There was only one storm louder than the southerly buster that broke Sydney’s heatwave on Tuesday night, and it came from inside the Northern Beaches Council chambers. As a motion to raise rates by up to 40 per cent was debated and narrowly approved, Mayor Sue Heins struggled to maintain decorum among the 200 protesters who filled the public gallery.
Following a short rally outside the chambers, objectors filled the auditorium and repeatedly interjected, shaking maracas and waving placards, leading Heins to demand silence within the first two minutes of the four-hour-long hearing and call for the meeting to be paused three times.
Protesters rally against a proposed 40 per cent rate rise in the northern beaches.Credit: James Brickwood
Those protesting the motion were critical of the rise, executive’s salaries, and the $173,000 resident survey they believe was misinterpreted by the council to justify the increase. According to council papers, 51 per cent of surveyed residents opted for a pegged rate increase of 10.7 per cent. Only 11 per cent voted for the 39.6 per cent rise that was successfully moved at the meeting.
Among a number of locals who spoke against the motion was James Brown, the Liberal candidate for Mackellar in the upcoming federal election. Brown introduced himself as a “resident” but was repeatedly interrupted by a member of the gallery demanding the candidate identify his political affiliation.
Heins asked for Brown to be heard in silence, requesting that the politician get “his point across … without irritating as many people as possible”. The request was met with shouting from the crowd and an apology from Heins. Brown did not directly address his candidacy but did say his “occupation is known; there’s a building down the road with my face on it”.
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Federal and state teal independents Zali Steggall, Sophie Scamps, and Jacqui Scruby all released individual statements yesterday criticising the rise. State Liberal MPs Matt Cross and James Griffin released a joint statement on Monday calling the council “out of touch” and blaming the “teals and Greens” for losing “control of the budget”.
Tensions further escalated when councillor Miranda Korzy, the only Greens member to vote for the motion, described the campaign against the proposal as a “neoliberal attack”, which was misinterpreted by one member of the audience as a characterisation of protesters as “neo-Nazi[s]”, leading to a commotion that caused the meeting to be paused.
Once proceedings resumed, and Heins warned the audience that overexcited objectors would be removed, another member of the gallery shouted at council chief executive Scott Phillips to address repeated criticisms of his remuneration. When asked to leave the chambers, the woman refused, and the meeting was once again paused until she left.