Public applauds: ‘It’s not often I clap a Liberal but good on you’

A report on the past four years of Central Coast Council under administration has been labelled vague, troubling, outdated and underwhelming.

The councillor labelling it that way – Trent McWaide – got the thumbs up from the public gallery at the end of his speech at the October 29 ordinary meeting of Council.

The 15 new councillors at their first ordinary meeting were unanimous in their desire for better reporting on the progress of Council’s Community Strategic Plan (CSP).

Councillors noted the End of Term Report, the purpose of which was to report on how the Council has performed in achieving the 48 objectives of the CSP over the past four years while in administration.

The councillors didn’t think the report was up to scratch and have demanded a further report on how Council is tracking against the 48 objectives of the CSP.

McWaide spoke for five minutes about the failures of the End of Term Report to actually report on the outcomes of the 48 objectives and the people in the public gallery applauded him after he finished, with one person yelling out: “It’s not often I clap a Liberal but good on you”.

McWaide said he had hoped to find in the report a document brimming with insight, foresight, and clarity – “a compass to guide us as we make pivotal decisions for our community’s future”.

“However, instead, what I have before me is a report that leaves me underwhelmed, deeply concerned, and, frankly, grappling with its vagueness,” he said. 

“If this report is truly a reflection of the performance over the past four years, then I am troubled by the lack of direction and the absence of measurable progress.

“How can we, as representatives of this community, confidently adopt a Community Strategic Plan, one meant to define our future, when the information provided offers little assurance that we are on a clear and reliable path.”

McWaide said residents of the Central Coast deserved more than vague promises and half-hearted measures.

“They deserve a bold strategic vision, grounded in clarity and achievable goals,” he said. 

“We owe it to our community to deliver something more concrete, more ambitious and more effective with real action and outcomes.”

McWaide said the figures quoted for domestic break and enter offences appeared to show a downward trend when in fact the figures from 2024 showed they were increasing.

He said the consequence of reporting misleading statistics and statements such as these directly leads to distrust in leaders.

“This is simply one small example of the insubstantial and flimsy information in this report,” he said. 

“If we simply report the truth, take ownership of our problems, our problems get solved.” 

His fellow councillors agreed and CEO David Farmer was directed to provide a further report on progress made on each of the 48 objectives for the period 2021/22 to 2023/24.

Farmer is expected to table that at the ordinary meeting to be held in February 2025.

Council staff are currently working on the next version of the CSP and councillors have requested the CEO ensures there are strong measures to be reported to Council on an annual basis.