Councillors step down from MRC audit committee due to "lack of transparency"

“I’m not allowed to share information with the other councillors and yet I was elected as an equal – the burden is just too great,” Cr Gen Campbell said.

“We have to get permission from the auditors to share with other councillors. We can’t do anything with what we read and see.

“I thought we were on the committee to make sure we followed through and fixed up any discrepancies.

“I’m really cross about it and I’m glad I’ve thrown in the towel.”

The Audit and Risk Management Committee was established to assist MRC with its risk management and compliance activities.

It also aims to provide functional direction regarding processes to address and review external and internal risks, governance processes and control systems.

“If any uncontrolled risks, or poor quality procedures are identified, the committee works with management to establish audit projects to investigate, analyse and report on the situation or process under review,” MRC general manager Des Bilske said.

“An internal audit company is contracted by council to undertake these projects with the reports outlining recommendations for improvements as appropriate to the general manager.”

But as these reports are often “highly comprehensive and thorough”, Mr Bilske said they could contain sensitive information relating to matters such as IT security, financial and or legal processes and sometimes personal information.

“This type of sensitive material is not generally made available to the councillors or general public,” he said.

“However a summary of the recommendations and proposed corrective actions contained in such reports is presented to council for their information from the chair of the audit committee.”

But Cr Campbell was not satisfied, believing the bulk of information should be available to both ratepayers and other councillors.

“Ratepayers are compulsory investors into an organisation, and yet they are not permitted to have full disclosure,” she said.

“They can see all my income and information, why isn’t it transparent across the board?

“And they wonder why so many councils get into trouble. But there’s no hope of changing the system.”

Cr Neil Gorey and Cr Nikki Cohen will fill the two vacant positions on the committee, joining three independent audit committee members Frank Crawley, Jodie Morgan and Chairman Richard Ham.