advantage of this opportunity.

At Items B and C we have a couple of petitions, and I welcome any debate or contribution that councillors may have to those items.

Chairman: Further debate; Councillor DICK.

Councillor DICK: Thanks, Madam Chair; I want to speak very briefly on Item A. I don't do this very often, but I will congratulate Councillor SCHRINNER and the—


Councillor DICK: Yes I will; credit where credit is due. When I see a good thing happening, I am happy to offer my support. The Walter Taylor Bridge is a very important landmark for our city, and I have said in Committee before that my grandfather, in one of his early jobs, drove the ferry before the bridge was built. So there is a little historical connection there, and there is a house on the corner, as you go around that sharp bend underneath —


Councillor DICK: Everyone knows that house? Well, that's where my mother lived for a number of years when she was growing up. So that part of Brisbane is a very special part of not only the local history but also my own family. I do want to congratulate the Council. This has bipartisan support. I don't want to be too controversial and stir anything up here, but it would be good to see the second tower operational as well. Councillor SCHRINNER spoke about having a ballroom there and having a dinner there, possibly. So, Madam Chair, this is a great initiative from the Council. I acknowledge the work of the Council officers, and congratulate them on a job well done.

Chairman: Further debate; Councillor JOHNSTON.


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Councillor JOHNSTON: Infrastructure Committee Report, meeting held on Tuesday 5 November 2013, to be presented to Council on Tuesday 12 November 2013, Dedicated to a Better Brisbane. Table of contents. Clause A. Title, committee presentation – Walter Taylor Bridge. Page number 1. B, petition – requesting Council to undertake a safety audit including a reduction in the 50 kilometre speed limit of Mollison Street, South Brisbane, to ensure safe movement of pedestrians. 2. C. petition requesting Council to provide timing around the proposed investigation into pedestrian/cycle bridge between Bulimba and Teneriffe as noted in the Brisbane City Plan 2013.

4. Infrastructure Committee Report, meeting held on Tuesday 5 November 2013, to be presented to Council on Tuesday 12 November 2013, Dedicated to a Better Brisbane. Attendance; DEPUTY MAYOR, Councillor Adrian SCHRINNER, Chairman; Councillor Ian McKENZIE, Acting Chairman; and Councillors Margaret De WITT, Milton DICK, Victoria NEWTON and Norm WYNDHAM.

A. Committee presentation – Walter Taylor Bridge 1. Joe Bannon, Branch Manager, Asset Management, Brisbane infrastructure Division attended the meeting to provide an update on work carried out at the Walter Taylor Bridge. He provided the information below.

2. A brief history of the Walter Taylor Bridge was provided to the Committee. The bridge was constructed between 1930 and 1936 and opened in 1936 on Valentine's Day. The bridge remained a toll bridge until 1960s.

3. In October 1992 the Walter Taylor Bridge was registered in the State Heritage Register. The Chelmer Tower was utilised as a residential unit up to 2004. The Indooroopilly Tower was the residence of the toll keeper and his descendants until 2010. Both towers have subsequently been used by the bridge maintenance crews.

4. In early 2013 a feasibility study was conducted to investigate optimum utilisation of the Indooroopilly Tower. Some of the options include; a commercial lease operation, e.g. café; a residential unit; the continued use by maintenance crews.

DEPUTY MAYOR: Point of order, Madam Chairman.

Chairman: Yes, DEPUTY MAYOR; point of order against you, Councillor JOHNSTON.

DEPUTY MAYOR: Under the Meetings Local Law, Division 5, Consideration of Standing Committee reports, particularly item 6, it says, 'The Chairman shall then call for debate on the motion to adopt the report.' Then it specifically talks about the debate. We are not hearing any debate at all here; we are just hearing someone read a report.

Chairman: Yes. DEPUTY MAYOR, I think whilst Councillor JOHNSTON contains her comments to the content of the report, she is free to use her 10 minutes how she wishes. Thank you.

Councillor JOHNSTON: Thank you, so much, Madam Chairman; I appreciate that. Now, where was I? Should I start from the beginning? I was up to about – no, I did 4.

5. Due to the interior design and heritage significance of the bridge, the proposed options above were not considered practical. One further option to open the Indooroopilly Tower for public tours was investigated and adopted.

6. Public tours have necessitated minor modifications to the interior of the tower to make it safer for members of the public.

7. Some photographs were displayed showing before and after images of the work that had been undertaken, including re-hanging the entrance doors to open outwards, to make them compliant as fire exits; installing a ramp at the front entrance and the car park clean-up; installing handrails on all the stairs; installing high visibility safety nosing on the stairs; erecting safety fencing at both entrances of the tower; removing an old awning; and repairing and increasing the height of the balustrade.


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8. Some other issues which have been addressed include repairing the sewerage system; extensive cleaning of the facility; repairs to the emergency lighting system; the installation of additional exit and safety warning lights; disconnection of gas appliances; connection of electrical hot water system.

9. Weekend tours under the management of Brisbane Greeters program commenced on 26 October 2013 and had been very well received. A total of 932 people have taken or booked tours between 26 October 2013 and 8 December 2013.

10. Following a number of questions from the Committee, the Chairman thanked Mr Bannon for his informative presentation.

11. Recommendation; that Council note the information contained in the above report.

B. Petition requesting Council to undertake a safety audit, including a reduction in the 50 kilometre speed limit at Mollison Street, South Brisbane, to ensure safe movement of pedestrians. CA13/473009.

12. A petition from residents of Brisbane requesting Council to undertake a safety audit, including a reduction in the 50 kilometre per hour speed limit at Mollison Street, South Brisbane, to ensure safe movement of pedestrians was received during the winter recess 2013.

13. The Manager, Transport Planning and Strategy Brisbane Infrastructure Division, supplied the following information.

14. The petition contains the total of 126 signatures; 47 signatures represent residents from within wider Brisbane area and 79 signatures are from residents at the units of 30 to 50 Mollison Street, South Brisbane.

15. Mollison Street is classified as a district access road which means it is an important road in the local road network. Mollison Street links Boundary Street and Montague Road, and has mixed land use with a variety of commercial properties and high density residential developments.

16. Council has undertaken a safety review of Mollison Street which considered the same types of issues that would have addressed through a formal safety audit. The findings of this safety audit review are detailed as below.

17. Traffic volumes – a traffic volume survey was undertaken in July 2013 showed that 5012 vehicles use Mollison Street each day. District access roads can be expected to carry up to 11,000 vehicles per day. This shows that the current vehicle volumes are well within acceptable limits for this type of road. Traffic speeds – the current speed limit for Mollison Street is 50 kilometres per hour. A speed survey undertaken in July 2013 showed that the 85th percentile speed for both the eastbound and westbound directions was 46 kilometres per hour. This means that 85 per cent of drivers are travelling at or below this speed. In fact, the 95th percentile was 50 kilometres per hour. This means that 95 per cent of drivers are travelling at or below the posted speed limit. This shows excellent compliance with the posted speed limit.

19. Accident history. A search of the State Government's crash database shows there have been nine recorded accidents over a 10-year period. Eight accidents were minor in nature, with the main cause being undue care and attention rather than speed. One accident involved over-consumption of alcohol.

20. Road characteristics – Mollison Street is 375 metres long, and is controlled by signals at each end of Boundary Street and Montague Road. The pavement width is sufficient to allow two through lanes of traffic with passing on both sides of the street. Bank Street intersects with Mollison Street, a T-junction, approximately 200 metres from Boundary Street. Mollison Street is largely straight and level, with a very moderate bend and a slight vertical crest. A broken centre line is in place to delineate the correct driving path. Sight lines are good, with extensive no stopping restrictions around the bend to ensure very generous visibility for motorists using the driveway at the apartments of 30 Mollison Street.


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21. Land use – Mollison Street has a predominately commercial land use with some residential developments towards the Boundary Street end. The recent development of higher density apartments over single unit dwellings has significantly increased the number of residents in this street.

22. Traffic generation – vehicular traffic is predominately to and from the residential apartments, and those using on-street parking to access the retail commercial precinct on Boundary Street. Pedestrian movements are largely local residents and those utilising on-street parking.

23. Public transport – buses service this area in both directions, and a terminus is included.

24. Based on the above information, it is not proposed to lower the speed limit from 50 kilometres an hour nor introduce any changes to the road environment as visibility for both pedestrians and motorists is adequate. Funding.

25. Funding to undertake a road safety review was available in the current budget. Program 2 – Moving Brisbane, from schedule 209 – General Amenity – and this was undertaken. Consultation.

26. The Councillor for The Gabba Ward, Councillor Helen ABRAHAMS, has been consulted and does not support the recommendation. Customer impact.

27. The recommendation below addresses the petitioners' concerns as a road safety review has been undertaken. The petitioners may not be happy with the recommendations from the road safety review as it does not lower the speed limit, nor make any changes to the existing road environment as visibility for motorists and pedestrian is adequate. Preferred option. It is the preferred option that Council endorse the results of the road safety review for Mollison Street, South Brisbane.

29. The Manager recommends as follows, and the Committee agrees.

30. Recommendations; that the petitioners be advised of the information contained in this report, and that Council endorses the preferred option above.

C. Petition - requesting Council to provide timing around the investigation into a pedestrian/cycle bridge between Bulimba and Teneriffe as noted in the Brisbane City Plan 2013 CA13/541726.

Chairman: Councillor JOHNSTON, your time has expired. Further debate on the Infrastructure Committee? DEPUTY MAYOR?

Upon being submitted to the Chamber, the motion for the adoption of the report of the Infrastructure Committee was declared carried on the voices.


ATTENDANCE:

Deputy Mayor, Councillor Adrian Schrinner (Chairman), Councillor Ian McKenzie (Deputy Chairman), and Councillors Margaret de Wit, Milton Dick, Victoria Newton and Norm Wyndham.

A COMMITTEE PRESENTATION – WALTER TAYLOR BRIDGE

296/2013-141. Joe Bannan, Branch Manager, Asset Management, Brisbane Infrastructure Division, attended

the meeting to provide an update on work carried out at the Walter Taylor Bridge. He provided the information below.

2. A brief history of the Walter Taylor Bridge was provided to the Committee. The bridge was constructed between 1930 and 1936 and opened in 1936 on Valentine’s day. The bridge remained a toll bridge until the 1960s.


- 44 -

3. In October 1992 the Walter Taylor Bridge was registered in the State Heritage register. The Chelmer Tower was utilised as a residential unit up to 2004. The Indooroopilly Tower was the residence of the toll keeper and his descendants until 2010. Both towers have subsequently been used by the bridge maintenance crews.

4. In early 2013 a feasibility study was conducted to investigate optimum utilisation of the Indooroopilly Tower. Some of the options considered include:- a commercial lease operation e.g, café- a residential unit- the continued use by maintenance crews.

5. Due to the interior design and heritage significance of the bridge the proposed options above were not considered practical. One further option to open the Indooroopilly tower for public tours was investigated and adopted.

6. Public tours have necessitated minor modifications to the interior of the tower to make it a safer for members of the public.

7. Some photographs were displayed showing before and after images of the work that has been undertaken including:- re-hanging the entrance doors to open outwards to make them compliant as fire exits- installing a ramp at the front entrance and the carpark clean-up- installing hand rails on all stairways- installing high-visibility safety nosing on the stairs- erecting safety fencing at both entrances of the tower- removing an old awning, and repairing and increasing the height of balustrade.

8. Some other issues which have been addressed include:- repairing the sewage system- extensive cleaning of the facility- repairs to the emergency lighting system- installation of additional exit and safety warning lights- disconnection of gas appliances- connection of electrical hot water system.

9. Weekend tours under the management of the Brisbane Greeters program commenced on 26 October 2013 and has been very well received. A total of 932 people have taken or booked tours between 26 October 2013 and 8 December 2013.

10. Following a number of questions from the Committee, the Chairman thanked Mr Bannan for his informative presentation.

11. RECOMMENDATION:

THAT COUNCIL NOTE THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THE ABOVE REPORT.

ADOPTED

B PETITION – REQUESTING COUNCIL TO UNDERTAKE A SAFETY AUDIT, INCLUDING A REDUCTION IN THE 50KM/H SPEED LIMIT AT MOLLISON STREET, SOUTH BRISBANE, TO ENSURE SAFE MOVEMENT OF PEDESTRIANSCA13/473009

297/2013-14


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12. A petition from residents of Brisbane, requesting Council to undertake a safety audit, including a reduction in the 50km/h speed limit, at Mollison Street, South Brisbane, to ensure safe movement of pedestrians was received during Winter Recess 2013.

13. The Manager, Transport Planning and Strategy, Brisbane Infrastructure Division, supplied the following information.

14. The petition contains a total of 126 signatures; 47 signatures represent residents from within the wider Brisbane area and 79 signatures are from residents at the units in 30-50 Mollison Street, South Brisbane.

15. Mollison Street is classified as a district access road which means it is an important road in the local road network. Mollison Street links Boundary Street and Montague Road and has mixed land use with a variety of commercial properties and high density residential developments.

16. Council has undertaken a safety review of Mollison Street, which considered the same types of issues that would be addressed through a formal safety audit. The findings of this safety review are as detailed below.

17. Traffic Volumes – A traffic volume survey undertaken in July 2013 showed that 5012 vehicles use Mollison Street each day. District access roads can be expected to carry up to 11,000 vehicles per day. This shows that the current vehicle volumes are well within acceptable limits for this type of road.

18. Traffic Speeds – The current speed limit for Mollison Street is 50km/h. A speed survey undertaken in July 2013 showed that the 85th percentile speed for both the east-bound and west-bound directions was 46km/h. This means that 85 per cent of drivers are travelling at or below this speed. In fact, the 95th percentile speed was 50km/h. This means that 95 per cent of drivers are travelling at or below the posted speed limit. This shows excellent compliance with the posted speed limit.

19. Accident History – A search of the state government’s crash database shows there have been nine recorded accidents over a 10-year period. Eight accidents were minor in nature with the main cause being undue care and attention, rather than speed. One accident involved over-consumption of alcohol.

20. Road Characteristics – Mollison Street is 375 metres long and is controlled by signals at each end at Boundary Street and Montague Road. The pavement width is sufficient to allow two through lanes of traffic with parking on both sides of the street. Banks Street intersects Mollison Street at a T-junction approximately 200 metres from Boundary Street. Mollison Street is largely straight and level with a very moderate bend and slight vertical crest. A broken centre line is in place to delineate the correct driving path. Sight lines are good with extensive no stopping restrictions around the bend to ensure very generous visibility for motorists using the driveway at the apartments at 30 Mollison Street.

21. Land Use – Mollison Street has a predominantly commercial land use with some residential developments towards the Boundary Street end. The recent development of high-density apartments over single unit dwellings has significantly increased the number of residents in this street.

22. Traffic generation – Vehicular traffic is predominantly to and from residential apartments and those using on-street parking to access the retail/commercial precinct on Boundary Street. Pedestrian movements are largely local residents and those utilising on-street parking.

23. Public Transport – Buses service this area in both directions and a terminus is included.


- 46 -

24. Based on the above information it is not proposed to lower the speed limit from 50km/h nor introduce any changes to the road environment as visibility for both pedestrians and motorists is adequate.

Funding

25. Funding to undertake a road safety review was available in the current budgetProgram 2 – Moving Brisbane from Schedule 209 – General Amenity, and this was undertaken.

Consultation

26. The Councillor for The Gabba, Councillor Helen Abrahams, has been consulted and does not support the recommendation.

Customer Impact

27. The recommendation below addresses the petitioners’ concerns as a road safety review has been undertaken. The petitioners may not be happy with the recommendations from the road safety review as it does not lower the speed limit nor make any changes to the existing road environment as visibility for motorists and pedestrians is adequate.

Preferred option

28. It is the preferred option that Council endorse the results of the road safety review for Mollison Street, South Brisbane.

29. The Manager recommends as follows and the Committee agrees.

30. RECOMMENDATION:

THAT THE PETITIONERS BE ADVISED OF THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS REPORT AND THAT COUNCIL ENDORSES THE PREFERRED OPTION ABOVE.

ADOPTED

C PETITION – REQUESTING COUNCIL TO PROVIDE TIMING AROUND THE INVESTIGATION INTO A PEDESTRIAN/CYCLE BRIDGE BETWEEN BULIMBA AND TENERIFFE AS NOTED IN THE BRISBANE CITY PLAN 2013CA13/541726

298/2013-1431. A petition from residents of Brisbane, requesting Council provide timing around its

investigation into a pedestrian/cycle bridge between Bulimba and Teneriffe as noted in the proposed Brisbane City Plan 2013 was received during Winter Recess 2013.

32. The Manager, Transport Planning and Strategy, Brisbane Infrastructure Division, supplied the following information.

33. The petition requests Council to:

- acknowledge the frustration of residents of Hawthorne, Bulimba, Balmoral and surrounding areas in the disproportionate investment in green bridges between the western and south/eastern suburbs and the demand for a pedestrian/cycle bridge between Bulimba and Teneriffe

- provide timing around Council’s investigation into a pedestrian/cycle bridge between


- 47 -

Bulimba and Teneriffe as noted in the Brisbane City Plan 2013.

34. The petition contains 105 signatures of which 25 are from the directly impacted suburbs of Bulimba, Balmoral, Hawthorne and Morningside, with eight signatures from New Farm and Teneriffe.

35. A total of three green bridges have been constructed across the Brisbane River. A green bridge linking Dutton Park with the University of Queensland at St Lucia was completed by Council in December 2006. This bridge carries buses, cyclists and pedestrians. A further two bridges, the Goodwill Bridge and the Kurilpa Bridge, which carry cyclists and pedestrians only, were completed by the Queensland Government in October 2001 and in October 2009 respectively.

36. The Queensland Government’s Connecting SEQ 2031, An Integrated Regional Transport Plan for South East Queensland, recommends the investigation of green bridges from West End to the University of Queensland at St Lucia, from Toowong to West End, from Kangaroo Point to the CBD, and from Bulimba to Newstead. There are no recommendations on when these investigations should take place. The Brisbane City Council’s Draft River Edge Strategy references these investigations without any timeframes.

37. The Brisbane Long Term Infrastructure Plan 2012-2031 indicates a bridge from New Farm to Bulimba to be delivered by the Queensland Government in six to 10 years (2018-2022), based upon long-term infrastructure plans of the Queensland Government at the time of publication of the Brisbane Long Term Infrastructure Plan. These plans have been superseded by the Queensland Roads and Transport Investment Program 2013-14 to 2016-17. This latter document makes no reference to a bridge between Bulimba and Teneriffe.

38. The Bulimba District Neighbourhood Plan under the Brisbane City Plan 2000 and the Bulimba Neighbourhood Plan under the Draft Brisbane City Plan provide no reference to a bridge between Bulimba and Teneriffe and no bridges are listed in the Priority Infrastructure Plan.

39. The technical design for a bridge crossing at this point is fundamentally constrained by the requirements of Marine Services Queensland regarding navigational clearances, and the bridge structure would be complex and have a greater impact on surrounding land uses than the “green” bridges previously constructed.

40. The projected residential growth is expected to be minimal within the Bulimba Neighbourhood Plan area. There is no significant change in forecast land use that would change the priority for a bridge between Bulimba and Teneriffe.

41. Council has undertaken a number of initiatives to improve accessibility for residents of the suburbs of Hawthorne, Bulimba, Balmoral and surrounding areas. In January 2012, an upgraded dual-berth ferry terminal was opened at Teneriffe to provide a CityCat linkage between Bulimba and Teneriffe to complement the existing monohull service. This will be further complemented by an upgrade of the Bulimba Ferry Terminal in the 2013-2014 financial year.

42. To further complement these initiatives, Council has committed $2 million in the 2015-2016 financial year and $28 million in 2016-2017, to undertake planning studies of Wynnum Road from Shafston Avenue to Hawthorne Road, to address congestion along this corridor.

Consultation

43. The Councillor for Morningside Ward, Councillor Shayne Sutton, has been consultedand supports the recommendation.


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Preferred Option

44. It is the preferred option that the existing arrangement be retained. A pedestrian/cycle bridge between Bulimba and Teneriffe is contained within Queensland Government planning documents and any bridge planning, design and construction project would be funded and managed by the Queensland Government.

45. The Manager recommends as follows and the Committee agrees.

46. RECOMMENDATION:


ADOPTED.

PUBLIC AND ACTIVE TRANSPORT COMMITTEE

Councillor Peter MATIC, Chairman of the Public and Active Transport Committee, moved, seconded by Councillor Steven HUANG that the report of that Committee held on 5 November 2013, be adopted.


Councillor MATIC: Yes, thank you, Madam Chairman. I'd like to move to the Committee presentation which was Ride to Work Day, which is an Australia-wide initiative, initiated down south in Victoria, I believe, a few years ago, but recently adopted by Brisbane City Council and the wider community. The Ride to Work Day program itself is strongly supported by Bicycle Queensland, and it's principles are about all of the things that Brisbane City Council holds close to its heart in its own bike program, which is about getting people out there actively cycling in their day-to-day activities, and the benefits are obvious to all, about a healthier local community, but also reducing traffic congestion and a cleaner and greener city as well.

That is why Council proudly supported this event internally. It was certainly promoted with our Transport Planning Strategy Branch. Myself and Councillor WYNDHAM and a number of the Council staff were involved in the day, and we all met at one location and rode down to South Bank where it was held, and then cycled separately to work, and I cycled back to the ward office, but on a CityCycle.

I would like to certainly say that there were a large number of participants within it at the pit stop at South Bank. Bicycle Queensland ran an excellent event. There was breakfast supplied for all participants afterwards. It certainly is something that we should continue to support in the future. I would like to thank the officers for the presentation to Committee, setting out the program and setting out the benefits of it. I certainly encourage all Councillors and Council staff to participate in the program again next year.

Chairman: Further debate; Councillor DICK.

Councillor DICK: Thanks, Madam Chair; I rise to speak on the report and particularly to speak on Item B.

Seriatim - Clause BCouncillor Milton DICK requested that Clause B, PETITION – REQUESTING COUNCIL TO TAKE ACTION TO ALLOW BOWEN HILLS BUS DEPOT TO REMAIN OPERATIONAL FOR BRISBANE TRANSPORT, be taken seriatim for voting purposes.

Chairman: Item B, was that, Councillor DICK?


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Councillor DICK: Yes, please. Thank you, Madam Chair. This is a petition—and the Chair did not refer to this petition in his report—it is a petition that I tabled on 20 August on behalf of our hard-working and dedicated bus drivers. Putting it bluntly, the bus drivers feel that they are not getting a fair deal as a result of these depots being closed, particularly the Bowen Hills Bus Depot.

At the time when the Council announced this announcement, I went out and actually met with the drivers, and heard first-hand exactly their frustrations about the process, about how they were not consulted about the bus depot being sold, but also heard first-hand about their concerns about what the impacts would mean as a result of that closure.

We always hear a lot from the LNP saying about the last election. Well, there was no talk at the last election about this bus depot being sold off. This is nothing more than an asset sale that this Council does not have the mandate for. At the time when they made the announcement, bus drivers met with me—Councillor MATIC didn't go on site to meet with them; the LORD MAYOR didn't go on site and invite all of the bus drivers impacted by this closure to hear first-hand what the impacts would be. They were stressed at the time, worried about what particularly this would have on their meal breaks.

The correspondence I've got from a number of drivers who have contacted me who have said that, as a result of the new arrangements, drivers are feeling the impacts and are simply not being able to take proper meal breaks. They can't get back to the new depot location in time to take their meal break, and when they do make it back to the depot, drivers are often late to the next route. This is causing a huge amount of stress amongst bus drivers for our city.

They are some of our hardest working employees in our organisations. They work under enormous stress; they work under enormous pressure; they deal with the public. They are, I guess, in some ways in my mind, the frontline workers of our organisation. They are dedicated to the work they do, and they don't feel they're getting a fair go as a result of this depot being closed.

The drivers' fears should be taken seriously. I simply do not think the LNP Council has addressed or gone anywhere near to looking after these issues. Councillor MATIC needs to launch an investigation to make sure that the concerns of the drivers are met.

I am also concerned that this asset sale, which the Council has done to prop up its failing budget situation – and they have also sold off the Richlands Bus Depot in my own ward, and that's not in the report, but that's another issue – which they didn't do without any mandate whatsoever. They didn't go to the election saying: vote for us; we're going to sell the bus depots off. They didn't do any of that. They didn’t front up and say that. They sort of snuck around after the election, went for the cash grab, because they see the potential for development at this site.

That area is also prone to flooding, and I would certainly be concerned about any development that would be coming on line there, but many bus drivers have also reported that they are now forced to take meal breaks in their buses. Meal breaks may sound like a small deal, but bus drivers need to stop, to step out of the vehicle to ensure they remain fresh and are alert when they undertake their stressful job.

Drivers wait years and years to get a shift that works for their family, and they make a number of decisions about where they live. Houses, rental accommodation, where the kids go to school; all of these things are built around the location of bus depots. Now, they have got childcare arrangements, flexible arrangements. Those shifts are now gone because they've had to move to another depot. So this is a serious issue. This is, I guess, a demonstration from around 285 of our petitioners, of our hardest-working Council employees.

In the budget the LORD MAYOR made a series of announcements to make more operations more efficient which, we know, is code for cuts and cutbacks. But the issue of timetable optimisation and the closure of this bus depot is having an impact on the welfare of our bus drivers. So I say very seriously


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tonight, on behalf of our hard-working bus drivers, their concerns must be taken on board. I would call for the Chair and the LORD MAYOR this week to sit down and meet with the relevant bus union and to listen to some of those concerns, and find a way forward so we can address some of these concerns.

It is bad enough that there was not consultation done. It is bad enough that there was not a mandate sought to sell off these bus depots. I did have to note, the day after Eagle Farm was opened—the very day—a development application was lodged for the Richlands Bus Depot for the subdivision of the land.

Madam Chair, the LNP Council needs to do a hell of a lot better when it comes to dealing with these issues. Tonight, I am using this petition to stand up for those bus drivers. I won't be supporting the recommendation. I want to make it clear that the bus drivers in our city deserve a fair go, and I don't believe they're getting it under this Council.

Chairman: Further debate; Councillor WYNDHAM.

Councillor WYNDHAM: Thank you, Madam Chair, and I won't read the report. Madam Chair, I just rise to speak on Item A, Ride to Work Day, which was held on Wednesday 17 October. A very successful event in many ways. It was started by Bicycle Victoria about seven or eight years ago. Now, this is an Australia-wide event. We also have a Queensland Ride to Work Day, which is held around March each year, but even though with its success, I was still a little disappointed, I thought we may have had a little more representation across the city from perhaps some businesses, Council, councillors, that sort of thing.

When you look at it, we are here to take people on a bit of a journey to show them how they can achieve results across the city. It is not only results for alleviating traffic problems and things like that, but it is also results as far as health and fitness initiatives. But we can also look at our emissions, reducing emissions, et cetera. While this year there were two places where breakfast was served; Roma Street Parklands and South Bank were well patronised. I thought it was quite interesting, as I rode past Roma Street Parklands I thought, I'll go on to South Bank, and once I got to South Bank, I decided I'd turn around and go back to Roma Street, because the queue for coffee was a lot shorter.

A casual, non-stressful type of ride from Aspley to the city is probably only about 50 to 60 minutes. If you want to exert yourself a little, maybe 35 or 40 minutes; that is all it takes. So for the average person, they could get to the city probably only about 15 minutes later than if they were driving. Yes, if you want to go faster, you could go faster than if you were driving, but I am talking about the average sort of person that just does a bit of social riding or perhaps wants to get into riding.

So, I fully support this program. In fact, the same could be said for the March event, because when it is all boiled down, we are here to try and take the citizens of this city on a journey with us, just the same as we did when we were looking at the drought and we had initiatives then to have people reduce their water usage. It is these visible tangible things that help so much more than perhaps trying to educate people into reducing electricity, because you don't see how much electricity is going through your wires, unless you go and read the meter. But if you're riding a bike, and there are many other people out there riding bikes, then there is a reduction of traffic.

Of course, you've got the other active travel systems like buses, but if you've got people doing that, it becomes safer, both for pedestrians and cyclists, because you can say some of these cycle tracks at times, people are a little bit unsure of in their local communities, too. I have people complain to me and say, oh, that track goes through an area that I don't feel comfortable in. But if we energise our tracks and have many people out on our tracks, they become very safe, and they become a different type of highway to our city or to places of work.

So, Madam Chair, I really do support National Ride to Work Day, and I would ask that all councillors take up the challenge in March for the Queensland National Ride to Work Day. It's not that difficult, except I guess if you're leaving from Aspley, you come to the city for coffee and then you'd have to go


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back to Stafford Heights to your office. So there's a bit of a different story there. But I rode in with a couple of gentlemen from the local area who actually live out—


Chairman: Point of order against you, Councillor WYNDHAM; yes, Councillor JOHNSTON.

Councillor JOHNSTON: Yes, Madam Chairman, relevance. What Councillor WYNDHAM has or has not done with friends of his in riding directly to work is not actually mentioned in this report before us today, and I would ask that you draw him back to the report before us today in line with your previous ruling.

Chairman: Councillor JOHNSTON, Councillor WYNDHAM is presenting his report on Ride to Work Day 2013 which he participated in. I would have to say it is the height of hypocrisy for you to raise that, given your behaviour this afternoon. I do not uphold your point of order. Councillor WYNDHAM.

Councillor WYNDHAM: Thank you, Madam Chair. I was actually just going to close off on this, because as I said, some of the locals joined me, and they rode into the city quite happily, enjoyed the morning out, and really, I think anyone that wants to criticise that, I'd say to them: on your bike!

Chairman: Further debate on this report; Councillor JOHNSTON.

Councillor JOHNSTON: Yes, Madam Chairman; Public and Active Transport Committee Report meeting held on Tuesday 5 November 2013 to be presented to Council on Tuesday 12 November 2013, Dedicated to a Better Brisbane. Table of contents. Clause A, title, committee presentation – Ride to Work Day 2013 page number 1.

B petition – requesting Council to take action to allow Bowen Hills Bus Depot to remain operational for Brisbane Transport.

2. Public and Active Transport Committee Report meeting held on Tuesday 5 November 2013 to be presented to Council on Tuesday 12 November 2013, Dedicated to a Better Brisbane. Attendance; Councillor Peter MATIC, Chairman; Councillor Steven HUANG, Acting Chairman, and councillors Steve GRIFFITHS, Nicole JOHNSTON, Kim MARKS and Ryan MURPHY.

A. Committee presentation – Ride to Work Day 2013

1. Mark Pattemore, Project and Program Manager of Project and Program Unit, Transport Planning and Strategy Branch, Brisbane Infrastructure Division attended the meeting to provide an update on Ride to Work Day 2013. He provided the information below.

2. National Ride to Work Day is held annually to encourage people who have never ridden to work or who do so infrequently to commute on their bike. It also encourages frequent riders to continue riding to work and encourage their work mates to get involved.

3. There are approximately 150,000 participants nationally and round 1500 participants Brisbane-wide. Seven hundred participants attended Bicycle Queensland events at Roma Street parklands and South Bank. There have been 30 other corporate events Brisbane-wide.

4. Brisbane has been hosting national Ride to Work Day for the past six years. Ride to Work Day offers many opportunities for people to get involved by registering as; ambassadors, community breakfast hosts, workplace coordinators, to develop their own Ride to Work teams, individual participants, bike buddies.

5. In 2012, 47 per cent of new Ride to Work Day cyclists were still cycling five months later, and 87 per cent of new commuters said they now ride once per month.

6. Brisbane City Council provided a stall in Roma Street parklands with staff providing; Active Travel maps and CityCycle brochures, bike journey planning advice, information on new bicycle projects. Following a number of questions


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from the committee, the Chairman thanked Mr Pattemore for his informative presentation.

8. Recommendation; that Council note the information contained in the above report.

B. Petition – requesting Council to take action to allow Bowen Hills Bus Depot to remain operational for Brisbane Transport CA13/569133.

9. A petition from residents of Brisbane requesting Council to take action to allow Bowen Hills Bus Depot to remain operational for Brisbane Transport was presented to the meeting of Council held on 20 August 2013 by Councillor Milton DICK and received.

10. I should better slow down. The Divisional Manager, Brisbane Transport Division, supplied the following information.

11. TransLink Division, Department of Transport and Main Roads, is the entity of the Queensland Government responsible for the delivery of public transport services, fare collection and infrastructure for South East Queensland. Brisbane City Council operates bus services under a contract with TransLink.

12. Brisbane City Council has noted the petitioners' concerns about the closing of the Bowen Hills Bus Depot.

13. Of the 285 petitioners, 12 reside in Nundah, 10 in Albany Creek, 10 in Bowen Hills, and the remaining petitioners reside across South East Queensland. As part of Council's 2013-14 budget, the LORD MAYOR announced a series of measures to make the Brisbane city public transport network and operations more efficient. This included a review of the bus services, including timetable optimisation and a strategic review of the bus depot portfolio.

15. The outcome of the bus depot portfolio review was the decision to close the Bowen Hills depot and relocate operations to the new Eagle Farm depot, creating better depot utilisation.

16. The Eagle Farm depot is a well-laid out state-of-the-art facility with capacity for 200 buses while Bowen Hills has the capacity for only - oh, 107 buses. Eagle Farm allows greater expansion to meet future service demands. Being a new depot, Eagle Farm offers efficiencies through reduced facility maintenance, equipment maintenance and energy efficient environmental features. Eagle Farm is well located and offers accessibility to major arterial roads linking it to the northern, southern, eastern and western suburbs of Brisbane.

Consultation 17. Councillor David McLACHLAN, Councillor for Hamilton Ward, has been consulted and supports the recommendation. Preferred option.

18. It is the preferred option that Bowen Hills Bus Depot close and all operations move to the Eagle Farm Bus Depot effective from 14 October 2013.

19. Accordingly, the Divisional Manager recommends as follows, and the committee agrees with Councillors GRIFFITHS and JOHNSTON dissenting.

20. Recommendation; that the petitioners are advised of the information contained in this report, and that Council endorses the preferred option above. End.

Chairman: Further debate–or is there any debate on the report? Councillor MATIC?

Clause A put

Upon being submitted to the Chamber, the motion for the adoption of Clause A of the report of the Public and Active Transport Committee was declared carried on the voices.

Clause B put

Upon being submitted to the Chamber, the motion for the adoption of Clause B of the report of the Public and Active Transport Committee was declared carried on the voices.


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Thereupon, Councillors Helen ABRAHAMS and Milton DICK immediately rose and called for a division, which resulted in the motion being declared carried.


AYES: 16 - The DEPUTY MAYOR, Councillor Adrian SCHRINNER, and Councillors Matthew BOURKE, Amanda COOPER, Margaret de WIT, Vicki HOWARD, Steven HUANG, Fiona KING, Geraldine KNAPP, Kim MARX, Peter MATIC, Ian McKENZIE, David McLACHLAN, Ryan MURPHY, Angela OWEN-TAYLOR, Julian SIMMONDS, and Norm WYNDHAM.

NOES: 7 - The Leader of the OPPOSITION, Councillor Milton DICK, and Councillors Helen ABRAHAMS, Shayne SUTTON, Kim FLESSER, Steve GRIFFITHS, Victoria NEWTON, and Nicole JOHNSTON.


ATTENDANCE:

Councillor Peter Matic (Chairman), Councillor Steven Huang (Deputy Chairman), and Councillors Steve Griffiths, Nicole Johnston, Kim Marx and Ryan Murphy.

A COMMITTEE PRESENTATION – RIDE2WORK DAY 2013

299/2013-141. Mark Pattemore, Project and Program Manager, Project and Program Unit, Transport

Planning and Strategy Branch, Brisbane Infrastructure Division, attended the meeting to provide an update on Ride2Work Day 2013. He provided the information below.

2. National Ride2Work Day is held annually to encourage people who have never ridden to work, or who do so infrequently, to commute on their bike. It also encourages frequent riders to continue riding to work and encourage their workmates to get involved.

3. There are approximately 150,000 participants nationally and around 1500 participants Brisbane wide. Seven hundred participants attended Bicycle Queensland events at Roma Street Parklands and Southbank. There have been 30 other corporate events Brisbane-wide.

4. Brisbane has been hosting the National Ride2Work Day for the past six years. Ride2Work Day offers many opportunities for people to get involved by registering as:- ambassadors- community breakfast hosts- workplace coordinators (to develop their own ride-to-work teams)- individual participants- bike buddies.

5. In 2012, 47 per cent of new Ride2Work day cyclists were still cycling five months later, and 87 per cent of new commuters said they now ride once per month.

6. Brisbane City Council provided a stall in Roma Street Parklands with staff providing:- Active Travel Maps and CityCycle brochures- bike journey planning advice - information on new bicycle projects.

7. Following a number of questions from the Committee, the Chairman thanked Mr Pattemore for his informative presentation.

8. RECOMMENDATION:


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ADOPTED

B PETITION – REQUESTING COUNCIL TO TAKE ACTION TO ALLOW BOWEN HILLS BUS DEPOT TO REMAIN OPERATIONAL FOR BRISBANE TRANSPORTCA13/569133

300/2013-149. A petition from residents of Brisbane, requesting Council to take action to allow Bowen Hills

bus depot to remain operational for Brisbane Transport, was presented to the meeting of Council held on 20 August 2013, by Councillor Milton Dick, and received.

10. The Divisional Manager, Brisbane Transport Division, supplied the following information.

11. TransLink Division, Department of Transport and Main Roads is the entity of the Queensland Government responsible for the delivery of public transport services, fare collection and infrastructure for South East Queensland. Brisbane City Council operates bus services under a contract with TransLink.

12. Brisbane City Council has noted the petitioners’ concerns about the closing of the Bowen Hills bus depot.

13. Of the 285 petitioners, 12 reside in Nundah, 10 in Albany Creek, 10 in Bowen Hills and the remaining petitioners reside across South East Queensland.

14. As part of the Council’s 2013-14 budget, the Lord Mayor announced a series of measures to make the Brisbane city public transport network and operations more efficient. This included a review of the bus services including timetable optimisation and a strategic review of the bus depot portfolio.

15. The outcome of the bus depot portfolio review was the decision to close the Bowen Hills depot and relocate operations to the new Eagle Farm depot creating better depot utilisation.

16. The Eagle Farm depot is a well laid out state-of-the-art facility with capacity for 200 buses, while Bowen Hills has capacity for only 107 buses. Eagle Farm allows greater expansion to meet future service demands. Being a new depot Eagle Farm offers efficiencies through reduced facility maintenance, equipment maintenance and energy efficient environmental features. Eagle Farm is well located and offers accessibility to major arterial roads linking it to the northern, southern, eastern and western suburbs of Brisbane.

Consultation

17. Councillor David McLachlan, Councillor for Hamilton Ward, has been consulted and supports the recommendation.

Preferred Options

18. It is the preferred option that Bowen Hills bus depot close and all operations move to Eagle Farm bus depot effective from 14 October 2013.

19. Accordingly, the Divisional Manager recommends as follows and the Committee agrees, with Councillors Griffiths and Johnston dissenting.

20. RECOMMENDATION:


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ADOPTED.

NEIGHBOURHOOD PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT ASSESSMENT COMMITTEE

Councillor Amanda COOPER, Chairman of the Neighbourhood Planning and Development Assessment Committee, moved, seconded by Councillor Vicki HOWARD, that the report of the meeting of that Committee held on 5 November 2013, be adopted.


Councillor COOPER: Yes, thank you very much Madam Chair. Before I actually get to the report, I would just like to note, at a recent Planning Institute of Australia Awards on 8 November, Council received two awards for our innovative work on this year's Ideas Fiesta. Council was the overall winner for promotion of planning and received a commendation for public engagement for activities undertaken as part of Ideas Fiesta during April and May of this year. This was, of course, a successful program of engagement where we came up with new ideas for the city centre, showcased design concepts and attracted more than 16,400 visitors over three weeks of events.

The Ideas Fiesta generated thousands of ideas from residents who engaged with the program, with more than 1.2 million social media views, and 61,800 website hits. So I would particularly like to congratulate all of the officers for their hard work and effort. It was an outstanding result, and certainly I think a fantastic opportunity for us to think about the future of our CBD, and I note Councillor HOWARD and I attended many, many functions over that three-week period and they were all spectacularly successful. So congratulations to the officers. As usual, they have come up with a great way of talking to the community and the community certainly did respond.

In terms of the actual report, we had a presentation on public art trails at last week's Committee meeting. There are three different public art trails - the Cultural Heritage Trail, the Contemporary Art and Architecture Trail, and the Art and River Trail. These are self-guided trails that were designed to introduce residents and visitors—very visitor friendly—to the rich tapestry of public art work located across our city. Each particular trail has a map and detailed information on art work and the artists who conceived them and fabricated them.

The trails featured more than 60 monuments and art works in a diversity of forms, including wall reliefs, sculptures, and designs on building facades, gargoyles and war memorials. So certainly there are lots of things there for people to see that perhaps they haven’t realised are, in effect, part of our city's public art. The Cultural Heritage Trail takes people on a journey through our history, showcasing 20 pieces of art, and is 1.3 kilometres long.

The Contemporary Art and Architecture Trail has 16 works of art, is 1.8 kilometres long and showcases the exemplary integration of art and architecture. The last, but not least, Art and River Trail offers a glimpse into our maritime and industrial history and evokes memories of Expo '88. That is 1.8 kilometres long and has 12 works of art.

So you can get fit and you can also have a fantastic cultural experience at the same time. So those trails are available to view and download from Council's website, they can also be accessed on smartphone devices. We have been able to market and promote those trails through advertising on the City of Lights, Living in Brisbane and the Live Guide brochures. During the five months of the City of Lights campaign promoting the trails, we had 712 QR code scans that were achieved between January and May.


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People also headed to our website to download brochures and the statistics show that we had 115 clicks on the advertisement on the corporate website in the month of March. We had 6941 unique page views between January and May and we had 791 people googling public art trails between January and May. So those are the statistics we've got to hand, but certainly people have embraced these opportunities to find out more about our beautiful city. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Upon being submitted to the Chamber by the Chairman, the motion for the adoption of the report of the Neighbourhood Planning and Development Assessment Committee was declared carried on the voices.

The report as follows

ATTENDANCE:

Councillor Amanda Cooper (Chairman), Councillor Vicki Howard (Deputy Chairman), and Councillors Helen Abrahams, Geraldine Knapp, Shayne Sutton and Andrew Wines.

A COMMITTEE PRESENTATION – PUBLIC ART TRAILS301/2013-14

1. Vicki Martin, Principal Planning Officer, Urban Design, Infrastructure Coordination and Urban Design, City Planning and Economic Development Branch, City Planning and Sustainability Division, attended the meeting to provide a presentation on Council’s public art trails. She provided the information below.

2. Brisbane’s public art creates an engaging outdoor gallery that expresses the city’s vibrant and creative culture. The public art trails raise awareness of the city’s public art collection. There are three public art trails: Contemporary Art and Architecture, Cultural Heritage, and Art and the River.

3. The Contemporary Art and Architecture trail has 16 works of art and is 1.8 kilometres long. The Cultural Heritage trail has 20 pieces of art and is 1.3 kilometres long. The Art and the River trail is 1.8 kilometres long and has 12 works of art.

4. Marketing and promotion for the art trails has included advertising through CityCycle – City Lights and Council’s Living in Brisbane and Live Guide brochures. Council’s corporate website contains content on the trails, such as downloadable brochures and a database with information on the works within the collections.

5. In June 2012 the Malaysia Airlines magazine Going Places ran an article that featured the Cultural Heritage Public Art Trail and the Brisbane Greeters program. Brisbane Greeters have found that the public art trails are by far the most highly subscribed and popular trails. Also, as part of the Ideas Fiesta for the draft City Centre Master Plan, guided public art walking trails were held.

6. Following a number of questions from the Committee, the Chairman thanked Ms Martin for her informative presentation.

7. RECOMMENDATION:


ADOPTED.

ENVIRONMENT, PARKS AND SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE


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Councillor Matthew BOURKE, Chairman of the Environment, Parks and Sustainability Committee, moved, seconded by Councillor Fiona KING, that the report of the meeting of that Committee held on 5 November 2013, be adopted.


Councillor BOURKE: Thanks very much, Madam Chairman. Madam Chairman, just very quickly, there was five items on the agenda for the Committee meeting last week. The first one was a presentation that was requested by Labor councillors, Councillor CUMMING wanted to know a little bit more about what we do in Council parks across all of the different classifications of Council parks, Madam Chairman. So the Committee presentation was brought forward, outlining the different types of facilities, equipment and alike that are provided in the different levels of Council parks, consistent with the policy that's been in place in this place for a long time and obviously consistent with the work that we've done for the new City Plan going forward, Madam Chairman.

So we talked about local and formal use parks, we talked about metropolitan parks, we talked about district parks, key city parks and then obviously the natural areas, the corridor parks as well as the district sport and metropolitan sport facilities that you can find across the city, Madam Chairman. Quite a good presentation, some interesting questions, Madam Chairman. All of that information, of course, is available for councillors and it was provided twice, I think, in information sessions, Madam Chairman, to councillors over the last two years for everyone who attended the Program 1 and Program 2 information sessions.

Madam Chairman, another few petitions that have come through, Madam Chairman, the park naming out in Richlands, Bill Gillespie Park as well as, Madam Chairman, a petition around Oxley Creek. A unique petition; six councillors involved in that particular petition, Madam Chairman. Oxley Creek is, as we know, the largest catchment we have in the City of Brisbane, Madam Chairman, so I imagine there'll be some debate around that one.

The last one, Madam Chairman, is relating to Boondall Park up in Councillor NEWTON's area, Madam Chairman, around the provision of a dog off leash area.

Chairman: Further debate, Councillor DICK.

Councillor DICK: Thanks, Madam Chair. I rise to speak on the Environment, Parks and Sustainability Committee report. I'm going to speak on Items C and briefly on Item D and—

Seriatim - Clause DCouncillor Milton DICK requested that Clause D, PETITIONS – CALLING ON COUNCIL TO DEVELOP AND IMPLEMENT A REHABILITATION AND FLOOD MITIGATION PLAN FOR OXLEY CREEK, be taken seriatim for voting purposes.

Chairman: Okay.

Councillor DICK: Madam Chair, I'm really, really thrilled tonight to offer my remarks to Item C, which is the park naming for a proposed naming of parkland at 71 to 95 Pine Road, Richlands. This park is going to be known as Bill Gillespie Park. Now, Bill Gillespie—if the history books are correct, hopefully tonight we will record a little more of that history—was really one of the pioneers and one of the leaders of developing the suburb that is now Richlands. I can think of no more dedicated person that we should name a park over—park after, I should say.

Bill Gillespie was not only a decorated war hero, he also with his family helped develop some of the farmland and some of the housing out in that part of the world. I can only imagine when Bill and his family began settling in that area, there wouldn't have been much there. If Bill, who's passed away, could see that area today, I guess he would be in awe of the development, things like the Richlands Train Station, some of the dirt roads which are now major highways,


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the Ipswich Highway, traversing that, community things like major roads like Progress Road. A huge amount of industry and development that's coming on board there and there's going to be plenty more as the suburb continues, and outer-Brisbane continues to develop.

The name, Bill Gillespie, which I only found out this afternoon when I spoke to one of Bill Gillespie's grandsons, also called Bill Gillespie. There have been five generations of people called Bill Gillespie, it's a name that is living in right throughout the community and right to this day, down to, I think, his great, great grandson. So Bill was also one of the first to sign the petition for a school in Richlands and he also approached the developer, asking him to donate the land for a school. Of course, the Richlands State School was opened in 1934.

Now, he had a long connection with that school and the Gillespie family had a long history with that school. Bill's son, Gerard, was a foundation student when it opened in 1934, Donald followed in 1937—and Donald is still alive today and is a local resident in Forest Lake, and then Rodney and Maxine. Nine of Bill's grandchildren attended the school in the years from 1952 to 1975. As the population continued to grow, Bill remained really committed to seeing that community grow and prosper and a number of his kids—children, I should say, worked for greater development in that area.

His son, Gerry, and Don worked for Frost Constructions in the building of Serviceton, which is, of course, now known as the suburb of Inala. Now, speaking to his grandson, Bill, this afternoon, the family is absolutely delighted that Bill Senior, for want of a better term, is being recognised in this way. I think it's very fitting that we recognise the early pioneers for some of Brisbane's, I guess, suburbs today and that family history around that land is very proud—and should be proudly recognised within the local community.

His family were very important to him, with a multi-cultural background and his World War I record included the awarding of a military medal by King George V. So I know Bill and his wife, Ruby Gillespie, when they settled in that area, they probably had no idea that in years to come a park would be in that area. During, I guess, his hard life and his difficult life, he overcame a lot of obstacles and sadly he passed away in 1970 but the property remained in the family hands until 2008.

So the name Bill Gillespie represents past, the present and the future. As I said, his son was named William Gerald Gillespie, his grandson, William Frederick Gillespie, his great grandson, Terrance William Gillespie and his great, great grandson Tyler William Gillespie. Madam Chair, I'm absolutely delighted to see that the Council has taken that recommendation on board. I thank the family for providing me with all that information, I certainly look forward to celebrating as we move forward in that area to see that park naming come to fruition.

I just want to briefly speak on item D. I won't be supporting that item today, Madam Chair; the response is not adequate to address the residents' concerns. They certainly don't want a pat on the back from Council about what they're doing, they want Council to do more and they want Council to take further action along that creek. It is a source of huge concern for a number of residents, a number of wards. This report does not address those concerns and I won't be supporting on behalf of those reasons—

Chairman: Further debate, Councillor JOHNSTON.

Councillor JOHNSTON: Yes, Madam Chairman. I rise to speak on Item D and I take your point that we should be debating the items before us today and that's my intention and has been through the meeting. Madam Chairman, the petition before us calls on Council to do the following; we, the undersigned, call on Brisbane City Council to urgently develop and implement and rehabilitation and flood mitigation plan for Oxley Creek including de-silting, bank stabilisation, water quality improvement, regular testing and reporting of water quality, re-vegetation works, planning amendments to prevent industrial toxicity and contamination and structural investigation of flood mitigation strategies for the mouth of Oxley Creek.


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That is what hundreds of residents in my ward signed. Residents from Tennyson, Rocklea, Chelmer, Graceville, Sherwood and Corinda and I certainly acknowledge there are residents from other parts of Brisbane. But this petition is necessary because the residents who live along Oxley Creek do not accept that Council has taken enough steps to rehabilitate this massively flood damaged creek. If they hadn't—if they thought Council was doing a good job, hundreds of residents would not have signed this petition. But I can tell you, week after week after week, residents speak to me about the highly degraded and toxic state of Oxley Creek and the lack of action that they see from Council.

I am very disappointed with the way in which Council has treated this petition. Essentially, they have outlined a number of things that they say they are doing. Not things that they will do, not things that actually address the issues that the petitioners raised in the petition, but things Council say they're doing. So, for example, they say it's a priority catchment. Well I don't see any evidence of that in my ward. Council is active on a number of projects in Oxley Creek. A major clean-up took place within Oxley Creek in January 2011 floods.

Well, Madam Chairman, if you canoe up Oxley Creek today, you can still see firsthand the devastating damage caused by that flood in the reach of the river that runs through Tennyson Ward and not a single thing has been done in reaches of that river. In particular, I am referring to the stretch between Sherwood Road and the Archerfield Wetlands. Not a thing. It is embarrassing that this Council wants to send a letter out to residents, tell them of all the things they're doing, that they do not actually see on the ground and they will not believe, I can tell you that.

It claims, and there may well be, some work being done at Pallara and upstream of Brookbrent Road and the Archerfield Wetlands, I understand that. None of that is in my ward and none of that is any - addresses any of the issues raised by the petitioners in Tennyson Ward. What's worse is that Council is actually promoting the fact that the draft City Plan is going to assist clean up Oxley Creek. Now, Madam Chairman, if only that was true.

This is a matter in which I sought specific advice from the council officers about the way in which the Council would implement the recommendation of the Queensland Flood Royal Commission to ensure that toxic land uses to not occur in known flooding areas. Is this Council actually implementing that? Not really. Essentially, no. You can still have anything built in a general industry area within Oxley Creek, there are absolutely no restrictions on that and you can fill, by right, 2.5 metres within the Oxley Creek catchment.

Now, Council has introduced some rules to talk about certain chemical businesses that aren't allowed in the future, but that doesn't account for the dozen, if not hundreds, of chemical and toxic waste businesses that area already located in this catchment. There is no attempt by this Council to introduce land use management planning and change in the future of the City Plan. If it was genuine about wanting to meet the needs of land use planning, which is critically important in this catchment, it would have made some changes for the future, but has not.

I also note that this Council goes on to talk about its FloodSmart Future Strategy that absolutely does nothing to address the issues of the petitioners' request. Let me remind you what they wanted, de-silting, bank stabilisation - and I acknowledge that some work has been done. They didn't get it done in the first year they said they'd do it; they had to roll it over into this year. Water quality improvements, regular testing and reporting of water quality, re-vegetation works, planning amendments, structural investigation of flood mitigation strategies for the mouth of Oxley Creek.

Nothing to those effects has been done. Residents know that one of the big problems with Oxley Creek is its orientation and the fact that when the Brisbane River is high, the creek, because it runs upstream, cannot escape. It causes localised flooding, because this Council over the last 40 years has allowed people to build into the low areas and the tributaries of Oxley Creek. We see the devastation on a regular basis out my way, including in the Australia Day 2013


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flood and storm event when 16 houses in this catchment were flooded yet again after 2011.

Now the sad part of this is, I wrote to Council when they sent just a few words to me. They actually sent me the recommendation itself which, as you know, is to provide information about the works that Council has done on Oxley Creek. So I wrote back to the council officers saying that there wasn't enough information in the report. I said, one sentence does not, in any way, address the petition contents itself, which asked for a plan to address a number of issues.

I simply do not know if the report addresses the petitioners' requests. It's highly unusual not to be sent the report itself, just one sentence. Are you aware, section 171 of the City of Brisbane Act and Council policy AP037 makes it clear I'm able to ask councillors for information about local matters to help make a decision? Did I get a response to that? That was on 17 October, no I did not. As the files show, I'm not the only councillor that had questions about the inadequate information provided by Councillor BOURKE's department. Councillor GRIFFITHS had questions; even Councillor OWEN-TAYLOR had questions.

You can see in the file that she's asked for more information about the inadequate response from the petition. Interestingly, she was told the same thing we were, which is, sorry, we can't tell you what's actually in the report, you just have to accept the recommendation. Now, Madam Chairman, that's not good enough. My residents don't think it's good enough and two and a half years after the floods, this Council should be investing more money into the rehabilitation and the re-vegetation and the waterway health of Oxley Creek.

Now we know this creek is in an appalling state, regular testing is done at Cliveden Avenue, near the sewerage plant and on a regular basis. So more than 50 per cent of the times, the readings in that creek are what is described by the testing itself as, 500 per cent or more enterococci monitoring results. Above this level, there may be a significant risk of high levels of illness transmission. High levels of illness transmission. Now here, just a few weeks ago—over 500, remember, you might get sick—4700. That's the reading in Oxley Creek. We go back a few months, 3500; we go back in March, 8000; we go back a bit further, we see 1800.

Now back in January and February, this Council, on my request, initiated testing at a number of other points on Oxley Creek, including at the mouth of the creek near Pamphlet Bridge. For the month that Council did the testing in this area, three of those four months the readings were in that area of a high risk of illness, with readings as high as 1100, 1400, 1200. Madam Chairman, this happens on a regular basis. Now I'm going to table both of those documents here today so there is a record of the concerns that I have on behalf of the residents.

There is a serious toxicity problem with Oxley Creek; there are serious structural problems with Oxley Creek. The only people who are doing work in Oxley Creek are the hard working volunteers of our local bush care group who week after week are flogging their guts out planting trees. This Council should be doing more to support those residents it has allowed to build on the banks of Oxley Creek. This Council should be doing more to address flood mitigation strategies that assist residents to better deal with the impact of localised flooding from this creek.

The decision to actually write out this airy, fairy response—

Chairman: Councillor JOHNSTON, your time has expired.

Councillor JOHNSTON: —that says nothing, is not good enough.

Chairman: Further debate, Councillor GRIFFITHS.

Councillor GRIFFITHS: Yes, thanks, Madam Chair, and I also rise to speak on Item D with the call for rehabilitation of Oxley Creek. I just want to make a few points in addition to the previous speakers and that is to say that I'm extremely disappointed with the petition that we have before us here, that the results of what the residents had


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asked for and what Council have actually come up with, I think, are a real let down for the residents of the southern and western suburbs.

In particular, I note that in 2011, after we had the floods there, that there was extreme contamination in Oxley Creek. The creek, which cuts through 28 suburbs of Brisbane and does enter into the Brisbane River, seems to be one of the most neglected of our waterways in Brisbane. In fact, in a report from The Australian in 2011, it reports that bacteria were 250 times higher than normal for what you'd expect in other parts of the waterways in Brisbane itself.

Madam Chair, even today, I've had notification of a sewerage spill in another tributary of Oxley Creek and that's in Moolabin Creek, for the residents of Yeronga and Moorooka. So it's disappointed, Madam Chair, that Council has such a poor record with the way that it's treating Oxley Creek. The fact that it's talking about allocating $1.2 million is a real slap in the face for residents given the fact that we're spending so much on Brisbane Marketing, showing people what a fine job we're doing, when we're spending actually so little on restoring and looking after our polluted waterways.

Madam Chair, I think the money that we're spending in Brisbane Marketing would be far better—

Chairman: Councillor GRIFFITHS, stay on this report, thank you.

Councillor GRIFFITHS: Well I believe the money that we spoke about previously would be far better allocated towards the restoration of this important waterway.


Councillor GRIFFITHS: Madam Chair, people are really sick of the cuts, and I refer to point 30, about de-silting works. De-silting works have apparently occurred at several major tributary points, but we know from previous Council meetings that that money has actually been cut. We also talk about the great work that's Council's doing in Archerfield Wetlands, well this work is really minor and insignificant when you look at the whole corridor and the fact that there's such need in this major corridor.

This report also talks about the fact that the LORD MAYOR set up the Oxley Creek Taskforce seven years ago. Seven years ago, under Campbell Newman, and that particular taskforce has done little to improve the quality of the Oxley Creek catchment. Madam Chair, this report, this - or I suppose this petition outcome that we're seeing here is really a slap in the face to residents to the southern and western suburbs. It's really listing a whole lot of reports but actually delivering very little.

Madam Chair, the people in the southern and western suburbs should be insulted by what Council's saying here. As an administration, I believe we have let down the people in the southern and western suburbs. It's interesting that LNP councillors who also viewed the petition think it's a great piece of work. I just don't know how they can face their residents and put that view to them. Madam Chair, it's time the administration took Oxley Creek seriously and actually did some serious work in improving the quality of water there, stop the sewerage spills, improved what we're actually expecting the residents of Brisbane to live in and deliver better outcomes for our residents to the southern and western suburbs. Thank you.

Chairman: Further debate, Councillor BOURKE.

Councillor BOURKE: Thanks very much, Madam Chairman. Madam Chairman, just to sum up and touch on some of the things that the councillors opposite have said; I note Councillor DICK's comments around the park naming in his ward, Item C on the agenda. I'd just like to throw in for everyone in the chamber who might remember the debate a few weeks ago in this place that 71 to 95 Pine Road is that property that we had to resume down there in Richlands Ward to make a park and we know that the Opposition's views around providing essential infrastructure for the community in that manner. So it was great to see Councillor DICK's had an epiphany and completely supports this process now.


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Madam Chairman, turning to Oxley Creek and Item D; it would have been better, I think, if Councillor GRIFFITHS had just stood up and read the whole report into the record, it would have been more informed, it would have been more insightful, it would have been a better contribution to the debate than what he put on the record or what Councillor DICK put on the record. Oxley Creek has, for a long time, had a number of issues. We on this side of the chamber have only been in power for the last eight years, sorry, seven years, if you count the split council before that, that's 11. If you count the Atkinson years, it's another eight.

So for the best part of the last 90 years, the Australian Labor Party's had numbers in this place, they've been the ones making the decisions around how Oxley Creek's been managed. They've been the ones making the planning decisions, they've been the ones making—


Chairman: Order. Point of order against you, Councillor BOURKE. Yes, Councillor DICK.

Councillor DICK: I will help Councillor BOURKE out; they've been in power for nine years.

Chairman: Councillor DICK that is not a point of order. It's not a point of order. Councillor BOURKE.

Councillor BOURKE: So as I was saying, Madam Chairman, they've had every opportunity, every chance to put a plan in place to put something on the table when it comes to dealing with the issues that Oxley Creek has, Madam Chairman. But they haven't, they never have and they never will, Madam Chairman.

Chairman: Councillor ABRAHAMS.

Councillor BOURKE: Councillor ABRAHAMS was the environment chair for four years, Madam Chairman, in this place and she didn't even have the gumption to stand up and put a plan in place for Oxley Creek, Madam Chairman. No, Lord Mayor Newman had to put—

Chairman: Councillor ABRAHAMS.

Councillor BOURKE: Lord Mayor Newman had to put in place the Oxley Creek Taskforce to start to address the long term issues that Oxley Creek has, Madam Chairman. But what gets worse, Madam Chairman, what gets worse than that is that those opposite have the hide and the tenacity to stand up in this place this evening and call on us for action. Call on us to do something, Madam Chairman. Well you know what? Where were your plans in April last year, Councillor DICK? You had nothing—

Chairman: To the Chair, thank you Councillor BOURKE.

Councillor BOURKE: —zip, zilch, zero, Madam Chairman. They had no plans—


Councillor BOURKE: —no priorities, no actions when it came to Oxley Creek, Madam Chairman. They're hypocrites at the extreme. Politics for the sake of politics when it comes to every in this city, Madam Chairman. No vision, no plan, no insight—and Councillor FLESSER can laugh and joke, Madam Chairman, over there, all the hand gestures that he wants because we know that those opposite don't take the environment seriously. We know that they'd rather play politics with a local issue than actually fix the problem, Madam Chairman.

Councillor GRIFFITHS can make all the wheeling—

Chairman: Councillor BOURKE, don't be distracted.

Councillor BOURKE: —he wants because Councillor GRIFFITHS knows, Madam Chairman —

Chairman: Councillor GRIFFITHS.

Councillor BOURKE: —that we actually have a plan and that we're actually doing something, Madam Chairman.



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Councillor BOURKE: That's how serious they take this.

Chairman: Order.

Councillor BOURKE: Madam Chairman, just for the record, Madam Chairman.

Chairman: Order.

Councillor BOURKE: Just for the record, that's how seriously the Labor Party councillors take the issue of Oxley Creek—


Councillor BOURKE: —that they're making gestures and making—well Councillor GRIFFITHS is doing it again, making fishing gestures across the chamber, Madam Chairman, because he's not interested in the actual issue. Madam Chairman, he's not interested in the actual issues. Councillor FLESSER's now making more obscene hand gestures.

Chairman: Councillor BOURKE.

Councillor BOURKE: Yes, Madam Chairman.

Chairman: Don't be distracted, get to the summary.

Councillor BOURKE: I'm not, Madam Chairman, I'm just making sure it's in the record how the Labor Party treat Oxley Creek, Madam Chairman. But we on this side of the chamber actually have a plan and when you read through the report, Madam Chairman, you can quite clearly see each action items that is addressing the concerns of the residents that's been put forward, Madam Chairman.


Councillor BOURKE: The Oxley Creek Taskforce, and I know those opposite just had a dig at the hard working members on the Oxley Creek Taskforce and I'm happy to provide a copy of the transcript to them, Madam Chairman, are working to address the planning issues that Oxley Creek has, Madam Chairman. Because it does have legacy planning issues. There are uses on Oxley Creek that we don't want to see there, Madam Chairman, but they have an as of right use and we're working to address the planning issues that Oxley Creek has.

In terms of water quality monitoring, Madam Chairman, we're doing that. We're doing it now, we've been doing it for years, Madam Chairman, and we continue to do it and we continue to do it with Healthy Waterways, Madam Chairman, as well. In terms of investment, well Councillor GRIFFITHS might think, Madam Chairman, that the work we're doing at Archerfield Wetlands is insignificant, his words, quote-unquote, insignificant, Madam Chairman. So in his view it's better to do nothing than to do something, I guess, given that he said it's insignificant.


Councillor BOURKE: So he doesn't have a plan, but he doesn't offer any positive reinforcement or any positive words around what we're actually doing, Madam Chairman. So in terms of what we're doing to help address the issues in Oxley Creek, we have our creek filtration devices, we have our work in Archerfield Wetlands, we're working in the planning space, we're continuing our monitoring, Madam Chairman, we're continuing to work with our Habitat Brisbane groups, our Creek Catchment groups, Madam Chairman. We're continuing to provide grants and support to the members of the community who are doing the hard work, Madam Chairman.

Because we on this side of the chamber actually have a plan and a vision as opposed to those opposite, Madam Chairman, who just choose to play politics for the sake of politics with every local issue, Madam Chairman, and leave the residents of Brisbane in their wake.

Clauses A, B, C and E putUpon being submitted to the meeting the motion for the adoption of Clauses A, B, C and E of the report of the Environment, Parks and Sustainability Committee was declared carried on the voices.

Clause D put


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Upon being submitted to the meeting the motion for the adoption of Clause D of the report of the Environment, Parks and Sustainability Committee was declared carried on the voices.

Upon being submitted to the Chamber by the Chairman, the motion for the adoption of the report of the Environment, Parks and Sustainability Committee was declared carried on the voices.

Thereupon, Councillors Steve GRIFFITHS and Milton DICK immediately rose and called for a division, which resulted in the motion being declared carried.


AYES: 17 - The DEPUTY MAYOR, Councillor Adrian SCHRINNER, and Councillors Krista ADAMS, Matthew BOURKE, Margaret de WIT, Vicki HOWARD, Steven HUANG, Fiona KING, Geraldine KNAPP, Kim MARX, Peter MATIC, Ian McKENZIE, David McLACHLAN, Ryan MURPHY, Angela OWEN-TAYLOR, Julian SIMMONDS, Andrew WINES, and Norm WYNDHAM.

NOES: 7 - The Leader of the OPPOSITION, Councillor Milton DICK, and Councillors Helen ABRAHAMS, Kim FLESSER, Steve GRIFFITHS, Victoria NEWTON, Shayne SUTTON, and Nicole JOHNSTON.

The report as follows

ATTENDANCE:

Councillor Matthew Bourke (Chairman), Councillor Fiona King (Deputy Chairman), and Councillors Peter Cumming, Kim Flesser, Geraldine Knapp and Ryan Murphy.

A COMMITTEE PRESENTATION – PARK CLASSIFICATION AND DESIRED STANDARDS OF SERVICE

302/2013-141. The Chairman, Councillor Matthew Bourke, presented to the Committee on the classifications

of Council’s parks and their desired levels of service.

2. The Chairman explained the different classifications of Council parks and the equipment that is supported within them. Photographic examples of these park-types were displayed.

3. Images of the park types that were displayed and discussed included:- Dianthus Street Park - local informal use park- Kalinga Park - district informal use park- Rocks Riverside Park - metropolitan informal use- McCook Park - district sport park- Victor Park - metropolitan sport park- Seven Hills Bushland Reserve - district natural area park- Windsor Memorial Park - metropolitan landscape amenity park- 7th Brigade Park - district corridor link park- Lanham Park (including the Grange Library) - district community use park- Kalinga Park - local sport park- Wynnum Wading Pool Park - metropolitan informal use- Bradshaw Park - district corridor link park.

4. The Chairman concluded by answering a number of questions from the Committee.

5. RECOMMENDATION:



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ADOPTED

B PARK NAMING – PROPOSED NAMING OF THE PARK KNOWN AS ROGOONA STREET PARK, 47 THYNNE ROAD, MORNINGSIDE, AS ‘JOYCE WHITE PARK’161/540/567/100

303/2013-146. The Executive Manager, Field Services Group, Brisbane Infrastructure Division, supplied the

following information.

7. Councillor Shayne Sutton, Councillor for Morningside Ward, presented a petition to Council on 7 May 2013, which was supported by 33 local residents, requesting that Council formally name the park at 47 Thynne Road, Morningside, as ‘Joyce White Park’. On 6 August 2013, the Environment, Parks and Sustainability Committee supported the park naming proposal.

8. Rogoona Street Park (D3293), Morningside, is located at 47 Thynne Road, Morningside, and is an informal use park. The park contains play equipment, picnic facilities, a small stage with power supply and landscaped areas. It is situated beside the Morningside Uniting Church.

9. Joyce White was born in 1913 and lived all her life at 627 Wynnum Road, Morningside. She was a tireless worker for the community where she taught Sunday school for the Morningside (Methodist) Uniting Church for 70 years, was a Meals on Wheels volunteer, served Blue Care for 40 years and the church-run childcare for 35 years.

10. Councillor Sutton carried out a survey of the local residents and most respondents supported this proposal.

11. The proposed wording for the park name sign is: ‘Joyce White Park’. Proposed history panel wording is: ‘This park was named as Joyce White Park after one of the district’s well-known residents. Joyce White was born in 1913 and lived all her life at 627 Wynnum Road, Morningside. Throughout her life, she was a tireless worker for the community and in particular the Morningside Uniting Church.’

Funding

12. Funding for the park name sign and the history panel are available in Council’s Asset Services East recurrent budget for 2013-14.

Consultation

13. Councillor Sutton and local residents within the Morningside Ward have been consulted and agree the above proposal is appropriate for this parkland.

14. The Executive Manager submits the following recommendation with which the Committee agrees.

15. RECOMMENDATION:

THAT APPROVAL BE GRANTED TO NAME THE PARK CURRENTLY KNOWN AS ROGOONA STREET PARK (D0044), MORNINGSIDE, AS ‘JOYCE WHITE PARK’ in accordance with Council Policy OS03 Naming Parks, Facilities or Tracks within Brisbane Parks and Open Space and that a name sign and information panel be erected on the road frontage of the park.

ADOPTED


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C PARK NAMING – PROPOSED NAMING OF PARKLAND AT 71 TO 95 PINE ROAD, RICHLANDS, KNOWN AS PINE ROAD PARK, AS ‘BILL GILLESPIE PARK’161/540/567/93

304/2013-1416. The Executive Manager, Field Services Group, Brisbane Infrastructure Division, supplied the


17. A memorandum was received from Councillor Milton Dick, Councillor for Richlands Ward, requesting the newly acquired parkland at 71 to 95 Pine Road, Richlands, be formally named ‘Bill Gillespie Park’.

18. Pine Road Park is located in the suburb of Richlands and has been acquired for the purpose of developing a sporting precinct. Pine Road Park was an interim name for this park.

19. Mr William (Bill) Gillespie served in the 15th Battalion in the First World War from 1916 to 1919, enlisting at the age of 19 years and two months. In 1917, King George V awarded him the Military Medal. Following his decorated service in the armed forces, Bill, his wife Ruby and newborn son Donald moved into the four-acre property at 71 Pine Road in February 1932. During the depression years, the property was used for many things including the production of milk and small crops, which were sold in the local community and at the Roma Street Markets. After the death of Bill in 1970, the property remained within the Gillespie family until 2008.

Funding

20. Council’s Asset Services South will fund the supply and installation of the park name sign from its recurrent budget.

Consultation

21. Councillor Dick and local residents within the Richlands Ward have been consulted and agree that the recommendation is appropriate for this parkland.


23. RECOMMENDATION:

THAT APPROVAL BE GRANTED TO NAME PINE ROAD PARK (D3294) AT RICHLANDS, AS ‘BILL GILLESPIE PARK’ in accordance with Council Policy OS03 Naming Parks, Facilities or Tracks within Brisbane Parks and Open Spaces and that a name sign be erected on the Pine Road frontage of this park.

ADOPTED

D PETITIONS – CALLING ON COUNCIL TO DEVELOP AND IMPLEMENT A REHABILITATION AND FLOOD MITIGATION PLAN FOR OXLEY CREEKCA13/485449; CA13/541951; CA13/521177; CA13/556263

305/2013-1424. Four petitions from residents of Brisbane, requesting that Council urgently develop and

implement a rehabilitation and flood mitigation plan for Oxley Creek, were received.

25. Petition number CA13/485449 was received during Winter Recess 2013, CA13/521177 was presented to Council by Councillor Nicole Johnston at its meeting held on 30 July 2013,


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CA13/541951 was presented to Council by Councillor Steve Griffiths at its meeting held on 6 August 2013, and CA13/556263 was presented to Council by Councillor Nicole Johnston at its meeting held on 13 August 2013.

26. The Executive Manager, Field Services Group, Brisbane Infrastructure Division, supplied the following information.

27. The petitioners are requesting a rehabilitation and flood mitigation plan for Oxley Creek that addresses desilting, bank stabilisation, water quality improvements, regular testing and reporting of water quality, revegetation works, planning amendments to prevent industrial toxicity, and contamination and structural investigation of flood mitigation strategies for the mouth of Oxley Creek.

28. Oxley Creek Catchment is a priority catchment for Council. In 2006, the then Lord Mayor established the Oxley Creek Catchment Taskforce charged with rehabilitating Oxley Creek and invigorating the surrounding catchment.

29. Council is active on a number of projects in Oxley Creek. A major clean up took place within Oxley Creek following the January 2011 river flood and a number of projects are being coordinated by the Lord Mayor’s Oxley Creek Catchment Taskforce within the catchment to achieve improved water quality outcomes.

30. Desilting works have occurred in several minor tributaries/flood mitigation channels of Oxley Creek, which have involved removing rubbish and silt after the January 2011 river flood. Bank stabilisation, rehabilitation and revegetation works are being completed in stages along various points of Oxley Creek.

31. The completed works include bank stabilisation and rehabilitation at the western end of Brookbent Road, Pallara, and upstream of Brookbent Road, as well as along the Archerfield Wetlands site. Council is also working with a number of landowners to facilitate the stabilisation and rehabilitation of privately-owned land within the Oxley Creek catchment.

32. Water quality testing and reporting is carried out by Healthy Waterways and Council. Healthy Waterways carry out the Ecosystem Health Monitoring program. This program monitors the health of waterways annually including Oxley Creek, and whether it’s getting better or worse. Council monitors the quality of the waterways in Brisbane including Oxley Creek, to ensure the public is not exposed to unnecessary bacterial health risks.

33. Council has recently concluded the public notification period for the draft new City Plan. This plan introduces new requirements for industrial developments that reduce the impact of industrial toxicity and contamination of the city’s waterways, including Oxley Creek. These are detailed in a section of the new City Plan, Management of hazardous chemicals in flood affected areas planning scheme policy.

34. Council has adopted the FloodSmart Future Strategy 2012-2031 which outlines Council's new approach to flood risk management. Structural flood mitigation is only one option available to address flood risk at the mouth of Oxley Creek. The FloodSmart Future Strategy 2012-2031 balances social, economic and environmental objectives using a combination of tools including flood mitigation infrastructure, land-use planning and development control, flood awareness and information and flood emergency management to achieve flood-risk management.

35. Council remains committed to the Oxley Creek catchment. The 2013/14 Council budget includes an allocation of $1.215 million to the Oxley Creek Improvement program. This program will take a whole-of-catchment approach towards improving the environmental, social and economic outcomes for the catchment. This includes the continuing commitment to improve water quality in Oxley Creek and implementation of the FloodSmart Future Strategy


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2012-2031.

Funding

36. Funding for the Oxley Creek Improvement program is available within Program 1 Green and Clean and WaterSmart City, under Strategy 1.6.2 Protecting Waterway Health.

Consultation

37. Councillors Matthew Bourke (Councillor for Jamboree Ward), Steven Huang (Councillor for MacGregor Ward), and Angela Owen-Taylor (Councillor for Parkinson Ward), were consulted on 15 October 2013 and support the recommendation.

38. Councillors Milton Dick (Councillor for Richlands Ward), Steve Griffiths (Councillor for Moorooka Ward), and Nicole Johnston (Councillor for Tennyson Ward), were consulted on 15 October 2013 and did not indicate agreement or disagreement with the recommendation.

Customer impact

39. The petitioners’ request for a rehabilitation plan for Oxley Creek aligns with the Oxley Creek Improvement program and its delivery of a Waterway Health and Environmental Prioritisation Plan. This will assist Council in planning future waterway rehabilitation activities in the Oxley Creek catchment.

40. Each property within Brisbane has its own flood risk. This risk is particularly variable dependent on the type and severity of the rainfall event. Council already helps Brisbane residents and businesses understand and prepare for flooding by providing a range of tools and materials that help in flood management. The impact to customers is reduced by Council already providing:- free FloodWise Property Report- free Flood Flag Map for their suburb- free Understanding your flood risk fact sheet- free information about the types of flooding.

41. The Executive Manager submits the following recommendation with which the Committee agreed, with Councillors Peter Cumming and Kim Flesser dissenting.

42. RECOMMENDATION:

THAT COUNCIL RESPONDS TO THE PETITIONERS AND THAT THEY ARE MADE AWARE OF THE SIGNIFICANT WORK THAT COUNCIL HAS DONE IN THE OXLEY CREEK CATCHMENT CONCERNING FLOOD MITIGATION AND CREEK REHABILITATION THROUGH THE OXLEY CREEK TASKFORCE.

ADOPTED

E PETITION – REQUESTING THAT COUNCIL DIVIDE THE EXISTING DOG OFF-LEASH AREA AT BOONDALL PARK, BOONDALL, INTO TWO SEPARATE PARTSCA13/291999

306/2013-1443. A petition from residents of Boondall and surrounding suburbs, requesting that Council fence

the existing dog off-leash area into two parts to cater for timid natured dogs, was presented to the meeting of Council held on 7 May 2013 by Councillor Victoria Newton and received.

44. The Executive Manager, Field Services Group, Brisbane Infrastructure Division, supplied the


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45. The 48 signatories to the petition are concerned that some breeds of dogs pose a safety risk to owners and their dogs.

46. Boondall Park, Muller Road, Boondall, has an existing medium-sized dog off-leash area with shelter seating and taps.

47. There are other dog off-leash areas located at Barrett Street Reserve, Barrett Street, Bracken Ridge, and Gus Davies Park, Charlock Road, Bald Hills, where Council has provided separate areas for timid breeds of dogs.

48. Council officers have investigated the request to provide a dividing fence at the existing dog off-leash area at Boondall Park, Muller Road, Boondall. Subject to funding from the Deagon Ward Footpath and Parks Trust Fund 2013-14, or as part of a future budget process, Council supports the provision of a dividing fence.

49. The estimated cost to install a fence to divide the existing dog off-leash area and provide signage would be $4200.

Funding

50. Funding for the new fence and signage would need to be sought from the Deagon Ward Footpath and Parks Trust Fund in the 2013-14 financial year, or as part of a future budget process.

Consultation

51. Councillor Victoria Newton, Councillor for Deagon Ward, supports the recommendation.


53. RECOMMENDATION:

THAT PETITIONERS BE ADVISED THAT:

(1) Council officers have investigated the request for a dividing fence at the existing dog off leash area at Boondall Park, Muller Road, Boondall.

(2) SUBJECT TO FUNDING from the Deagon Ward Footpath and Parks Trust Fund 2013-14, or as part of a future budget process, THE DIVIDING FENCE WILL BE PROVIDED.

ADOPTED.

FIELD SERVICES COMMITTEE

Councillor David McLACHLAN, Chairman of the Field Services Committee, moved, seconded by Councillor Norm WYNDHAM, that the report of that Committee held on 5 November 2013, be adopted.


Councillor McLACHLAN: Yes, thank you, Madam Chairman. The two items before us, item A was a Committee presentation on National Recycling Week which the LORD MAYOR referred to earlier. That display in Reddacliff Place today marked the beginning of Recycling Week, an initiative of Planet Ark and to which the Council happily


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subscribes to provide weight to their desire to see more recycling. The more voices that call for greater recycling, the better and we're always happy to support any initiative that helps increase the volume of recycling.

At that time, 6pm, the Deputy Chairman, Councillor Angela OWEN-TAYLOR, assumed the Chair.

The LORD MAYOR mentioned the Brisbane's Best Recycling Guide which has been relaunched today and is available now on the Council website. Recommend that to all councillors to get a copy; they can download it from the website or physical copies can be provided as well. But this is a document that's now been produced for the last few years and is updated whenever the circumstance allows, and refined, and includes information about recycling tips and attempts to answer some of the myths or concerns that people might have about recycling.

Some key messages that we want to get out in particular is that food in a container doesn't actually contaminate the load but you may want to wash it out for purposes of not providing a smelly recycling bin. But there are a lot of people that had concerns about putting food waste into the recycling bin in the remnants of the container but that's still fine, but we still would prefer that it is washed out but it won't contaminate the load. But the big no-no has always been and continues to be material that's put into a plastic bag, the shopping bags that are bought from the supermarket chains, quite often get loaded up with material, cans et cetera.

People think they're doing the right thing by tying that up into a neat knot at the top and putting it in the recycling bin but that bag of material, unfortunately, won't be recycled, it can't be if it makes it all the way through to the busy recycling centre. So that information and some other tips are contained within the booklet. Some initiatives in particular for this year include the apps, the iPhone apps and the iPad apps that are available for kids to have a look at and download to get them more interested via i-devices in recycling, some good information contained therein and I recommend those to all councillors as well to have a look at, all the initiatives that we're undertaking in relation to National Recycling Week, which was the purpose of the presentation to the Committee last week at Item A.

At Item B, there was a petition requesting the construction of concrete curb and channelling to improve drainage of Lansdowne Street, Coorparoo. The recommendation is there for councillors to read, if they want to comment, they may do so now.

Acting Chairman: Further debate, Councillor ABRAHAMS.

Councillor ABRAHAMS: Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I wish to add a very quick comment on Item B which is the request for the construction of a concrete curb and channelling to improve the drainage at Lansdowne Street, Coorparoo. Madam Chair, Lansdowne Street would have 20 houses on them, 10 of them are in The Gabba Ward and the other 10 are in Morningside Ward. Madam Chair, this street leads into a large park area along Norman Creek. There is very little fall between the street and Norman Creek.

Madam Chair, the condition of the road because of the lack of kerb at the end of this street is probably some of the worst in my ward. So the residents, having asked several times and never receiving new kerb and channels, decided to send a petition. I support the petition's response, which states that funds will be sought in the 2014-15 capital works program. Madam Chair, the only reason why I got up was to ask Councillor SIMMONDS and the LORD MAYOR in his absence to make sure that this request; the seeking of that funding actually becomes a reality in that year.

I think it is all that we should do for residents that are within four kilometres of the CBD, that have a road with holes and potholes that are just not acceptable for anyone at all.

Acting Chairman: Further debate, Councillor McLACHLAN?


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Upon being submitted to the Chamber, the motion for the adoption of the report of the Field Services Committee was declared carried on the voices.


ATTENDANCE:

Councillor David McLachlan (Chairman), Councillor Norm Wyndham (Deputy Chairman), and Councillors Peter Cumming, Nicole Johnston, Kim Marx and Ian McKenzie.

A COMMITTEE PRESENTATION – NATIONAL RECYCLING WEEK 2013

307/2013-141. Arron Lee, Manager Waste Services, Field Services Group, Brisbane Infrastructure Division,

attended the meeting to provide an update on Council’s contribution to National Recycling Week 2013. He provided the information below.

2. The Towards Zero Waste strategy was developed during 2008-2009, and some of the key objectives were to:- minimise waste generation- reduce waste to landfill - increase resource recovery.

3. A slide illustrating domestic waste breakdown in tonnages was presented. This showed the amount of recyclable green waste has doubled over a period of ten years and waste going to landfill being reduced despite Brisbane’s significant population growth.

4. National Recycling Week runs from 11 to 17 November 2013 and the National Planet Ark campaign is in its 17th year. Both events focus on the benefits of recycling.

5. The ‘Brisbane’s Best Recycling Guide’ is now available in multiple languages, and the recycling event is being held at Reddacliff Place from 8am to 5pm on Tuesday 12 November 2013. There will be a display set up to demonstrate the amount of waste, and the different streams generated by a typical Brisbane household and the benefits of recycling. Council partners with other industry groups such as Visy and Sims.

6. Some other initiatives are:- the release of the new ‘Recycling Game’ App, which is a new and fun way for the

whole family to engage in learning about recycling- a Christmas recycling promotion, which will encourage residents to order the new

larger 340 litre general waste bin- e-waste recycling program, which offers free disposal at the transfer station- Moorooka State School education program, which has seen a 135 per cent increase in

recycling and school-yard litter reduced by 90 per cent.

7. Another resource recovery activity was the Garage Sale Trail held on 26 October 2013 which featured:- 511 locally registered garage sales- 755 participating sellers- 1411 locally registered buyers.The tip shops registered over 100 new customers on the day. The majority of those reported hearing about the tip shops through advertising relating to the Garage Sale Trail.

8. Waste Services are working on the development of resource recovery centres at Transfer Stations. Willawong is currently under construction and will be the first site to be open. There will be a total of four sites by 2016.


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9. Following a number of questions from the Committee, the Chairman thanked Mr Lee for his informative presentation.

10. RECOMMENDATION:


ADOPTED

B PETITION – REQUESTING THE CONSTRUCTION OF A CONCRETE KERB AND CHANNELING TO IMPROVE THE DRAINAGE OF LANDSDOWNE STREET COORPAROOCA13/545908

308/2013-1411. A petition from residents of Brisbane, requesting the construction of concrete kerb and

channel to improve the drainage of Landsdowne Street, Coorparoo, was presented to the meeting of Council held on 6 August 2013, by Councillor Helen Abrahams, and received.

12. The Executive Manager, Field Services Group, Brisbane Infrastructure Division, supplied the following information.

13. The petition contained 17 signatures representing residents in Landsdowne Street, Coorparoo.

14. Listing for this job was first created in 2000 as a very low priority. Landsdowne Street is a dead-end street backing onto a low-profile park that was created due to the area being in a flood plain. The park does not hold any sporting events, and does not provide lighting for after-hours activities. Log fencing exists at the end of Landsdowne Street, and is currently set back to allow parking on the grassed area at the end of the street. This parking is adding to the current drainage issue.

15. Council officers try to maintain the grass verge and table drains at the end of the street. However the residents continue to park there, making the area rutted, and creating muddy depressions which then hold water. To address this issue in the short term, the table drains will be regraded and the log fencing will be relocated adjacent to where the existing asphalt roadway ends. Vehicles will not be able to access the grassed area, thereby ensuring the integrity of the table drain and removing the main cause of the rutting. The large pothole has been filled, and the remainder of the remediation work will be completed by 31 December 2013.

16. Council officers from Asset Services Central have investigated the concerns regarding mosquitoes and noted that although water may pool at the end of the street after heavy rain. The area will be checked at regular intervals and treated routinely if required.

17. A Medical Entomologist from Asset Services Branch, has also visited the site to investigate the mosquito concerns raised. He noted that water would sit at the end of the street after heavy rain, but there are also many grassy depressions that would hold water close by in the park at the end of the street. These would have much more potential for mosquito breeding than the muddy pools at the end of the bitumen. All of these pools are listed on the mosquito treatment truck run for that area, and that would include any water ponding at the end of Lansdowne Street. The Entomologist noted he could not justify any urgency for installation of kerbing and channelling on the grounds that mosquitoes may breed in the muddy pools.

Funding


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18. Recurrent funding will be used for the regrading of the table drains and the relocation of the copper log fence.

19. Funding for the kerb and channel works under Schedule 13 will be sought from the 2014-15 capital works program.

Consultation

20. Councillor Helen Abrahams, Councillor for The Gabba Ward, has been consulted and supports the recommendation.

Preferred option

21. It is the preferred option, that Council list the construction of kerb and channel at the end of Landsdowne Street, Coorparoo, for consideration in the 2014-15 financial year. All listed projects are prioritised in terms of public safety, convenience and the number of people directly benefitting in relation to cost. To address this issue in the short term, the table drains will be regraded and the log fencing will be relocated adjacent to where the existing asphalt roadway ends. The large pothole has been filled, and the remainder of the remediation work will be completed by 31 December 2013.

22. Council officers have investigated the mosquito concerns raised and noted that although water may pool at the end of the street after heavy rain, the area will be checked at regular intervals and treated routinely if required.

23. The Executive Manager therefore recommends as follows and the Committee agrees.

24. RECOMMENDATION:


ADOPTED.

BRISBANE LIFESTYLE COMMITTEE

Councillor Krista ADAMS, Chairman of the Brisbane Lifestyle Committee, moved, seconded by Councillor Andrew WINES, that the report of that Committee held on 5 November 2013, be adopted.

Acting Chairman: Councillor ADAMS.

Councillor ADAMS: Thank you, Madam Deputy Chair. Last week we saw a presentation on the Museum of Brisbane. October marked the 10th anniversary to the museum and the important role it has played in preserving and unearthing and maybe most importantly showcasing some of Brisbane's very rich history over the past 150 years, but in particular the best of what we've seen in the last 10 years.

Interesting to note in our presentation that since City Hall opening in 1930 there always has been some type of artistic and cultural space in City Hall. Obviously, that continues to this day now with our beautiful residence up on level 3 for the Museum of Brisbane. It originally opened in October 2003 and obviously it was down the bottom of City Hall at that time and it was a very important part of showing our social history in Brisbane. It was on both sides of the foyer at that stage and it had welcomed about 2.5 million people by the time it closed down and moved over to 157 Ann Street temporarily.

But some of the highlights we saw over the last 10 years, we had Bite the Blue Sky in 2003 which looked at the different beginnings of the city and its communities. We had Allegra in 2004, Migrant Gardeners in 2005 and


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Destination Brisbane in 2008. So we also have a good history in the Museum of Brisbane of actually pioneering our work with the community and demonstrating some of our local artists and talent as well. So we had Remembering Goodna: Stories from a Queensland Mental Hospital in 2007, Prejudice and Pride in 2010; both won the top gallery and museum achievement awards in Queensland, which is good to see.

So many of our notable Queensland artists have been shown at the Museum of Brisbane, William Robinson, Robert Brownhall and social documentary photographs from Angela Blakely and David Lloyd. So when we looked at what we were coming back to do, in 157 we were very restricted by what we had to do. We had City Machine that looked forward about the building blocks of Brisbane from 1859 onwards. We had our 10 days of the EKKA just before we closed in the City Hall, which was great here to remember all of the sample bags that you used to be able to get from the exhibition. I remember looking at the Nestle one with some very good memories of Yogi Bear chocolates. Of course, there was the Cloudland exhibition that they did in 2005.

So what we wanted to do when we got back here was to make sure that we had plenty of space to spread out and really show off some of that fantastic work that we've got in the Museum of Brisbane. So in 2012, we saw the establishment of the Board of the Museum of Brisbane under the leadership of previous Lord Mayor, Sallyanne Atkinson. We've got very experienced board members with specialties in the areas that we need for philanthropy, fundraising and marketing within the museum.

So Andrew Harper, Jeff Humphreys, Alison Kubler, Chris Tyquin and David Askern as a part of the Council's aspect of it. I think that they are really well and truly on their way to starting the new phase of the Museum of Brisbane, will set us up for the next 10 years, not just the last 10 years. So we've opened, obviously, to popular acclaim. We have had over 200,000 visits just since April, which is just absolutely outstanding. I'm sure everybody's gone up there to have a bit of a reminisce about Expo '88—don't nod your head Councillor WINES because you weren't around then.


Councillor ADAMS: Yes, but you weren't there for Expo '88 the first time round, but it is fantastic to remember what those light shows were like and all of those—what we thought was just state-of-the-art in 1988 is quite amusing now. The River: A History of Brisbane and 130 years: Celebrating Queensland Rugby Union was another special one we've had over the winter season. At the moment, Stephen Hart is there with some fantastic sculptures called Fellow Humans.

On top of all of that, we've also got the clock tower tours that continue and we've had nearly 33,000 have taken the clock tower tours over the last six months as well, which is great to see. Education, public programs continue. Up to 60 schools have taken advantage of the museum since it's reopened again and it's great to see the schools back in here and enjoying the chambers and knowing how City Hall's working. We've got that extra space up there in the Museum of Brisbane now so we can really run classrooms with educational programs as well.

Upcoming events, 15 November is the launch of Silver which is going to be a beautiful production. We've had silver donated to the Museum of Brisbane and we have 12 notable Queensland artists that are going to be doing some wonderful work with that silverwork. Some other fantastic presentations we have, the History of Moreton Bay coming as well, which I'm sure Councillor NEWTON will look forward to seeing. There are some really historic, beautiful photographs and historical paintings in that as well.

Madam Acting Chair, we're extremely proud of the Museum of Brisbane and I'm sure councillors on both sides have enjoyed going back up there and spreading the word to their local residents and I have to say I commend the staff and the board on the setting up of the museum again over this six months, congratulate


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them on their 10th anniversary and look forward to many, many more to come. Thank you.

Acting Chairman: Further debate, Councillor FLESSER.

Councillor FLESSER: Yes, Madam Chair, just a couple of comments regarding the Museum of Brisbane and the presentation I understand that was given. Madam Chair, I want to give credit to Councillor David Hinchliffe. The Museum of Brisbane was Councillor Hinchliffe's baby. I was around at the time when he argued strongly for it. I know that there was a fair bit of push-back from the then Lord Mayor, Jim Soorley about that, but when Jim eventually funded it and it got built—and I think it might have been finished after Jim finished—he certainly was very impressed with it and I remember him saying words to the effect that he should have funded it many years before.

So Councillor Hinchliffe had a very big role in the development of the Museum of Brisbane and it's great that successive councils and successive lord mayors since then have continued the great work of that museum. Madam Chair, my particular interest in the museum, of course, I've been there many times and it is a fascinating place. I found it very interesting but exposing me to fine art or culture, Madam Chair, is a bit like feeding caviar to pigs.

But, Madam Chair, I do hope that one day this Council or a future council might give Councillor Hinchliffe more credit, or credit that he deserves for putting up the suggestion for the Museum of Brisbane. It would be great if the current board or a future board involved Councillor Hinchliffe, or David Hinchliffe as he is now, in the operations of that museum, because I know that he put a lot of effort into it and it's been a great monument, I suppose, to Brisbane, a great place to see the history of Brisbane and I would hope that Councillor Hinchliffe might be recognised in better ways in the future. Thank you.

Acting Chairman: Further debate, Councillor ADAMS.

Councillor ADAMS: Thank you. I thank Councillor FLESSER for the comments and I'm sure in his current role as local artist in Brisbane that we can definitely speak to Councillor Hinchliffe about ways he might like to contribute further to the Museum of Brisbane in the future. Thank you.

Upon being submitted to the Chamber by the Acting Chairman, the motion for the adoption of the report of the Brisbane Lifestyle Committee was declared carried on the voices.


ATTENDANCE:

Councillor Krista Adams (Chairman), Councillor Andrew Wines (Deputy Chairman), and Councillors Steve Griffiths, Vicki Howard, Steven Huang, and Victoria Newton.

A COMMITTEE PRESENTATION – MUSEUM OF BRISBANE

309/2013-141. Lorraine Gregory, Manager Healthy and Vibrant Communities, Connected Communities

Branch, Brisbane Lifestyle Division, attended the meeting to provide an update on the Museum of Brisbane. Ms Gregory provided the information below.

2. In 2013, the Museum of Brisbane celebrates the 10-year anniversary of being the city’s hub of social and cultural heritage.

3. The Museum has hosted a number of exhibitions since its opening. During the renovations of City Hall in 2010, the Museum was temporarily relocated to 157 Ann Street. An image was shown of the Cabinet of Curiosities exhibition that included the City of Brisbane collection.


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4. The Museum of Brisbane received a number of major awards in 2012, including:- Gallery and Museum Achievement Awards – Outstanding Achievement- Australian Business Arts Foundation Queensland Awards – Toyota Community

Award and Good Practice Recognition Award.

5. There are a number of other activities conducted at the Museum of Brisbane. A range of education and public programs are available for visitors to the Museum, including tours of current exhibitions, City Hall and the Clock Tower.

6. Since it was reopened in City Hall on 6 April 2013, the Museum of Brisbane has recorded over 200,000 visitors. These visitors have undertaken 32,945 Clock Tower tours and 19,565 City Hall tours. There have been three exhibitions running at the Museum since the reopening:- Light Fantastic: Expo 88 Parades Rewired- The River: A History of Brisbane - 130 Years: Celebrating Queensland Rugby Union.

7. Museum of Brisbane Pty Ltd and the Museum of Brisbane Trust manage the operation of the Museum independently from Council. They conduct a number of sponsorship and philanthropic activities that are essential to the ongoing delivery of free exhibitions, programs and collections.

8. An image was shown of the Museum of Brisbane Pty Ltd and the Museum of Brisbane Trust board members, including Sallyanne Atkinson AO (Chairman), Andrew Harper, Jeff Humphreys, Alison Kubler, Chris Tyquin and David Askern.

9. Ms Gregory provided highlights of upcoming exhibitions to be held at the Museum. These included:- Fellow Humans – Stephen Hart (18 October 2013 to 2 March 2014)- Silver (15 November 2013 to 27 April 2014)- The Many Lives of Moreton Bay (14 February 2014 to 30 November 2014)- Captured: Early Brisbane Photographers and their Aboriginal subjects (14 March

2014 to 13 July 2014)- David Malouf and Friends (16 May 2014 to 26 October 2014)- Euan MacLeod (25 July 2014 to 30 November 2014).

10. Following a number of questions from the Committee, the Chairman thanked Ms Gregory for her interesting and informative presentation.

11. RECOMMENDATION:


ADOPTED.

FINANCE, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE

Councillor Julian SIMMONDS, Chairman of the Finance, Economic Development and Administration Committee, moved, seconded by Councillor Ian McKENZIE, that the report of that Committee held on 5 November 2013, be adopted.

Acting Chairman: Councillor SIMMONDS.

Councillor SIMMONDS: Thank you very much, Madam Chairman. Just a couple of issues I wanted to discuss within the portfolio this evening. First of all, the very successful launch of the Christmas in the City 2013 campaign. The Committee heard a little bit more about this today, so it'll be discussed next week as well, but it was


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launched in the last week, just been, and it is a fantastic program once again. Brisbane Marketing have excelled themselves putting together a program that's got some 181 events, up from 136 last year, and 53 performances.

There are new partnerships with South Bank, Gold Lotto, Hilton and the Queensland Ballet. The Queensland Ballet one is particularly special because it's being incorporated into all of the creative, in terms of the new decorations, and also the Nutcracker theme. The young lady who is a dancer in the Nutcracker ballet and who's featured on all of the creative material has dedicated herself to leading the parade every afternoon and then probably getting in a taxi and quickly getting over to perform in the ballet. So that's some dedication for you and we'd like to thank all of our partners who have been involved.

We've got some 40,000 LED (light-emitting diode) lights as part of the Christmas decorations as well, as I said the new Nutcracker toys. We have those events which have become favourites amongst Brisbane residents including the lighting of the Christmas tree; the southern hemisphere's largest solar powered Christmas tree which many people come out for and of course the annual parade that runs every day, which I've mentioned. We also, for the first time ever, have the City Hall being lit up as a digital light show every night from Friday 13 to Tuesday 24 December. That is really going to be something special and spectacular. It's hard to explain, you've got to see it for yourself and I'd really encourage everyone to do that.

I also wanted to comment about some of the practical ways that we are living out the Digital Brisbane initiative and making it easier for residents and business in our city to deal with Council. The first is some of the pain point projects that are coming out of the 123BNE hotline. So as well as providing an extra way for Council to assist and engage with businesses, we also take all of that data and analyse it and see where we can improve our own internal processes. That has led to Council delivering some 19 online forms and another 12 dynamic online forms are in progress.

So this has led to an increase in the number of people how is now filling in their forms online without having to go to a centre or having to call the hotline. There's some 120 forms used in October, up from 40, which I think is a great way. It's not going to take over the more traditional forms but we have heard the feedback, the people and the businesses in particular who want to be able to self-service through the website and this is a way that we can deal with it.

We've also launched the new ‘Doing business in Brisbane’ tab on the Brisbane City Council website, which has seen a huge spike in views from some 3000 to 8000 in just a single month. So, by bringing all that information that was already there on the website, but by bringing it together for businesses under one easy-to-use tab, we're seeing that people are taking that up with real gusto.

I also want to talk briefly—the LORD MAYOR mentioned it, but about his new app. Now, he only briefly touched on it because he's a very humble man, as we know, but it really is an example of him walking the walk when it comes to digital and it's something that is quite special. Now other lord mayor in the country has seen fit to do this and it's a great example of how we can use digital technology to better engage with Brisbane residents and provide them with a better service.

I would have thought, given the prolific social media use of the Labor councillors opposite that it's something that they would have embraced if—feel free to copy the LORD MAYOR if you'd like and get your own app. I know that other Lord Mayors in the region are looking at doing exactly the same thing because, I know they deride it over there, but this is how residents want to be able to contact you. You have to be able to respond to residents, residents want to be able to—


Councillor SIMMONDS: You guys have downloaded it, have you? Good, there you go. There you go, so they purchased it from the App Store, I'm very pleased the Labor councillors—


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Acting Chairman: Councillor SUTTON.

Councillor SIMMONDS: I'm very pleased the Labor councillors are taking up the digital revolution and are downloading the LORD MAYOR's app. He'll be very pleased to hear that, like other Brisbane residents, they are using it to engage with him in a more effective way.


Councillor SIMMONDS: Again, just another example of where this Council and this administration is walking the walk, when it comes to digital communications.

We also, at the last Committee meeting had a presentation on successful bids for conventions. Again, a hot topic—I know it's been debated about the importance of Brisbane Marketing and what we get for ratepayers' dollars and this is a perfect example of how they are excelling themselves in the - in financial terms. They've generated some $50.9 million in just the year to date, so in just a few months. That's well and above their KPI (key performance indicators), it's nearly double the previous year's figures and these are new conventions that they have won that will be coming to Brisbane.

We know that business delegates spend more when they're here, we know that they stay longer and that they're a very welcome addition to a local economy. So the Brisbane Marketing team should be congratulated on the work that they have done and the progress they have made and I hope that other councillors will support them as well. Thank you.

Acting Chairman: Further debate. Councillor SIMMONDS, anything further?

Upon being submitted to the Chamber, the motion for the adoption of the Finance, Economic Development and Administration Committee was declared carried on the voices.


ATTENDANCE:

Councillor Julian Simmonds (Chairman) Councillor Angela Owen-Taylor (Deputy Chairman), and Councillors Fiona King, Ryan Murphy, Shayne Sutton and Kim Flesser.

A COMMITTEE PRESENTATION – BRISBANE MARKETING CONVENTION BUREAU UPDATE

310/2013-141. Eva Sorban, Business Development Manager, Brisbane Marketing, presented an update to the

Committee on the Brisbane Marketing Convention Bureau. Ms Sorban provided the information below.

2. Brisbane Marketing ‘bid’s’ to host business related conventions in Brisbane. This year’s successful bid wins have had a positive economic benefit to the city in terms of both expenditure and length of stay by delegates.

3. In financial terms for the Brisbane economy, successful bids have generated $50.9 million dollars (year to date). This represents 85 per cent of the key performance indicator Brisbane Marketing set for itself of $60 million. This is nearly double the previous year’s figure.

4. The presenter detailed case studies:- Asia Pacific Model United Nations Conference 2014, which is run over six days and

has approximately 700 attendees delivering an economic investment of over $2.5 million.


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- Austmine International Conference and Exhibition which is run over three days and has approximately 600 attendees delivering an economic investment of over $1 million dollars.

5. Between 2009 and 2012 business delegates have on average increased the amount they have spent by three per cent per year. In 2012, Brisbane had 20 million business visitors with an economic investment of $12.9 billion.

6. While each visitor to our city is important, based on statistics business visitors stay for a longer period and spend more. Statistics provided by Tourism Research Australia for 2012 indicate that business visitors stayed on average 2.7 days and had an average spend of $643, whereas leisure visitors stayed 2.4 days and spent $320.

8. The Chairman thanked Ms Sorban for the informative presentation and passed on his thanks to the team for the positive results.

9. RECOMMENDATION:

THAT COUNCIL NOTE THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THE REPORT.

ADOPTED

B BUSHLAND PRESERVATION LEVY REPORT FOR THE PERIOD ENDED SEPTEMBER 2013 173/695/586/3

311/2013-1410. The Manager Financial Management, Corporate Finance Branch, Organisational Services

Division, provided the Committee with a report on expenditure for bushland purposes for the period ended September 2013.

11. The Bushland Preservation Levy Report is prepared on a quarterly basis in order to show the balance of funds held for environmental bushland purposes along with details of environmental bushland expenditure.

12. The Committee noted the information contained in the report and that the balance of the funds held for environmental bushland purposes for the period ended September 2013 was -$480,161.

13. RECOMMENDATION:

THAT COUNCIL NOTE THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THE REPORT SUBMITTED ON FILE AND TABLED.

ADOPTED.

CONSIDERATION OF NOTIFIED MOTION – Cease bonus payments to senior executives and request details of executive positions in Council’s Annual Report:(Notified motions are printed as supplied and are not edited)

312/2013-14


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The Acting Chairman of Council (Councillor Angela OWEN-TAYLOR) then drew the Councillors’ attention to the notified motion listed on the agenda, and called on Councillor Milton DICK to move the motion. Accordingly, Councillor DICK moved, seconded by Councillor Kim FLESSER, that—

This Council urges the LORD MAYOR to (1) cease all bonus payments made on top of fixed remuneration paid to senior executives employed by Council, and (2) provide full remuneration details of all senior executive positions in Council's annual report.

Acting Chairman: Is there any debate? Councillor DICK.

Councillor DICK: Thank you, Madam Deputy Chair. Look, Madam Chair, I'm moving this tonight because since this came to light when I raised it in the Council Chamber, and there's been subsequent media coverage, I have been contacted by residents and ratepayers across the city absolutely shocked. Shocked on two reasons; (1) that this Council would entertain paying millions and millions of dollars to our well-paid, hardworking bureaucrats and (2) the fact that this Council controlled wholly and solely by the LNP will not release that information in the public arena.

Madam Chair, I know the arguments tonight and we've only had one, so far, from the LNP will hinge on, well Jim Soorley didn't do this. Jim Soorley had the payments, Jim Soorley didn't release them. Well you know what? A former Administration was wrong to do it, the current Administration was wrong to do it. So let's take that off the table. I don't want any more nonsense from the LNP saying, well you did it, and all the rest.

I wasn't here; I would have spoken against it at the time. It was wrong then and it's wrong now.


Councillor DICK: Now, so we've dealt with that argument. Now the issue tonight is in this current economic climate, where we are asking ratepayers to pay more and to get less services—


Councillor DICK: —that we as an organisation believe it is appropriate to top up the salaries, and all I can base is on previous, because for the last two financial years, because the LNP is refusing to provide an information. The first challenge tonight is, release the information for 2012-13 about what that dollar figure was. I suspect we've now tipped over the $3 million mark. I suspect we have now tipped over the $3 million.

Now, if I am off the mark, if I am wrong, Councillor SIMMONDS tonight can say, no this is the figure. It's not $3 million; it's what it's been in the past, roughly $1.9 million in 2010-2011; 2011-2012 those bonus payments increased to $2.158 million. The other issue I have objection to is, our hard working Council officers, the bus drivers which I spoke to tonight which are feeling pressure.


Councillor DICK: —our frontline workers which are in Local Asset Services for example, which are facing enormous pressures with fewer resources. They're not the blokes and the women who are getting the executive bonuses; it is 70, that we know, well paid executives that are getting these bonuses. Now they do a great job for our organisation, however, the other critical point of this debate tonight is, and my second challenge—so the first one was provide what it was last year, 2012-13, it wasn't included in the Annual Report, I believe it should be.

Forget whether it's been in the past or not, it should be, as our shareholders, which are our employers, our ratepayers, they should know because it's public money. Good governments who provide information aren't afraid about scrutiny.


Councillor DICK: That's the issue here. But the other critical issue around this is, what are the payments for? What are the criteria for? Now if our executives are hitting the mark, if they are delivering outcomes, we should have key criteria for what those


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bonuses payments are for and what they are getting. So tonight, the third recommendation is, Councillor SIMMONDS needs to table what the criteria the Establishment and Coordination Committee look at when actually providing the financial increases to those executive bonuses.


Councillor DICK: Now what we're also seeing, and I reference in the annual reports in Item 2, Madam Deputy Chair, there is a growing trend of secrecy from the LNP. That's no, I guess, secret. That's been a pattern for the last nine years, Councillor BOURKE you've been in power. Nine, repeat nine years. What we're—


Councillor DICK: —not seven, as you said, nine. What we're finding is a growing secrecy, a culture of secrecy by the LNP, the way they are writing reports. Look, I don't agree, as I've said before, a lot with Campbell Newman at all, but I tell you one thing that he had the guts to do on the way out for his last financial report, he listed executive service remuneration, the salary ranges, the number of executives. There are 25 bands, detailing that information about what people got paid.

You know what was in this year's report? Four. That's right. So we are moving away towards this culture of not providing information. There were four bands provided. So less and less information, even about what we're paying our executives. Now this is public money. I did a bit of research in the preparation for this and looked at what major companies do when it comes to this and that is, for example, the large multi-national companies which are responding to their shareholders, for example, I won't table it, but if the Administration would like to, for example, directors' reports in documentation, they list very clear, simple language to their shareholders, remuneration, superannuation, cash payments and bonus payments.

Now, as you know, Madam Deputy Chair, that's good accounting practice.


Councillor DICK: You know that and I think most people with a cursory example of accounting would know that is good governance and good practice. If it's good enough for those large multi-national companies then it's good enough for this organisation to respond to our shareholders. Our shareholders are the people who we serve and we are privileged to serve in this place. It's a privilege; it's not a right, to represent the community. We know the community expect the toughest, highest standards. I want this Council—I want Brisbane City Council to lead the way in Australia when it comes to bonuses, when it comes to what we pay our executives.

Look, I will even meet the administration half way, if we don't list every name in the report, at least the position title. That's fine, that's fine. If there are privacy issues around it, we can make this work. So what I challenge tonight to the LNP is, let's set best practice. Let's lead by example. Let's show the community - and we are asking the community to pay their rates, we are asking them to pay more, we are asking CBD businesses and we're extending the fringe to pay more.

We're asking more of the community, it is only incumbent, as an organisation, we honour that commitment. We honour that payment that we give to them by having full disclosure about what we’re paying our executives. I don’t want any nonsense from the LNP tonight that this is against our executives. I fully support our Council employees. They do remarkable work, under enormous pressure, in my opinion, from the LNP asking to do more with less and less. However, they deserve that.

But I come back to my initial point. To those hard working frontline workers, who go out every day and serve the community, well, they deserve it as well. They deserve it as well. This is not a complicated thing. This is not a difficult thing to do. I believe it’s the right thing to do. I will continue to go—they ask, what’s the difference between Labor and the LNP? We hear that all the time.


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Well, our example is and under this side of Labor counsellors, we want the best practice.

Forget what’s happened in the past. Forget what previous administrations have done. Let’s look to the future. Let’s lead by example about how we can provide better accountability, better openness to the ratepayers that we serve and the way to start that tonight is to support this motion as a united Council to send a very clear message that we want the toughest and the most open and transparent processes in the country.

Acting Chairman: Further debate, Councillor SCHRINNER.

DEPUTY MAYOR: Yes. Madam Chairman, I’ll be rising to speak against this motion. Indeed to make sure that there’s appropriate debate on this important issue. Now, Councillor DICK was very clear to repeat a number of times, oh, we don’t want to dwell on the past. We don’t want to talk about the history of this. There’s a reason he doesn’t want to dwell on the past, because he knows exactly what will happen when the spotlight is shone on the past. The reality is the current system of executive pay, including bonuses was implemented many, many years ago.

It was implemented before almost all of us, I think, were sitting in this chamber. Councillor DICK, you know, during these tough economic times, we need to reconsider. Well, when he had the 1990s recession that we had to have, a recession that was brought on by Labor’s economic mismanagement, the Council at the time, under Lord Mayor Jim Soorley thought it was quite appropriate to continue paying bonuses and continue the executive salary arrangements that have been in place.

He may have been wrong, but according to Labor, but the reality is what is wrong here is simply a case that they’re on that side of the chamber, not this side of the chamber. That’s the reality. That’s the only difference here in Labor’s approach. When they’re in opposition, they can criticise these type of things. When they’re in administration, they quickly fall into line and they set the situation that has been in place for many, many years.

Now, there are a couple of points that are important to note. Just to avoid any misunderstanding. Council’s senior executives that are on this bonus system are not permanent employees of council. They are on contracts and those contracts give them no permanency in the organisation. They give them no tenure or long term job security. They are—

Acting Chairman: Order.

DEPUTY MAYOR: —based on periods of, in some cases, three years and so these executives are on very clear notice that we expect them to perform. On the other hand, we believe that if they perform, they should be paid appropriately. We’re not doing anything in this organisation that other levels of government aren’t doing, other councils aren’t doing.


DEPUTY MAYOR: It is appropriate that that system is in place. If we were the only government organisation around that was awarding bonuses to senior executives based on performance. Then you could understand Labor’s outrage and Labor’s view. But the reality is we are not, and every level of government does this and it is accepted practice for many, many years. The reality is what we’re seeing here is some cheap political point scoring. Labor knows that if they push the buttons, those red hot buttons of the politics of envy, they might be able to score a few extra votes.

I give it to you; you may well be able to score a few extra votes. But I can tell you that this is not a productive way to be spending out time in the chamber. Because we know that if you’re ever elected, and I’m talking about the collective view, ever elected into administration, you will keep that bonus system. There is no doubt. We know that, because the best indicator of future performance is past behaviour and we know that when Labor had the opportunity in the past to change the system, they didn’t.


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Now, as I said, this is not something unique to Brisbane City Council. If you look across the country in various states, territories, you see this is an ongoing practice and one is considered as appropriate for senior executives that have no security of tenure.

As I said, we expect exceptional performance from our senior managers. If they don’t perform, they are not rewarded. If they don’t perform, they may not have a job. That’s the reality of it, but on the other hand, if they do perform, if they do meet the expectations that are set by the administration, then they should be paid appropriately. I refer to the Canberra Times, 20 August 2013. So, just recently this year, the article—Top executives in the Federal Department of Health and Aging shared in $5.7 million in performance bonuses in the 12 months to June 2012.

Now, who was in government then? Who was in government then in June 2012? It was a Labor Federal Government paying $5.7 million in performance bonuses to their senior executives. I—


DEPUTY MAYOR: I hear Councillor DICK saying it was wrong. Now, he may incorporate this into his review of the federal election. Maybe it was a factor, but the reality is, Labor was in government and they were happy to pay these bonuses to public servants. I refer to the Brisbane Times. 27 July 2012. Bonuses totalling 4.8 million were paid to Queensland Rail executives in the 2010-11 financial year. Who was in office then? It was Labor. Now, the opposition leader at the moment, Annastacia Palaszczuk, was obviously part of that former government and held a senior role.

Yes. She did hold the ministership of that particular portfolio at one stage, I understand. So when this article was written last year, they thought, okay, now that Annastacia is opposition leader, let’s see what her view on this particular matter is. So they asked her about these bonuses that were paid under Labor. Here’s what she said. Executive salaries were low in comparison to others in the wider industry. I understand executive salaries in question were benchmarked against the industry and they were at the lower end of the scale.

The bonuses are capped at 15 per cent, which is below the wider market. So she was saying, that’s fine and 15 per cent, you know, that’s no big problem. Now, the interesting thing is at the time this article was written, there was a new minister and that was Scott Emerson. Scott Emerson actually questioned the bonuses that were paid in the past. Scott Emerson said, well, why were $4.7 million in bonuses paid to Queensland Rail executives in a year where there was declining rail patronage and the on time running of trains was actually decreasing?

So if you’re measuring performance, surely the bonuses would be going down. Guess what Annastacia Palaszczuk said? Mr Emerson needs to get a new script and stop playing the same old blame game. So isn’t it interesting the difference opposition makes? We see, you know, decisions made in government are fine and they’re even justified when you go and become opposition leader and you have to justify those previous decisions you make.

We know that is exactly what would happen if Labor ever got it. They would not change the system. They know the system is in place for a reason, a very good reason. That they’ve accepted it in the past and nobody, nobody, should believe that they have suddenly changed their tune. All the people can really take out of this is that they are desperate to score political points. They know they’re not getting any traction. They come in here week after week, firing bullets in a scatter-gun approach and not hitting anything.

They come in here week after week talking about Federal issues, about the Council issues.


DEPUTY MAYOR: I hear that interjection about the airport. Well, the Brisbane Airport is a Brisbane issue. It is very relevant to the City of Brisbane. Not a federal issue. This is a Brisbane issue. But the reality is—


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DEPUTY MAYOR: —as I said, Labor, to use the words of Annastacia Palaszczuk, are playing the same old, tired blame game here and I urge them to quit it and start talking about something productive for the people of the City of Brisbane.

Acting Chairman: Further debate, Councillor FLESSER.

Councillor FLESSER: Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I can hardly believe what I just heard. Madam Chair, where DEPUTY MAYOR is saying it’s so bad, the Federal Labor government were paying bonuses. That was really, really, really bad. The former Labor government were paying bonuses. That’s really, really, really bad. So you know what we should do? We should do it too. That’s what he just said. It was bad that those governments did it, so we should do it also, Madam Chair.

DEPUTY MAYOR: A point of order, Madam Chairman.

Acting Chairman: A point of order against you, Councillor FLESSER.

DEPUTY MAYOR: Claim to be misrepresented.

Acting Chairman: Thank you, DEPUTY MAYOR.

Councillor FLESSER: Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I’ve said on many occasions in this Council Chamber that I believe that paying bonuses to executives in Brisbane City Council is suck hole pay and on my view remains that to this day, Madam Chair. Suck hole pay. That’s all it is. There’s no firm KPIs that the executives have to meet, Madam Chair. This isn’t a private corporation making profits.

This is a not for profit organisation where our Council officers, our bureaucrats and all our staff are out to do the best they can for the residents of Brisbane. They’re not here to make money. Not here to make money, Madam Chair. KPIs, they work certainly for major corporations. Councillor DICK mentioned a couple of them and they make the payments that they make to the senior executives and bonuses very clear in the annual reports, Madam Chair.

But this is a not for profit organisation. Madam Chair, I’ve been in there before in Civic Cabinet, when the Chief Executive Officer comes in with these big spreadsheets, Madam Chair. Like, and there’s all these bits of paper and there’s all the bureaucrats there and what their bonuses should be and I’ve seen the Lord Mayor at the time, Campbell Newman, looking at them. Now, Madam Chair, there’s nothing objective about it. It was whoever was in the Lord Mayor’s favour at the time got the biggest bonus.

Madam Chair, the LNP administration has not presented any arguments at all to say that that has changed. That there are key performance indicators, Madam Chairman, ones that can be measured that these bureaucrats have to meet, so Madam Chair, it is suck hole pay. I’m dead against it and—

Acting Chairman: Councillor FLESSER, that’s not quite an appropriate term. I request you withdraw it, please.

Councillor FLESSER: Madam Chair, I would say it’s obnoxious, the bonus payments that Council is paying to bureaucrats. Madam Chair, some people might think it’s okay and certainly, as I’ve said before, that in private organisations it works where profits are involved. But Madam Chair, where are the other—the LNP mentioned before about the politics of envy and they quite often talk about class warfare. Madam Chair, I’ll tell you what class warfare is. Madam Chair, it’s that our bureaucrats get paid bonuses, but the bus drivers don’t.

Class warfare is that our parks maintenance teams don’t get bonuses, but the bureaucrats do. Our cleaners don’t get bonuses, but the bureaucrats do. Madam Chairman, even our committee clerks here, they don’t get bonuses, but bureaucrats do, Madam Chair. All these staff contributes equally to the running of this Council. I see that the clerk’s having a couple of comments about that, Madam Chair, but, Madam Chair, but all our hard-working Council officers contribute equally to making this Council run.

Madam Chair, the bureaucrats at the top end, they’re very well paid and the DEPUTY MAYOR was thrashing around, talking about that they’re on contract,


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Madam Chair. They’re on contract for a couple of years, Madam Chair. They’re getting paid, according to the Annual Report; one person is even getting paid over half a million dollars a year. There are 129 getting paid up to $199,000 a year, so Madam Chair, I think that running that argument against our bus drivers would get a very poor response.

So Madam Chair, I’m dead against the Council paying bonuses to senior executives. That is this Labor caucus’ policy on that matter and I would appreciate if those on the opposite side would stop saying that we’re not bringing forward any policy, because that is our policy. The other item that it’s the motion, Madam Chair, is that all remuneration details of all senior executive positions should be displayed in the annual reports.

Madam Chair, I have looked at the Westpac Annual Report and there are about 17 pages of what the senior executives in Westpac get paid, Madam Chair. I’ve got here in front of me the National Australia Bank annual report. Madam Chair, it doesn’t just have the senior executives’ positions, it has their names. It has what they get paid, Madam Chair. It has their bonuses and their fixed remuneration, Madam Chair. So why can’t Brisbane City Council do the same thing?

We have ratepayers’ money that we are using. Madam Chair, this should be even more open than a public company. But no, Madam Chair, what we’ve seen over the last couple of years, since Councillor QUIRK has become the Lord Mayor, Madam Chair, is this tightening up, getting smaller and smaller the amount of information that we’re giving out to our ratepayers about what our senior bureaucrats are being paid. Now, Madam Chair, I do know this one thing and Councillor DICK did the raise the issue before about the number of bans that Campbell Newman used to put in there, as to the amount of remuneration those bureaucrats were getting paid.

But Madam Chair, I noticed a new thing in this year’s annual report. No longer is the remuneration for those bureaucrats the total remuneration, Madam Chair. Now it’s been changed to total fixed remuneration. Total fixed remuneration. Do you know what that means? That means it doesn’t include the bonuses. Am I right? Am I right? The silence from the other side, Madam Chair. If Councillor DICK has thought that maybe bonuses have reached $3 million now, Madam Chair, $3 million—$2.1 million last year, Madam Chair.

We, not just Labor councillors, Madam Chair, but the residents of Brisbane need an explanation. There is no reason, absolutely no reason why that information shouldn’t be released to the public and Madam Chair, I fully support this motion and I think that any free thinking councillor in this place, if they were really thinking about an open and accountable running of this administration, Madam Chair, would be doing exactly what the motion calls for.

That’s releasing the full information about those full remuneration details, Madam Chair. As I said before, certainly it is our policy that those bureaucrats should not be paid bonuses. They should be paid for what they do. They should be well paid. Those who are going to work hard at the top levels of Council should be well paid, Madam Chair. Certainly support that, but I certainly don’t support bonuses.

Acting Chairman: Further debate, Councillor SIMMONDS.

Councillor SIMMONDS: All right. Thank you very much, Madam Acting Chairman. I certainly consider myself a free-thinking councillor, but I’m happy to rise to speak against the motion tonight and in support of my—


Acting Chairman: Just a moment. Sorry, DEPUTY MAYOR has claimed to be misrepresented.

Councillor SIMMONDS: —DEPUTY MAYOR, my apologies.

DEPUTY MAYOR: Councillor FLESSER said that I said the bonuses were bad. I never said that and I don’t think they’re bad.

Acting Chairman: Councillor SIMMONDS. Thank you, DEPUTY MAYOR.


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Councillor SIMMONDS: Thank you very much, Madam Acting Chairman. Look, I, of course, also am pleased or am happy to support the bonus system. It is most definitely an appropriate system for our organisation of our size. As the DEPUTY MAYOR has pointed out, it’s nothing new. I don’t want to Labor the point. Because I know that the councillors obviously know. They just choose to ignore it. But we are a large organisation. We are larger than the scale of a normal council.

Some 7700 employees need to be managed. A $3 billion budget and a $1.3 billion capital program that needs to be delivered, Madam Chairman. These are very important things. They need appropriate managers at the appropriate level. Now, we don’t come up with what that level is. We have a process in place whereby they are reviewed independently about what is the appropriate market rate to pay those kinds of executives. That’s how we go about it.

Because we need the people of the right skill level and we are—look, we don’t as I’ve said before, Labor councillors would have us believe we live in a vacuum. We do not live in a vacuum. We have to compete for these very high quality people that we need to deliver for the people of Brisbane with the private sector. We cannot do that effectively if we decide to take on a different remuneration rate than what they can receive under the private sector.

We will never win and I have openly said that on radio. We’ll never win a bidding war and we don’t try to win a bidding war. Anyone who comes to work, the Council knows a large part of what they do is civic duty, Madam Chairman, but they do expect a fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work. Now, I know the politics of envy is easy. It is and it’s really easy and the Labor councillors are experts at it.

But let’s be realistic. What these managers do in terms of looking after hundreds of people within the organisation as their direct reports is different from a bus driver. That doesn’t mean a bus driver doesn’t work hard, but it is a different skill set that we’re trying to attract. That means a different form of remuneration. Now, I’ll deal with Councillor DICKs, the Leader of the Opposition’s ‘eureka moment’ in a minute. But first, I wanted to deal with the nodding heads behind him.

When Councillor DICK declared and thumped his fist down on the table that previous administrations were wrong to ever pay bonuses. It was Councillor ABRAHAMS, who as Deputy, that was the loudest voice agreeing with that behind. Then we just heard Councillor FLESSER talk about how he never agreed with bonuses. Well, once again, as we saw earlier in the day, when Councillor DICK was derogatory of Brisbane Marketing while his Deputy asking them to take on more work, he needs to speak to his team.

Because I went back and I thought, well, if they’re such conscientious objectors, surely, when this came to the civic cabinet that they were part of, they would have absented themselves. At the very least, they wouldn’t have signed the E&C. They’ve got moral principles. They stand up for what they believe in. That’s what they have us believe, so I went back and looked at it. Well, I’ve got the Civic Cabinet record here of the attendance on 23 January.

In fact, I seek Councillor ABRAHAMS and Councillor FLESSERs signatures right there on the page. So so they were definitely at the meeting. They can’t claim that. So then I went to the submission itself. The submission itself is about approving bonus payments. Now, I want you to—just as a point of note for other councillors in the room, within this E&C submission that was brought forward under the heading Implications Proposal, it said this.

No criticisms are expected, as the bonus payments form part of the executive service contracts. Well, okay? That was fine while they were there. Did they agree with it? Well, heck yes. Because here’s Kim FLESSER’s signature and here’s Councillor ABRAHAMS’ signature, agreeing to the bonus payments and agreeing there should be no criticism as the bonus payments form part of the executive service contracts. Now, look, the LORD MAYOR, our LORD MAYOR, Graham QUIRK has indicated before he was in cabinet with


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Councillor FLESSER and Councillor FLESSER most definitely kicked up a fuss.

But he didn’t have enough principles not to sign the document, Madam Chairman. He didn’t have enough principles not to agree to the fact that there shouldn’t be any criticism. They did it again. They did it again in November of that year, 2006. This time, Councillor NEWTON’s there, as well. One of the other great head nodders on that side, Madam Chairman. We’ve got three signatures, Councillor ABRAHAMS, Councillor NEWTON and Councillor Kim FLESSER, in the record as attending that Civic Cabinet meeting.

Then again, on the very E&C Madam Chairman, all three of them, right there in black and white supporting it. So let’s not have any pretence that they’ve suddenly decided that this is wrong. Because they were there, Madam Chairman, and their actions speak much louder than words. Well, and then we get to Councillor DICK’s ‘eureka moment’. He said it was wrong before and it’s wrong now. He would have said something - he would have said something if he was there.

Well, we go back to DEPUTY MAYOR’s point. What was there in the - first of all, the Canberra Time, when the federal government just this year was paying top executives of the Federal Department of Health and Aging a $5.7 million performance bonus in the 12 months to June last year. Well, Madam Chairman, this was all within Councillor DICK’s ‘eureka moment’. Did he come out and criticise the Federal Labor government? No.

Was he out there campaigning against them on election day? No. No. We didn’t hear a word—what about, well, okay. All right. It’s not just the Federal Government. What about the State Government? Well, here we go. We’ve got The Courier Mail on 7 October 2011. Queensland Health has admitted that it paid a large bonus to a second senior executive whose contract was terminated early over the payroll debacle. So here we have - a State Government paying performance bonuses to employees who are sacked, because they did a bad job, Madam Chairman.

Now, where was Councillor DICK then? Again, did he say anything against the state government? No. Did he campaign against the Labor state government at the last election? No. So this ‘eureka moment’ that Councillor DICK claims to have had, he would have us believe that it only applies, only applies to this Council chamber where there’s an LNP government. It doesn’t apply to any Labor governments. No. No. No. It’s not that much of a ‘eureka moment’.

Only to LNP administrations, Madam Chairman. An important thing that DEPUTY MAYOR mentioned is that we do pay these bonuses only a performance basis. It’s only if they meet—these executives meets key delivery criteria and that directly affects their performance bonuses. You don’t see—you don’t see what happened under Labor governments, where they’re paying bonuses just for turning up and in fact, even when you’re sacked, you get a bonus as well, just for having been there.

Congratulations. You were there. You get a bonus, as well. That’s the Labor way. That’s the Labor way, Madam Chairman. It’s not the way of this administration.

Acting Chairman: Just a moment, please, Councillor SIMMONDS. Councillor JOHNSTON, please do not scream out across this chamber. Otherwise, I will warn you. Councillor SIMMONDS.

Councillor SIMMONDS: Madam Chairman, I can only take on their insistent injections that they’re no longer interested in hearing any debate on this motion, so I move it be put.

313/2013-14Motion be now put


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It was moved by Councillor Julian SIMMONDS, seconded by Councillor Ryan MURPHY, that the motion be now put. Upon being submitted to the Chamber, the motion, that the motion be now put, was declared carried on the voices.

Acting Chairman: I will now put the motion. Sorry. Councillor DICK to sum up. My apologies.

Councillor DICK: Look, thank you, Madam Deputy Chair. Look, I’m not surprised that the LNP shut this down. Really and truly, I’m not. I mean, I expected we’d only actually—they only have the guts to speak once. I really did, because they’re fighting against community sentiment. Whenever you’re fighting against community sentiment, you shut down the debate. At the end of the day, this can be settled really easily.

I’m happy any day of the week for DEPUTY MAYOR and I to go out to the community, advertise it and say, we’re going to have a debate about whether we should pay millions of dollars, while we’re cutting front line services, while we’re getting rid of staff, whether we should pay our staff millions of dollars, our well paid staff. DEPUTY MAYOR, I can pretty much tell you what the answer to that debate will be. All the LNP have got is, it’s been done before, other Labor governments did it, and we’re going to keep doing it.

That’s it. That’s it. Now, you know, when you’ve got - when you’ve got - when you’ve got that, sort of, lazy argument and that’s what it is, it’s a lazy argument, because we’ve just heard from Councillor SIMMONDS that we do pay for performance bonus. Well, what is it? Okay. Your position is very clear. You want to pay our executives up to $3 million a year. My view is, okay, tell us how much the figure is. If you are committed to the policy, why on earth won’t you say how much it is?

You won’t actually release the figure. What are you afraid of? I’ll tell you what you’re afraid of. You’re afraid of community sentiment. You know, we’re talking about a significant amount of money. The LNP put up two speakers tonight. The DEPUTY MAYOR and the Chair of Finance, yet we know that we’re looking at around $3 million worth of payments to executives in the last. They didn’t dispute that figure. They did not dispute that figure when I said that tonight.

If I was way off the mark, maybe they didn’t pay bonuses last year. Maybe. Who knows? We will never know, but more importantly, the ratepayers of this city won’t know. I think that’s wrong. It’s all very well to say the politics of envy. Well, what’s envious about the ratepayers knowing about how much we’re paying our bureaucrats? Well, what’s the secret? Why keep it a secret? Good government requires open and accountable transparency processes. The large, as I’ve demonstrated tonight, the large multinational companies do it.

It it’s good enough for them, why wouldn’t we do that for our shareholders? Why aren’t they worthy of this information? Why do you - why do you really think that the ratepayers should be kept hidden? I’m not interested in what former governments do. Tonight, I will sign a pledge, I will sign a pledge that a Labor administration, if privileged to serve office, will remove these bonuses.

They will go. Now, this is going to be recorded in Hansard. We’re all this signing up to this tonight, because it’s good policy and it’s the right thing to do. At least have the decency to be upfront with ratepayers. Tell them what their money is being spent on. It’s public money. It’s not your money. It’s not LNP money. It’s the ratepayers of this city. It’s bad enough that we’re ripping into them. We’re asking them to pay more and get fewer services, cut things all over the city.

Surely common-sense would dictate that in modern transparent government, that we provide this basic information. What are you afraid of? More importantly, why are you treating ratepayers with so much contempt? Look. You’ve got a huge majority. You think you can get away with everything. Politics is always a cycle. One day, one day you’ve got to make it clear you will be held accountable.


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You will be held accountable. They’re laughing. They don’t think they have to do it. But this is about modern politics and about being open and accountable. If previous governments have done this, well, they were in the wrong too, okay? You know, well, well, I’ve always had a consistent policy on this, well, you don’t. You support paying millions of dollars to executives without any explanation to the ratepayers.

That’s your policy. You don’t feel that ratepayers deserve to know how much of their money is being spent. I do. Labor councillors do. That is the difference between this side of the chamber and that side of the chamber. Have the guts. Be up front and honesty with ratepayers, because they deserve it. They actually deserve it. I will keep going on with this issue day and night—

Chairman: Councillor DICK, your—

Councillor DICK: —until we get accountability from this Council.

Chairman: —time has expired.

As there was no further debate, the Acting Chairman submitted the motion to the Chamber and it was declared lost on the voices.

Thereupon, Councillors Milton DICK and Kim FLESSER immediately rose and called for a division, which resulted in the motion being declared lost.


AYES: 7 - The Leader of the OPPOSITION, Councillor Milton DICK, and Councillors Helen ABRAHAMS, Peter CUMMING, Kim FLESSER, Steve GRIFFITHS, Victoria NEWTON, Shayne SUTTON.

NOES: 15 - The DEPUTY MAYOR, Councillor Adrian SCHRINNER, and Councillors Krista ADAMS, Matthew BOURKE, Vicki HOWARD, Steven HUANG, Geraldine KNAPP, Kim MARX, Peter MATIC, Ian McKENZIE, David McLACHLAN, Ryan MURPHY, Angela OWEN-TAYLOR, Julian SIMMONDS, Andrew WINES, and Norm WYNDHAM.

Acting Chairman: Please resume your seats. Councillor MURPHY.

ADJOURNMENT:314/2013-14

At that time, 6.56pm, it was resolved on the motion of Councillor Ryan MURPHY, seconded by Councillor Andrew WINES, that the meeting adjourn for a period of one hour, to commence only when all councillors hade vacated the chamber and the doors locked.

Council stood adjourned at 7.00pm.

UPON RESUMPTION:

PRESENTATION OF PETITIONS:Acting Chairman: Councillors are there any petitions? Councillor HOWARD—sorry Councillor

KNAPP?

Councillor KNAPP: No, Councillor HOWARD before me Madam Chair.

Councillor HOWARD: Thank you Councillor KNAPP. Yes, Madam Acting Chairman, I have a petition in relation to a request for separated bike lanes in George Street.

Acting Chairman: Councillor KNAPP?

Councillor KNAPP: Madam Acting Chair, I’ve got a petition on behalf of all residents to request the park be named in the honour of Ruth Fritz OAM.

Acting Chairman: LORD MAYOR?


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LORD MAYOR: Madam Chairman, I have a petition here from residents in relation to the banks of Lota Creek.

Acting Chairman: Councillor DICK?

Councillor DICK: Madam Acting Chairman, I have a petition on behalf of Councillor ABRAHAMS requesting for all motorcycle parking in the South Brisbane and West End area.

Acting Chairman: Councillor MATIC?

Councillor MATIC: Madam Acting Chairman, I have an e-petition on behalf of residents of my ward regarding the resident parking permit scheme charges.

Acting Chairman: Councillor JOHNSTON?

Councillor JOHNSTON: Yes, I have a petition on behalf of Tennyson residents requesting a number of traffic improvements along and near King Arthur Terrace in the Tennis Centre Complex and I look forward to the LORD MAYOR’s letter to residents on that one.

Madam Chairman, I also have a petition on behalf of residents who would like to see Go Card’ sold on Brisbane City Council buses.

Acting Chairman: Councillor HOWARD may I have a motion for the receipt of petitions please?

315/2013-14It was resolved on the motion of Councillor Vicki HOWARD, seconded by Councillor Victoria NEWTON, that the petitions as presented be received and referred to the Committee concerned for consideration and report.

The petitions were summarised as follows:

File No. Councillor TopicCA13/776449 Vicki Howard Requesting separated bike lanes be extended in George

Street in the cityCA13/796893 Geraldine Knapp on

behalf of Angela Owen-Taylor

Requesting the naming of a section of council parkland located between Glenfield Street and Blairmount Street, Parkinson, in honour of Ruth Frith OAM

CA13/736182 Lord Mayor Requesting a range of improvements to the Lota Creek environment

CA13/761476 Milton Dick on behalf of Helen Abrahams

Requesting the Council to provide more motorcycle parking in the South Brisbane/West End 2-hour zone

CA13/761577 Peter Matic Requesting the removal of the residential parking permit charge

CA13/761385 Nicole Johnston Requesting the closure to through traffic of the section of King Arthur Terrace between Fairfield Road and Softstone Street

CA13/776353 Nicole Johnston Requesting that Go cards be sold on Council buses rather than paper tickets

GENERAL BUSINESS:The Acting Chairman of Council (Councillor Angela OWEN-TAYLOR) then asked if there were any statements required as a result of a Councillor Conduct Review Panel order.

Since there is no councillor rising to speak I will now commence general business. Are there any matters of general business? Councillor BOURKE?


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Councillor BOURKE: Thanks very much, Madam Chairman. I just rise briefly this evening to talk about my attendance the 117th Annual Conference of the Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ) in Cairns three weeks ago.

It was a great honour once again to be able to go to the LGAQ Conference and represent Brisbane City Council. This was, as I said, the 117 th conference and once again it was a jammed-packed agenda covering a range of issues that are affecting local government across the state, with some really interesting speakers, some great policy debate as we heard from Councillor MARX last week, as well as a great trade hall with some interesting and innovative opportunities for councils to see how work is being done across different fields that we deliver.

Madam Chairman, obviously Councillor MCLACHLAN talked about the Tidy Town—Keep Queensland Beautiful Tidy Town Awards that were on the Monday night and the awards that we received, the four awards that Council received, so that is now a fixture and part of the LGAQ Conference those awards. So it was great that Brisbane City Council was able to collect those four awards.

We had presentations obviously from Councillor de WIT as the President of LGAQ, Madam Chairman. She gave an update on the year that was and the challenging space that we’re in as local governments, not only in Queensland but also in a broader context Australia-wide with the various and changing nature of the local government referendum.

So there was quite a detailed report about where we were at with that process before the then Rudd prime ministership put the kybosh on it just before we got into the starting gates.

Jeff Seeney, the Deputy Premier, the Premier himself, the Local Government Minister, all gave addresses talking about the future and the way forward for local government and the partnership and the work that can be done between the state and local government.

The overarching theme though, Madam Chairman, for the conference was value for money and there were some great speakers on the providing value for money context. The LORD MAYOR spoke about what we’ve done as a council, the AT Kearney Report that we as an administration have delivered both iterations of that.

He reminded the assembled conference of that famous quote from Councillor Hinchliffe that Brisbane City Council ran on the smell of an oily rag before this administration was able to find $127 million worth of efficiencies.

So, Madam Chairman, other speakers included as I said, interesting people like—I’m just trying to read—the Chief Executive—and I don’t claim to know him off the top of my head and you’ll find out why—Gary Pert who was the Chief Executive Office of the Collingwood Football Club. It was an interesting speech. I’m not a Collingwood fan but he gave quite an interesting address about the challenges facing Collingwood and football and relating it back though to local government.

Probably the most interesting and best address though was the key note address, ‘Slash or Die, the Necessity for Fiscal Responsibility in Australian Local Governments’, delivered by Dr Neil Norton-Knowles. It was an interesting presentation and address and related back from the experiences in Victoria by the Kennett government with the dire financial consequences that they found themselves in once they were elected and how you can turn around and how you can deliver a stable financial model for government going forward and all of the principles that they focused on on how to deliver that.

So some great speakers as I said. The motion debate was interesting, in particular a few motions around bats and for flying fox management, obviously got a lot of discussion, a lot of debate, Madam Acting Chairman. There are a lot of different and varying views across the whole of the state on how to tackle that issue. It affects each local government differently. It was really good to hear and have the


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opportunity to listen to some of the ideas and some of the proposals and some of the challenges that were being put forward by the councillors from across the whole of the estate.

All in all in summing up, I think from the feedback that I got from speaking to a number of my colleagues in other councils, everyone thought this was one of the best Local Government Association conferences that has been on in recent memory, Madam Acting Chairman, and in her absence I’d just like to congratulate Councillor de WIT for the wonderful conference that her and the team at LGAQ were able to put together and the great benefit that it provided to not just those of us from Brisbane that went, but also for all local government representative that were there during that time.

Acting Chairman: Further general business? Councillor JOHNSTON?

Councillor JOHNSTON: Yes, Madam Chairman, I rise to speak on a number of matters—the Sherwood Street Festival, St Aidan’s Speech Night, executive bonuses and backflow valves and, if I have time, the interpretation of relevance.

Madam Chairman, firstly on the Sherwood Street Festival, the 17 th annual Sherwood Street Festival was held on Friday night. This is a very significant community event in the ward that I’m very proud to support both in person and financially through Brisbane City Council.

I particularly want to place on the record my thanks to Vivian Rodgers and her team. Vivian is a distinguished constituent of Councillor DICK’s ward who, interestingly, thinks we’re both pretty good—but what I would say, Madam Chairman, is Vivian and her team are all volunteers. They come from local churches, local schools and they’re local mums and dads in the ward. They do this to create a fun event in our community and to give families in the district a low cost opportunity to come out at night and enjoy music and food and great stalls.

It was an excellent event on Friday night and I particularly want to thank Viv and her team for all of their efforts over the course of the year and putting the event together. I certainly look forward to next year’s event.

I did get an email from Councillor ADAMS late this evening, about 5.20pm, saying they’re going to get some extra money under the $3 million that she announced for extra festival funding. So they already get—good news yeah—they already get an allocation in the Council Budget of $20,000 so I’ll be very interested to find out exactly how much extra they’re getting from Councillor ADAMS under this new $3 million.

So I think they’ll be very—well she’s shaking her head so perhaps her email this afternoon wasn’t right. Perhaps she was just referring to the existing money, but perhaps she’ll clarify that. I have put a question on notice or perhaps she’d like to stand up in General Business and just clarify what extra money the Sherwood Street Festival will be getting.

It would be greatly appreciated by the festival committee because Brisbane City Council take thousands and thousands of dollars back in fees to actually run the event—road closure permits, festival permits, event permits and so forth—so any extra funding would be greatly appreciated by our community.

Secondly, St Aidan’s Speech Night. Last night, I attended the St Aidan’s Speech Night. I note that Councillor BOURKE wasn’t there, Madam Chairman—I don’t think so—because I’m sure Councillor BOURKE could tell me what the Principal’s speech was about last night then. What was it about Councillor BOURKE? Come on, if you were there I’m sure you know. If you were there I’m sure you’d know. Yeah he doesn’t know—

Acting Chairman: Councillor JOHNSTON.

Councillor JOHNSTON: Madam Chairman, I thoroughly enjoyed the St Aidan’s Speech Night last night. The principal, Karen Spiller, is an outstanding educator and she is a fantastic orator. Now last night she chose to make to the distinguished young women of St Aidan’s, a speech revolving around the theme of rebellion.


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Now she openly encouraged the young women of St Aidan’s to rebel, to challenge authority, to fight against injustice, to right wrongs. I am not kidding, it was the best speech I have ever heard and, Madam Chairman, I was sitting in the crowd—this is how I know Councillor BOURKE wasn’t there because he had an empty seat right next to me—and I certainly thought that the themes that Karen Spiller picked up last night were absolutely wonderful themes for young women who are well-educated and privileged.

She encouraged them to go out and to fight for others and particularly to seek solutions that are outside of the box, to look at ways in which they can contest ideas and actions that don’t fit with conformity but do promote individuality and unique solutions to problems in our community and in the world.

It was an absolutely cracking speech. I congratulate the St Aidan’s and also the Corinda State High School students who are graduating this week from Grade 12. We’ve got very talented young future leaders in Tennyson Ward, and I wish them well with their university, vocational education and training and also work opportunities in the future.

Executive bonuses and backflow values—I’m sorry that the LNP gagged the motion this evening about executive bonuses. It was disappointing that we are continuing here tonight after the dinner break but we could not have a fulsome debate on the issue of executive bonuses.

As the record will reflect, I voted for the motion which did two things, (1) it called for executive bonuses to be ceased and (2) it called on all executive bonuses to be transparently published.

It is astonishing to me that the LNP are refusing to publish details of bonuses. The LORD MAYOR last week thought it was very funny to jump up and say oh some people at Leighton may have had bonuses and so forth, but let me tell you, every single employee at Leighton got a bonus, from the PAs through to the CEO. I can tell you that the shareholders of that company used to stand up and cheer for their senior executive and the results that they were achieving for the shareholders.

Those bonuses were also published in the Annual Report and I think it is appalling that this LORD MAYOR does not or could not be bothered to publish the results of executive bonuses, particularly when we are talking about public funds. We’re not talking about his ward allowance or his lord mayoral allowance and how he spends it, we are talking about the bonuses that are paid to the senior executives of this organisation.

I am astonished tonight with the statements by the Leader of the Opposition, Councillor DICK, uncontested by the LNP that bonuses are now at $3 million. If that figure is wrong then the DEPUTY MAYOR and the Chairman of Finance should have stood up and said that it was wrong. They did not. That leads me sadly to suspect that Councillor DICK has got it right.

Today they’ve jumped up every five minutes and said oh he doesn’t know what he’s talking about, he hasn’t done his homework. All afternoon they did that. Then when he hops up in the motion debate, not a peep. If that is the case I have never ever seen a worse investment than that $3 million in executive bonuses. That would fund every single one of the outstanding backflow valves in my ward and ensure that Graceville, Chelmer, Yeronga and Fairfield have the backflow valves they need to protect residents from flooding.

If I went out into my community—and I might put this in my next newsletter—and told them that we paid the senior executives of this Council; some of them more than half a million dollars a year in their basic salary and we gave 70-odd of them an extra $3 million in bonuses, yet we can’t fix potholes and we can’t fund backflow valves and we can’t fix footpaths and we can’t trim trees, they will be appalled like I am.

I say to the LORD MAYOR through you, Madam Chairman, who is finally back in the chamber, spending $3 million on executive bonuses when you refuse to fund backflow valves in this city is wrong. It is fundamentally wrong, it is


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morally wrong, it is practically wrong and it shows how out of touch you are with the needs of the ratepayers in this city.

Fixing our city after the floods and making sure we have mitigation in place to help protect those homes in the future is an absolute top priority and you have got these priorities dead-set wrong. If you think spending $3 million on executive bonuses is more important than putting the money into backflow valves in my ward, in other wards around the city, that is absolutely and fundamentally wrong and I will continue to point this out to residents in my area.

Finally the issue of the interpretation of relevance—I note that today when I attempted to speak on the issue with respect to the airport that I made fairly simple statements saying that the LNP were bereft of any ideas with respect to the future of this city because they felt the need to, you know, move an urgency debate about the submission of an opposition backbencher to a Federal committee.

I note that I literally got one sentence out when there was an extraordinary point of order made, a point of order I’m not —

Acting Chairman: Councillor JOHNSTON your time has expired. Further general business? Councillor WYNDHAM?

Councillor WYNDHAM: Thank you, Madam Chair. I just rise briefly to speak on Active School Travel.

Everton Park State Primary School is just one of those schools that are out there in the suburbs that nobody pays a lot of attention to. Interestingly we’ve had Kevin, Julia, Mr Garrett, but what they’re most excited about is Active School Travel and why are they so excited about Active School Travel? Well it’s what they want to do. It’s not about any political issues; it’s about them wanting to do the best for their school community.

I think it comes down to children being involved and not necessarily peer pressure but they just want to have fun with their mates and do the right thing.

Madam Chair, if you had to walk from Teralba Park up to Everton Park Primary School you would know that it’s no mean feat. Going home it’s probably not so bad, but going to the school, crossing a fairly big road and then I guess walking up a hill that most of us would say let’s drive today but no they don’t. They persevere, they get their little band together and they walk up that hill and by doing that each month they tend to achieve better and better.

So they were this year awarded the best across Brisbane for Active School Travel of all schools that were involved in that, which I reckon is to be commended and Brad Clark, the Principal there, and some of the other staff and Parents and Citizens (P&C) members are just a beautiful bunch of people. You can go to a school fete, the Deputy Principal’s part of the band, entertaining the crowd. The P&C ladies and everything are dressed as clowns, they’re just having a good time and I think that’s what shows more than the Active School Travel. It’s about school spirit. It’s not about jumping up and down and making these kids go, these kids want to give it a go.

These are the kids that later on in life they’ll be the ones actively travelling, they’ll be the ones doing ride to work day, in fact several of them will possibly be riding to work every day and that’s the importance of this. The importance of this is not introducing something later in life, it’s starting when they’re young so as they live a life with that in their lives.

They have community spirit and that’s the most important thing, so I’d just like to congratulate Brad and all of the staff at Everton Park State School and particularly the children because it’s the children that are the ones participating and they want to do it. Thank you.

Acting Chairman: Further general business? Councillor WINES?

Councillor WINES: Thank you, Madam Chairman. Very quickly I just want to make a comment on public art and public art trails.


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At the planning committee presentation from last week there was a presentation regarding public art trails, which was very interesting and I took over the weekend some time to actually do the Contemporary Art and Architecture Walk which was excellent and must encourage you all to go and have a go at it because one of the things about living in Brisbane is that we have such quality public art yet because we’re so familiar with that art we don’t even notice that it’s there.

So even to take some time and to view those items such as what’s called Fallen which is the giant wooden husk that’s in the Telstra building that’s directly out the front, whether it’s even the giant—what were they — pastor steamers that would turn into giant balls. They’re things worth taking a moment to reflect on the—that wasn’t—the Hopoate thing as DEPUTY MAYOR, through you, Madam Chairman—weren’t on this particular Ward, but they are a landmark and a well-known landmark of this city.

There have also been a number of public artworks going on in the Enoggera Ward recently, and it really does change the tone of a place and really doesn’t improve a place. I must acknowledge Councillor KNAPP; I’ve long admired the public art in The Gap Ward and have been making a true effort to try and provide those thoughts of public art installations in Enoggera Ward.

Public art is a shared benefit that all people can enjoy, can breed community spirit, can breed landmarks that we know across the city and I encourage all councillors to take a moment to look at these public art walks and just enjoy the things that we already have in the city.

Acting Chairman: Further general business? I declare the meeting closed.

ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS OF WHICH DUE NOTICE HAS BEEN GIVEN:(Answers to questions of which due notice has been given are printed as supplied and are not edited)

Submitted by Councillor Nicole Johnston (from the meeting 7 May 2013):Q1. Would the CEO please advise when the Brisbane City Council Annual Report for

2012-13 was published on the corporate website as stated in his answer to question notice on 26 March 2013 regarding Chairman’s discretionary allowance of office?

A1. The information is publically available on the Council website.

Q2. Would the CEO like to clarify his incorrect answer to the Question, would the CEO please advise the amount of the Chairman’s discretionary allowance of office for 2012-13 as originally asked by Cr Johnston on 19 February 2013?

A2. See answer to Question 1 above.

Submitted by Councillor Nicole Johnston (from the meeting 29 October 2013):Q1. Would the CEO please provide a breakdown of funding for parks maintenance for the

2012-2013 by:A) south regionB) north regionC) east regionD) west regionE) central region.

A1. Information being compiled.


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Submitted by Councillor Victoria Newton (from the meeting 29 October 2013):Q1. The Lord Mayor claimed the introduction of the Carbon Tax would add $15.8 million

to Council Rates needed to be collected in the 2012/2013 financial year. Accordingly, could the CEO please provide a full break-down of costs to Council attributed to the Carbon Tax for the 2012/2013 financial year?

Q2. Can the CEO please advise how many public wood barbecues are in Council parks in each of North, South, East, West and Central regions?

Q3. Can the CEO please advise how many public barbecues are in Council parks in each of North, South, East, West and Central regions?

Q4. Can the CEO please advise how many public wood barbecues in Council parks were replaced with electric barbecues for each of the following financial years: - 2008/09- 2009/10- 2011/12- 2012/13

Q5. Can the CEO please advise how many public wood barbecues in Council parks were removed but not replaced for each of the following financial years:- 2008/09- 2009/10- 2011/12- 2012/13

Q6. Can the CEO please advise how many wood barbecues in Council parks are planned to be replaced with electric barbecues in 2013/14 financial year?

Q7. Can the CEO please provide a breakdown of each of the following costs for each of the Lord Mayor’s Business Forums being held in the 2013/14 financial year:

- Marketing costs- Printing of materials- Venue Hire- Catering- Brisbane City Council officers wages for their time spent at each event- Speakers fees- Total event costs.

A1. to A7. Information being compiled.

RISING OF COUNCIL: 8.22pm.

PRESENTED: and CONFIRMED

CHAIRMAN


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Council officers in attendance:

Andrew Langford (Team Leader, Council and Committee Liaison Office)Stephanie Thompson (Council and Committee Liaison Officer)Louise Keen (Council and Committee Liaison Officer)Billy Peers (Personal Support Officer to the Lord Mayor and Council Orderly)


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Documents

· Web viewI note that the Commonwealth Government has indicated their support of $10 million in aid on behalf of the Australian citizens. I note the State Government is also looking