STATEMENT ON MY SUPPORT FOR KATIE LITTLE, JAMES HANSEN AND HEATHER OGILVIE

THANK YOU LANE COVE FOR ALLOWING ME TO SERVE YOU

It has been my absolute honour to serve the Lane Cove community for the last seven years as a Councillor, and nearly two years as Mayor. 

After consulting with my family and our Labor team, I have decided not to run in next month’s local elections. At this stage of my life, I have chosen to prioritise spending time with my wife and three young children, aged 9, 7, and 4.  

As those who have been in public life will attest, there are times when one needs to balance tapping in and tapping out. My time as Mayor involved an excess of 70-hour work weeks, as I juggled the Mayorship and my business. Too often, time with my family came last. This will now change. 

Local Government is not easy, nor is it perfect. We live in a diverse community, and it is imperative that we have open-minded Councillors who are willing to work collaboratively and productively as a united team to achieve the best outcome for the residents.

This past term of Council was, in my opinion, unnecessarily challenging.

As we head to the ballot boxes next month, I encourage every voter to consider the sort of people they want to represent them. You have a choice between voting for individuals who:

1. aim to continually improve or those who seek to find fault, blame and make personal put downs; 

2. set a strategic vision for the future or scrutinise the minutiae of day-to-day operations, too often delaying productivity and progress; and

3. foster teamwork, as opposed to promoting a divisive 'us vs. them' mentality.

I did my utmost to always be collaborative, fair and honest. I’ve called out misinformation in the community, put my name to my claims, and not shied away from making the tough but necessary decisions. It’s the very least we should expect of our Councillors.

I am now handing the baton over to the very capable West Ward Labor team consisting of Katie Little, James Hansen and Heather Ogilvie. I wish them all the best as they fly the flag for progressive, compassionate and responsible local Government.