'Problematic' Council suspended

The Victorian Government has suspended the Brimbank Council for three years, following recent claims of inappropriate conduct.

An Ombudsman's report earlier this year criticised activities at the Labor-dominated council in Melbourne's west.

It said the council was plagued by factionalism and self-interest, accused some councillors of misusing public funds and raised allegations of branch-stacking. Other misconduct is believed to relate to local sporting clubs nd grant allocations.

Municipal inspector Bill Scales was appointed to monitor the council and his first report has now been tabled in the Victorian Parliament. The report suggests that the problems identified by the ombudsman are "deep-seated" and are "still sustained" within the council, advising "what I've found is the same sort of activities and the same sort of behaviours that the Ombudsman wrote about in his report."

Scales' report also accuses the St Albans Branch of the ALP of trying to apply undue influence over certain councillors.

All councillors will be dismissed within weeks and administrators will be appointed until 2012.

Brimbank Mayor Troy Atana-sovski is angry about hearing of the council's suspension though the media saying that the issues raised by the Ombudsman are all in the past.

He advised "those issues do not exist in there.

"Councillors have been aware of what was happening in the past few years and the 11 councillors were against the things that have been happening in the past."

Victorian Local Government Minister Richard Wynne says the decision to suspend the council has not been taken lightly, stating "I'm fully aware of the seriousness of this decision to remove an elected council."