A long-running Labor dispute between the Wallsend MP and Newcastle councillors has reached boiling point amid claims of "damaging statements", "categorically incorrect claims", "gutless" actions and "a repetition of the lies".
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The internal party war of words stems from a City of Newcastle decision on awarding a contract to lease and operate the five council pools.
Wallsend MP Sonia Hornery has been a vocal opponent to the private management of Newcastle's inland public pools. Beresfield is the only inland pool not managed privately, however that could change with the awarding of a new tender.
Labor councillors declared conflicts of interest on awarding a contract in May, after lord mayor Nuatali Nelmes said she had to remove herself because a politician had repeatedly instructed her on how to vote on the tender.
The move meant a quorum of councillors could not be reached, and the Labor majority moved to delegate the power to CEO Jeremy Bath.
The latest development came at the June 27 council meeting, where Greens councillors John Mackenzie and Charlotte McCabe and Liberals Jenny Barrie and Katrina Wark lodged a rescission motion to shift power back to councillors to make the decision.
Cr McCabe said after lodging the motion that councillors were "allowed to have public political positions on things like privatisation and employment standards which do not preclude us from making informed decisions as councillors".
Labor councillors again declared conflicts in the matter at the June 27 meeting, stating their reasons were the same as the May meeting.
They said they would remain in the chamber for the discussion but would not vote on a tender.
Cr McCabe and Cr Nelmes were not present at the meeting.
The matter was slated to be discussed in closed council, but Liberal councillor Callum Pull raised a point of order saying councillors should be able to speak to the motion to go into confidential session.
However deputy lord mayor Declan Clausen, who was chairing the meeting, received legal advice that the motion was procedural and there was no opportunity to debate it.
Cr Pull then moved a motion of dissent, which was supported by Cr Mackenzie, Cr Barrie, Cr Wark and Independent John Church, but voted down by Labor councillors.
The rescission motion was defeated in closed session.
The Herald understands Labor councillors voted against it, and instead supported an alternate motion by Cr Clausen.
The approved nine-point motion took aim at the unnamed MP. It said concerns were raised "regarding the inappropriateness of the member's demands, and that they were creating circumstances to manipulate the process and cause conflicts of interest for councillors".
The motion continued that the member, while previously a councillor, voted for a model which foreshadowed the closure of three public pools and the "misinformed position of the member is inconsistent with their own decisions".
It said the MP had been offered meetings and briefings on the pools, but declined the requests.
The motion claimed the member made "damaging" statements under NSW parliamentary privilege and "categorically incorrect claims about public health and safety", and slammed "the inappropriateness of recklessly raising these false rumours in parliament".
Ms Hornery responded in a statement saying: "I will not be accused publicly, and baselessly of bullying tactics by cowardly councillors who hide behind confidential closed sessions and do not even do their jobs as elected by the Newcastle ratepayers".
"Last night's City of Newcastle council meeting saw a repetition of the lies from half of the councillors in the chamber," she said.
"The pools privatisation issue remains unresolved and some of the elected councillors need to own up to the fact that they are simply too gutless to make the hard but necessary decisions for the ratepayers they represent.
"Thank you to the other councillors who tried to move a rescission motion and actually have a say on democratic decisions despite being blocked by the majority."
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Sage Swinton
Sage Swinton is a news reporter who was born and bred in the Hunter. She has been with the Newcastle Herald since June 2020, and covers Newcastle council as well as other general news.
Sage Swinton is a news reporter who was born and bred in the Hunter. She has been with the Newcastle Herald since June 2020, and covers Newcastle council as well as other general news.
