My15MINUTESwithMIKEBAIRDoverMERGERSandHUNTERSHILL.

Well...IhavehadmypromisedmeetingwiththePremierMikeBairdtotryandtalkhimoutofhisforcedmergerplansforHuntersHill.Wanttoknowhowitwent?I’mafraiditdidn’tstartwell...We(theMayorandI)askedwhethertherewasanyadviceorinformationwecouldgivehimthatmightencouragehimtore-considertheforcedmergerofHuntersHill.(Wefiguredhemight

beinterestedinourviewonthis)-Haveaguesswhathereplied….Inaword–“No”.Therewasnothingwecouldsaythatwouldchangehismind.Hewentontosay(paraphrasing)HuntersHillisaninsignificantbackwater,toosmalltobesustainableanditisano-brainerthatitshouldbemerged.AucklandandBrisbanehaveonecouncilandSydneyneedstogetwiththeprogramandgothiswayaswell.Okaysoyes,Ididwanttoslaphimaboutthefacewithafish.Imeansome-onehastosnaphimoutofthisone-waytrainofthought.Icheckedinthewaterjug.Sadly,nofish.Ipouredadrinkinstead.15minutes.That’sallwehad.15minutestogetthroughtotheman…Lookingathim,IwonderedwhoIwasreallytherefor?Us(HuntersHill)orhim?HuntersHillisnottheinsignificantbackwaterhebelieves.Quitethereverse(moreonthisinaminute…)IhavegreatfaithinHuntersHill.Wehaveseenmergerthreatslikethisthroughinthepastandwewillagain,butMike?Well,Ithinkhe’sisinawholeworldofpainoverthis.I’mnotsurethathereallyknowsit,orunderstandswhythisis.

It’sbeenacolossalmistakeofcourse-acriticalerrorinjudgement.Mike’s“biggercouncilsarebetter”trainofthoughtmaybeverywell-intentioned,butitisleadinghimstraightoffacliff,takingusallwithhim.

MikeBairdisinaworldofpainoverforcedmergersInthelast12monthsMikehassufferedacatastrophiccollapseinsupport-anunheraldedfallfromgrace,andtheoriginofitall?Theepicentre?-Forcedmergers.

Inthe5monthsbetweenannouncingtheforcedmergersinDec2015,andenactingtheminMay2016,Mike’spreviouslyuntouchablepopularitycrashedastaggering10%,heraldingtheonsetofamassiveandasyetnon-stopdownhillspiral.Thefall-outfromthisagendahascostseveralFederalLiberalseats,swungNSWcouncilsandtheCityofSydneyagainsthim,andmostrecentlytheNationalslosttheirsafeststateseatofOrange,inthebiggestswinginby-electionhistory,takingtheirleaderandDeputyPremierwithit.

Sowherehavethingsgonesowrong?Wellhere’sthecruxofit-Ibelieve.Mikeisthinkingofcouncilsas“businesses”,whichcanbemergedto“createefficienciesandsavecosts.”Itsoundslikeagoodidearight?-Wellitsoundsright-butit’swrong.Councilsarenot“businesses”,theyare“governments”-electedbyandanswerabletolocalresidents.Theydon’tjustdoroads,ratesandrubbish(business),theygovern-theyarethe“keepersofplace”,guardiansofthelookandfeel,thedevelopmentand“character”ofaplace.BarnabyJoycewasrightwhenhesaidformanycommunitiesthelocalgovernment(council)istheirlocal“country”.Whenyouforciblymergebusinesses–yes,it’sabouteconomics.Butwhenyoutrytoforciblymergegovernments(countries)–well,that’snoteconomics–that’swar.Andwithwar-suddenlyallthosepotentialeconomicsavingsgooutthedoor.WhenyouunderstandthatSydney’scouncilsarereallyapatchworkoflocal“countries”(governments)-a“microEurope”ifyoulike,youcanseethatMike’splantoforciblymergethemagainsttheirwillisamicroreplayofHitler’sattempttoforciblymergethecountriesofEuropeagainsttheirwill.It’saggressiveidealismbasedonadeeplyflawedpremise.

HuntersHillissmallyes,butsoisSwitzerland.ShouldSwitzerlandbeforcedtomergewithGermanyjustbecauseitissmall?IsoverthrowingtheSwissgovernmentandsendinginanadministratortooverseeaforcedmergerwithGermanyawiseapproachtoachievelong-termsustainabilityandeconomicreform?

HuntersHill,Sydney'ssmallestmunicipalitysitsonit'sownpeninsularbetweentheLaneCoveandParramattaRiversMikebelievesitmakeseconomicsense(fromabusinessperspective)tomergeSydney’scouncilssothattheyareallofsimilarsizewithaminimum150,000people,(thisistotakeheadofficecostsoutetc.)Butdoesthismakesensefromagovernmentperspective?How

doesitsoundasapremiseifwesuddenlydeclarethatEuropeancountriesmustallbethesamesizewithaminimum150millionpeopleeach-andsetaboutsackingtheirgovernmentstoforciblymergethemtoachievethis?ThisiswhereMikehasgoneseriouslywrong-bytreatinggovernmentsasiftheyarebusinesseshehasseriouslyunderestimatedthevaluesomecommunitiesplaceonmaintainingtheautonomyoftheirowngovernment-their“country”,andhowtheywillreacttosome-onewhoseekstooverthrowitandreplaceitwithaforeigngovernment-howhardtheywillfightforit,andtheeconomic,socialandpoliticalcostofthis.HuntersHillisonesuchcommunity.

HuntersHill,althoughsmallisfarfrombeingtheeconomicbasketcaseofMike’simaginings.Rather,likeSwitzerland,itishighlystrategicandsuccessfulatwhatitdoesandhasstrongcommunitysupport.Wehavemultimillionsinthebankandnodebt.Asproofthatsizehasnothingtodowiththefinancialsustainablityofgovernment-HuntersHill,Sydney’ssmallestcouncil,meetsalltheIPARTfinancialsustainabilitycriteria,whereas

Blacktowncouncil(Sydney’slargest),doesnot.(Andlet’snotevenmentiontheFederalGovernment).Wehaveachievedthistodate,notthroughforcedamalgamation,butthroughstrategicregionalpartnerships,innovationandharnessingourresourcebase–inparticularthestrengthsofourlocalcommunity.Mike'sproposedforcedmergerisnotanattractiveoptionforthefutureanywaywelookatit.Anobjectiveandfactualbusinesscaseanalysispredictsatbesta12milliondollarsaving,atworsta33milliondollarloss.Thisisaseriouslyhighrisk,lowcost-benefitbusiness-casefora15milliondollarinvestmentoftaxpayerfunds.Andthat’swithoutfactoringinthebiggestcost-thelossofourindependentgovernment.

LikeSwitzerland,HuntersHillhasitsownunique“brand”and“character”-thishasdevelopedover160yearsoflocalresidentselectingrepresentativesthatprioritisethepreservationofourenvironmentalandbuiltheritage,suchthatwenowhavemoreheritageitemsperkm2thananyothermunicipalityinAustralia.75%ofourlandsareclassifiedconservationareasandweareconsideredaheritage“jewelinthecrown”forSydney,rivallingtheRocks.

ThePriory-preservedheritageofHuntersHill

OurmuchlargerneighbouringcouncilRydehasadifferent“government”,adifferentcultureandcharacteraltogether–itdoesnotprioritiseheritageandconservationthewayHuntersHilldoes-andinfactbelievesthisgetsinthewayofgrowth.Yet,ifforcedtomerge,HuntersHillwillhaveonlyonerepresentativeonthenew“greaterRyde”council,whowillbeout-votedonalldecisionsforHuntersHill–includingthoseregarding

planning,character,heritageandconservation,developmentsandre-zonings.Wewillrisklosingeverythingwehavefoughttoenhanceandprotectoverthepast160years.So-likeSwitzerland,HuntersHillhasnothingtogainandeverythingtolosefromaforcedmerger.

Mikerespondstothisbysayingthathebelievesthatlocalautonomyoverdevelopmentandcharactercanbeprotectedinforciblymergedcouncils-butatthesametimehecan’treallysayhow.Theharshtruthisthatthereisnowaytoprotectit.Thenewgovernment(council,withonlyonelocalrepresentative)assumespoweroveralldevelopmentcontrols-it’seffectivelyaforeigntake-over.

PreservedheritageforeshoresofHuntersHillMikecomesbacktoAuckland–ithas“protectedlocaldiversityinalargemergedcouncil”hesays.ButAucklandhasinstituted21locallyelected“boards”(essentiallya4thlevelofGovernment).ThesearenotproposedinMike’smergers–besides,whoinSydneywantsthat?Sydneyisuniqueduetoitshistory,itslocation,itsharbor,beaches,riversandstunningbutcomplexgeographiclandforms.Ithasdevelopedfabulousdiversityinitslocalgovernmentareas.It’samini“Europe”,itneedsitsownsolution–notAuckland’sorBrisbane’s-andnotforcedamalgamations.ThereisamuchbetterwayforwardforSydney,justliketherewasforEurope.EverythingMikewantstoachievefromaneconomicperspectivecanbebetterachievedwithoutforcedmergers,throughstrengtheningourexistingregionalstrategicandeconomicpartnershipsinstead–i.e.liketheEU.ForcouncilsthisisachievedthroughstrengtheningandbetterenablingourRegionalOrganisationsofCouncils(ROCs)orforming“JointOrganisations”(JOs)(theseallowedsharedservicesandeconomiesofscaleetc-deliveringeconomicunion–withoutpoliticalunion).Thisisthewayforwardwehaveproposed.We,(withourneighbouringcouncils)haveputforwardaJointOrganisationproposalthathasoverwhelmingsupportfromour3communities,academicsandpoliticiansalike–everyone,sadlyexceptMike.Mikeisonhisone-track“youwillamalgamate”approach.

IexpresstheopiniontoMikethattheactionofforcingmergersoncommunitiesagainsttheirwill,sackinggovernments,sendinginadministratorsandthebrutalmethodbywhichthishasbeendone–hasdefinedhim-brandedhimas"dictatorial"“invasive”"arrogant",“bulldozing,"tramplingcommunityconcerns".Itisaperceptionofhimthatcrystallisedinminds,attheonemoment-rightacrossNSW.

Forcedmergersarethecore,therot,thebirthplaceofMikes"DictatorialBrand"

IsuggesttohimthatthisisatthecoreofhisplummetingpopularityandtheGovernmentslossofsupport.Thecore,therot,thebirthplace,ofitall.FromhereithasspreadoutlikeastaincolouringtheperceptionsofeverythingtheGovernmentdoes-Everysubsequentactionhasonlyservedtocementthis“dictatorial”and“invasive”brand–

• Chain-sawingavenuesof100-year-oldAnzactreesforlightrailintheEasternSuburbs;• BulldozingswathesofheritagehomesinHaberfieldforWestconnex,• Bringinginnewplanninglawsthatgreenlightmassiveinsensitiveoverdevelopment,• Movingthepowerhousemuseumtoselltheprimeinnercitylandtodevelopersandprivatizingeverythinghecangethishandson…thelistgoesonandon.

Longrowof100yearoldAnzaccommemorativetreesbulldozedforlightrail

AcrossNSWpeopleareexperiencingMikeastakingover(orthreateningto)theirgovernmentwhilealsobulldozingandtramplinghiswaythroughtheirhomes,theirenvironments,theirworkplaces,theircommunities,takingawaythethingstheylove,thethingsmostimportanttothem,implementing“hisway”;disempoweringthem.Therehasbeennostopping,nopausing,nolisteningtoreason,nocompromising.

BulldozingheritagehomesinHaberfieldforWestConnexdescribedbyNationalTrustasworstheritagedestructioninSydney'sHistory

Mikedoesn’tseethisdictatorial“brand”asbeingfairordeserved.Hedoesn’tgetit.Hismindisresolutelyanchoredinthethoughtthatcouncilsarejustbusinesses,mergingthemjustmakesgoodbusinesssense.He’smakingthe“harddecisions”hesays,thatare“inthebesteconomicinterestofNSW”.Itmightnotbepopularbut“it’stherightthingtodoforthelong-term”hesays…Heisseeinghimselfasaneconomicmartyr.

OhDear!I’mbacktoneedingthatfish.IcheckthewaterjugtoseeifGodhasansweredmywish.Ok,soitwasabigask.Iprayhegivesmethewordstohavethesameeffect.

I’msorrytobeharsh–butithastobesaid-it’snotmartyrdom,it’sseriouslymisguidedeconomicmismanagement.ForcingcouncilstomergeagainstthewilloftheircommunitiesisNOTinthebesteconomicinterestofNSW–quitethereverse,it’seconomiccarnage.Abi-partisanreviewoftherecentforcedmergerprogrammeinQueenslandwarnedthatwithoutproperassessmentofcommunitysentimentforcedmergersweredoomedtofailleadingtomassivesocialdisruptionandhugeeconomicwaste.InQueensland,4communitiesvotedtode-amalgamate,assoonastheGovernmentthatmergedthemwaskickedout.“Only4”saysMike(ignoringthebitaboutthegovernmentthatmergedthembeingkickedout,andthefactthatsinceintroducingforcedmergersLibshavegonefromacommandingleadtocloseto50:50on2partypreferred).‘Yes’,Isay-theoneswherecommunitieswerestronglyopposed.InNSWthereare10oftheseatleast,(that’sjustcountingtheonesthathavegonetocourt)–thesheereconomicwasteofthiswholeagendaisalreadyinthe10’sofmillionsdowereallywanttogothroughthesamewastefulscenarioasQueensland,becausethat’swherewe’reheaded.Mikeisn’tconvinced.Hethinkscommunityoppositionisalljusttemporaryangstandpeoplegetoverit.Thecouncilsthathavebeenforciblymergedarenowalldoingwonderfullywell,hesays-thecommunitiesthatwereopposed,likePittwaterarenowallhappyandcontent,andthenewcouncilsarealreadyachievingremarkablesavingshesays.Hisbusinessmergerplansaregoingswimmingly..peoplewillseeheisrightandforgivehim,heseemstobelieve.Thiscomesacrossasalittlerosy-eyedtome.Isuspecttheglowingreportsarejustalittlelopsided,muchlikethe“alliswell”reportsonemighthavereceivedfromtheadministratorsinViennaaftertheGermanoccupation.They’renotlookingatthefullpicture.Savings?-OKsowhatdowereallyknow?Onlyoneforciblymergedcouncil(intheEdenMonaro)hasreleasedaproperobjectivemergerriskassessment,ithasdisclosedthatcostsofthemergerwillexceedthetaxpayerfundsprovidedby1.4milliondollars(cripplingforaregionalcouncil),andthattheriskofpoorstaffmorale,andfailuretodeliveradequateservicesis“extreme”.MeanwhileontheNorthShoretheunmergedcouncils(including

HuntersHill)areprovingthatsavingscanequallybeachievedwithoutmergers-withoutthecripplingcosts-throughstrategicregionalpartnership.NSROCforexamplehasjustannouncedasharedwasteservicesagreementdelivering2milliondollarsavingsperannum.

HappyandContent?I'mnotsurethatyoucancallthe"occupied"communities"happy"–certainlynotintheinnerwest,wherethereisan“anarchy”campaignrunningagainsttheGovernment.It’snotcontentmentthatisrequiringpolicepresenceatadministrated“council”meetings.

AnarchyinInnerWestcommunityaftertheircouncilsweremergedandanadministratorsentin,justasWestconnexbulldozedaheadthroughtheheartoftheircommunity.NoristhehappinessquitesoeffusiveinPittwater,wheretheadministratorhadtohurriedlypullthe"Monavaleplaceplan"toavoidre-activatingsimmeringcivicunrest.NorinregionalNSWwhereangrycommunitiesarelyinginwaitforelectiontimewithbase-ballbats.

Andof-course,themostoppositionalcommunitiesdon’tfeatureinMikesreportsbecausetheyarestillfightinghimincourt-communitieslikeHuntersHill,Mosman,Woollahra,NorthSydney,LaneCove,Strathfield,Cabonne.CoreLiberal-Nationalheartlandcommunities-allstaunchlyagainstthemergersheisforcingonthem.Isuggestthatthelevelof“happiness”inthesecommunitieswasondisplayforalltoseeattheOrangeBy-election,wherepreviousrusted-on

NationalandLiberalPartysupporterscamefromalloverthestatetocampaignto“StopForcedMergers-PuttheNationalsLast"insupportofCabonne.TheGovernmentlostoneofit’ssafestseats.Ifgovernmentsdon’tlisten,iftheydon’thearandheed,communitiesholdthemtoaccount.

People,goodpeople,areleavingtheLiberalandNationalpartiesindroves-andjoiningcampaignstovotetheirownpartyout.ThepeopleMikemostneedsforsupporthehasdrivenaway-withfeelingsofanger,bitterness,betrayalandbrokentrust.Mikeisnotjustfightingoppositionalcommunitiesoverthis–hehasignitedcivilwarwithinhisownparty-

whichbringsusfullcircletothatcrashingsupportinthepolls.

Mikeasksme–doIthinkhe’sdictatorial?Our15minutesarenearlyup…Formethebigquestionisnotwhetherheisdictatorial–there’sreallynoquestionofthat–thequestioniswhetheritisintentional?2possibilitiesrunthroughmyhead;Possibility1:Mikereallydoesn’tgetit–thedifferencebetweenmergingbusinessesandmerginggovernments.Thedifferencebetweenbusinessandpoliticalleadership.Hereally(mistakenly)believesheisdoingtherightthing,hedoesn’tunderstandthepolitical,socialandeconomiccarnageheiscausingandno-one,no-onewhoshouldbe,istellinghim.Possibility2:Hereallydoesgetit-butthereareotherulteriormotivesdrivinghimon.Ihopeit’sthefirst.Ifearit’sthelast.Ican’treadhim.IwishIcould.Ofcoursethereareulteriormotivesthatmaywellbeatplay.Forcedmergersdobenefitsome–theybenefitpeopleandbusinessesthatdon’tlikelocalcommunitiestohaveregulatorycontroloverdevelopmentintheirlocalareas–peoplewholikeittobemucheasiertoundertakemassiveinsensitiveoverdevelopmentandwalkawaywiththeprofits-peoplelike“thepropertycouncil”,the“urbangrowth”developmentindustry,massiveinfrastructureprovidersforprojectslikeWestconnex,politicallobbyistsandtreasury.AndofcoursethesearethepeoplewhodohaveMikesear24/7.Thesearethepeopleegginghimon-tellinghimhe’sdoingtherightthing,to“staystrong”–tellinghimtoignorepeoplelikeme,andthecommunitieswehavebeenelectedtorepresent.

Butthesearenotthepeoplewhosevoteswillcount.Theyarenotthepeoplewhoselivesarebeingimpacted,andtheyarenotthepeoplewhowillholdhimtoaccount.Forus–our15minutesofhiseartimeisup.

RallyagainstMikeMay2016-CommunitiesacrossNSWconvergingandaligningtoholdMiketoaccount.DoIthinkheisdictatorial?“Yes”Isay–“yesIdo”–andslaphimaboutthefacewithmyverbalfish,prayingthemessageIamcarryingwillgetthrough.Forhissakeasmuchasours.Heisinonthewrongtrack.InhisheadlongrushtoimplementeconomicprosperityheistramplingalloversocialandenvironmentalprosperityandinitiatingwarwithcommunitiesrightacrossNSW.Thereisnolongtermprosperityinthat.ThereisnothingofGodswillinthat.

1Timothy6-10:Theloveofmoneyistherootofallkindsofevil.Somehavewanderedawayfromthefaithandhaveimpaledthemselveswithalotofpainbecausetheymademoneytheirgoal.

PersonallyIhatethis“war”hehasinitiated,Ihatetheneedlesswaste,Ihatethesenselessdamage,themoneydownthedrainonbothsidesofthefence-Ihatetheanger,thepain,thesenseofbetrayal,thedistress.Ihatetoseethetrainofhisgovernmentheadingoverthecliff.Mikeisatacross-roads.Theconstructivewayforwardhereistostopthemergers,andworkwithusallonstrengtheningtheROCsand/orinstitutingJOsinstead.Thedestructivewayistocontinuefullsteamahead.

Today,theAustralianreportssatisfactionwithMikesperformancehasplummetedtohisnewrecordlowof35%.

WidespreadAnti-MergerCommunitySentiment