Mr Hoenig announced the decision on Thursday 15 October. According to the North Coast Times, he said he had acted because he reasonably believed Mr Rayner’s appointment was necessary to “restore the proper or effective functioning of the council”.

What the Minister’s statement says

Mr Hoenig’s statement begins with the council’s own request. He noted that councillors had unanimously resolved to seek an external investigation into an extensive range of matters across governance, administration, operations and financial management.

The Daily Telegraph reports that the statement lists those matters as follows: governance and statutory compliance, workplace culture, recruitment, financial management and procurement, and councillor access to information. It also lists complaints and Public Interest Disclosures, and internal audit and risk management. The final item is possible maladministration, waste and systemic governance failure.

Mr Hoenig said many of these matters concern the fundamental responsibilities of the governing body itself. He said he had considered submissions from the council and each of the prescribed suspension criteria before deciding.

He described Mr Rayner as an experienced local government executive who will exercise the functions of the governing body for the duration of the suspension.

The North Coast Times notes that the statement does not announce any findings on the matters listed. They remain the subject of the investigation the council itself requested.

The council’s response

Councillors had argued against suspension. At an extraordinary meeting on 6 October, they resolved to ask the Minister not to suspend the governing body. In its letter, the council said it had not intended its request for an investigation to be read as grounds for an administrator. It said the council had identified no instances of serious governance failure, misconduct or maladministration that would justify regulatory intervention.

The council also told the Minister it remained financially secure and was continuing to make decisions and deliver services. It argued that the statutory threshold, an inability or unwillingness to govern, had not been met.

Councillors had also resolved to recruit an experienced interim general manager for up to 12 months. That appointee would carry out a 90-day assessment, develop an improvement program and report monthly. Councillors proposed asking the Minister to let them stay in office during a six-month improvement program. The council had sought an extra week to respond to the Minister’s correspondence of 2 October, so that it could debate its submission at a meeting this week.

How the council reached this point

The suspension follows several weeks of turmoil. After a tied mayoral vote in September, a name was drawn to decide the result. The council has since acknowledged that the wrong candidate was declared mayor. Council papers later put the tied vote at four votes each between Cr Peter Johnstone and Cr Ray Smith.

Councillors then voted six to three to end the employment of General Manager Laura Black, whose term was due to run to October 2027. The termination took effect on 23 September, and Mr Adam Cameron, the council’s environment and planning director, was appointed acting general manager.

Cr Johnstone said in a statement that he was disappointed by the decision. He said decisions affecting the Clarence Valley should ultimately be made by representatives elected by the community.

Mr Rayner will now exercise the functions of the governing body until the three-month suspension ends.