A nearly year-long saga that saw one Kimberley city councillor call for an ethics investigation has now ended.
In March last year, Councillor Diana Fox recused herself from a vote in relation to a proposed commercial development in Marysville, which she later revealed to be the result of “targeted” bullying and intimidation due to a possible conflict of interest with her restaurant ownership.
“It feels like manipulation,” Fox said in November. “We have seen numbers of these things pop up on the agenda where letters in support of drive-thrus are published and letters that are not in support of them are not published, and I’ve never received a good answer as to why that happens.”
An external investigator has since looked into the complaint and found that, although it was timely and detailed enough to warrant review under applicable policies, the alleged matters did not meet the threshold for unacceptable or inappropriate behaviour by City staff.
“The matters complained of primarily related to differences in interpretation, communication, and timing of guidance regarding potential conflicts of interest and recusal and were consistent with reasonable administrative actions taken in good faith, which did not extend beyond ordinary workplace interactions,” wrote the City.
The complaint has now been found “unsubstantiated”.
The City will be focusing on steps to restore respectful workplace relationships between Council and staff. No further comment will be given due to the investigation’s confidential nature.
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