Jim Mackellar has forwarded us his vision statement for the Fraser Coast Region.. what are your thoughts on where we as a community should be headed and how should council fit in to this? Over to you Jim:
My Vision for Our Region
The Fraser Coast Region is a diverse and varied area that truly epitomizes the old rule – ‘one size does not fit all’. A vision for the region must take this diversity into account. Thus my vision is in several parts.
Council – An efficient and effective Council that contributes positively to the prosperity and lifestyle of the people of the Fraser Coast.
Hervey Bay – The friendly, family orientated holiday destination, supported by many varied service enterprises serviced by an efficient modern infrastructure system.
Maryborough – A hub of small to medium manufacturing enterprise supporting the prosperity and lifestyle of the regions people.
Rural and Coastal Communities – United communities encouraging the relaxed, Australian lifestyle enjoyed by our non-urban residents, supported by strong, home-grown community organizations.
Jim MacKellar
Bring back Strewth! 
While I am happy to read Jim’s vision statement, what is the view of others that might stand?
If elected? Jim will be just one of many and his vision one of many.
I still remember the promises made by some of our current councillors and am reminded of that old saying
“talk is cheap”.
John, it is to the other potential candidates to explain their vision and their policies. It is true that if elected I will be one of 11 Councillors. But I am a candidate for mayor, John. And this is where leadership comes in.
Leadership is one of the major deficiencies of our region. It is the role of a leader to inspire others with their vision and plan of how to realize that vision. As to my leadership ability, I have explained that in the bio on my web site, but sufficient to say that to lead men on operations does take some degree of leadership.
As to your ‘talk is cheap’ jibe, I will make 2 comments. I stand by my record in both public and business life. And this is the reason that voters should try to personally meet any candidate they are considering voting for. That way you can form a judgement about the character of the person before you vote.
So John, are you going to be a candidate in the forth coming Council elections?
Jim,
My comment that talk is cheap was not a shot at you, rather it was a comment on the state of politics in general.
As to your question,I have no thoughts of standing at this time.I even have an adversion to voting,
something I never thought I would get to admit!
Has anyone actually sat in a meeting with Jim/James I unfortunatly have…totally irrational, sometimes aggressive and quite unbelievable. Why would anyone vote for this person who could not get elected to a council position last time….Mayoral material????? he makes Mick look like a Statesman.
I must say that this is the first time in my life that I have been called irrational or unbelievable. I was just talking to someone who sat through more Council meetings than, I think, any other and we were discussing just this subject. Their comment was that I always seemed to be well researched and could present my arguments quite clearly. I did, however, tend to get quite passionate about some subjects at times,too much so. But, Mr Walker, when was the last time you sat in a meeting with me. I bet it was some time ago, was it not?
As you say, I was not elected as a Councillor at the last election. I must confess that my attempt was, in fact, only half hearted based on a decision made at the last minute because I was not doing anything else at the time.
I must also confess that I believe that it was a good thing that I was not successful. If I had been there would have been no time for reflection on the lessons to be learnt from my last term on Council. It would have been straight back into the hurley burley and I would have ended up a very frustrated young Councillor on this Council.
But, fortunately, I was not elected. I was thus able to spend some quality time considering the mistakes that I had made during that term (and I have made no secret of the fact that I know I made some mistakes, but that is what learning is about), working out what the lessons were that needed to be learnt from those mistakes and then how to apply those lessons in my life and in any continued service to the community.
Thus, when a number of Fraser Coast people asked me to consider standing for Council again, I was not quite the same person who had finished the last term in Tiaro and certainly a much wiser person than the one who started in Tiaro in 2004. And it is my heartfelt conviction that the mistakes I, and others, made in the first few weeks of that Council led directly to the problems we encountered later. Isn’t hindsight wonderful. It is if we learn the lessons.
So, Mr Walker, when we next meet up again, we will have to sit down for a wee chat and we can discuss the things that have changed since we last met.
Jim,
Just one small point, mainly to clear my mind, what do you consider the difference between the responsibilities / duties of Mayor and those of Councillor?
A very good question Pancho, and an important one. There are, of course, the clear legislative tasks of representing the Council on official occasions and chairing meetings. The additional power of the Mayor to direct the CEO is more important than it seems on face value. It is the one means short of disciplinary action by which a Council can ensure that its resolutions are carried out in spirit as well as in letter. It will form a very important part in the relationship between the Council and its executive and thus must be used with discretion, care and in an overall spirit of engendering cooperation.
Leadership is the one great additional role that a Mayor must both seek and accept. And leadership of a Council has many aspects, both within the Council and within the community. And this is one aspect of Council that is most markedly missing in our present setup.
After the next election it can expected, I sincerely wish, that we will have many new Councillors with no previous experience. It is one of the tasks of the mayor to help these people negotiate the steep learning curve they will encounter during the first budgetary phase, which starts almost immediately.
With the, almost inevitable, introduction of divisions there will also be the added risk of interdivisional tensions arising. I would not put it passed the present executive to use techniques to aggravate these in a ‘divide and rule’ strategy. I have seen this done in the past and unless the Mayor is on the ball it can quickly create deep and lasting divisions between the Councillors. Once again this is where the leadership of the Mayor will be crucial in creating the necessary professional working relationships that will allow reform to go forward.
Once the Council is bedded down into a working entity the Mayor’s leadership role continues to be of vital importance. Without energetic leadership a Council will quickly settle into a routine where the agenda is largely driven by the executive and the Councillors go through the motions of approving their suggestions. These Councils are marked by a lack of energy, innovation or any real action to improve their region. We do not need to look too far to see an example of this.
The Mayor, by encouraging the Councillors to bring forward their innovative ideas, by insisting that the Operational and Corporate plans have real physical goals, by enunciating Council’s vision, (and it must be Council’s not the Mayor’s) and bringing the community on board with that vision, can go along way to ensuring that we have a vital, active Council that will continue to strive to bring a material improvement to the entire region.
While this answer is by no means comprehensive, I hope it provides some idea of the leadership role that I believe that only the Mayor can provide.
Jim,
While I have issues with the wording ‘energetic leadership’ instead of knowlegable, experienced, wise, etc, you have ticked the squares as to Mayoral duties as opposed to that of Councillors.
In particular the relationship between the Mayor, CEO and Council employees, which is very clearly defined in the Local Govt Act, and which seems to be largely ignored by several of our current incumbents.
My sincere wish is that most of the electorate can be educated to the distinction between Mayoral and Councillor duties before the next election. Perhaps the local media can begin an educational campaign?
Then again, keeping in mind the disgraceful campaign the Chronic ran to elect “Mick’s our Man’ last time pigs might also fly.
Sadly,
Pancho