About 250 residents attended the ‘Stay in Stirling’ rally on Sunday.
Camera IconAbout 250 residents attended the ‘Stay in Stirling’ rally on Sunday. Credit: Supplied/Supplied

Council against council

Anne Gartner, Guardian ExpressEastern Reporter

Mr Holland made the comments at the ‘Stay in Stirling’ rally last Sunday afternoon, which was attended by about 250 residents.

‘Quite frankly, you would have to say that the changes that have been suggested are actually putting local governments against one another to fight it out,’ he said.

‘It makes the process extremely difficult. We are neighbours, we try to help one another; we do not want to be at each others throat.’

PerthNow Digital Edition.
Your local paper, whenever you want it.

Get in front of tomorrow's news for FREE

Journalism for the curious Australian across politics, business, culture and opinion.

READ NOW

Mt Holland said the proposed council changes that would see parts of Dianella, Mt Lawley, Menora and all of Inglewood taken from Stirling and given to the new greater Morley council would result in losses for the community.

‘In a lot of cases, projects that have been endorsed by Stirling Council and the community have had reserves put away for them,’ he said. ‘That means that you have partly paid for some of them and they will be moving away to another local authority.

‘So not only do you lose the asset, you lose the reserves.’

Other speakers at the meeting, including Mayor David Boothman and councillor David Lagan, said the changes, including transferring the suburbs of Wembley Downs and Churchlands and part of Woodlands to the new western suburbs council, would affect about 33,000 people.

‘Why, when we have been held up as a good model for local government for the last five years, would you then slash our suburbs?’ he asked.

‘There can only be one answer and that is to make other proposed local government amalgamations more sustainable both financially and by the way of population.’

Mt Lawley MLA Michael Sutherland said he would support the City of Stirling’s proposal to retain Dianella, Menora, Mt Lawley and Inglewood.

Maylands MLA Lisa Baker said the proposed changes, particularly removing the Dadour provisions, were taking away residents’ democratic right to have a say in the make-up of their local government.