Amateurs to lead big bureaucracies ...

Seems unlikely in the case of the Toowoomba Regional Council.

Each of the candidates for Mayor is an existing Councillor or Mayor and the likely result is that a good proportion of the elected Councillors will be drawn from either existing Councillors etc from the current shires outside Toowoomba or those who have been active in local government politics over the past few years.

Seems unlikely that any of the 4 Yes packers will get another go - that's hardly a 'bloody sad day for local government' ...

Excerpt from Sunday Mail:

Amateurs to lead big bureaucracies

2 March 2008

The state's new super councils face a potentially disastrous first term because many councillors will be novices, the Local Government Association of Queensland warns.

With incumbent mayors in Mackay, Rockhampton, Gladstone, Toowoomba, Bundaberg and Hervey Bay not seeking re-election, LGAQ executive director Greg Hallam said many new regional councils would lack experience.

And he said the new councillors, who will have big pay rises to match their extra responsibilities, would face wide-ranging challenges, including pulling together "disparate" communities.

"In some parts of the state the communities are chalk and cheese and that's going to be a big job to pull those communities together," he said.

Mr Hallam said first-time councillors on new councils may struggle to be re-elected in four years because they would be facing tough decisions on issues such as local development and lifestyle matters "like how many dogs you can keep".

Mr Hallam said another concern for the March 15 local government election was poor voter turnout.

Despite compulsory voting, he said people in regional areas could shun the poll and councils were unlikely to enforce fines for failing to vote.

"We are fearful that there won't be a big voter turnout," he said.

"Some people may have had enough of elections. We're saying to people, 'We understand your frustrations. We fought the hard fight but we've now got to cast a vote and the next four years are critical for your communities'."

Regional community anger that followed the decision to reduce the number of non-metropolitan councils from 156 to 72 has been put aside as the election nears.

Aramac Shire Mayor Gary Peoples led the bush revolt against the council amalgamations plan but is now running for mayor of the new Barcaldine Regional Council in the state's central west.

"I still don't agree that amalgamations are the best thing for these country shires. I don't think I'll ever change my opinion on that," said Cr Peoples, who doesn't expect to beat current Barcaldine Shire Mayor Robert Chandler.

"But it's what the Government's given us and we've all got to get on and pull together and make the most of what we've got."

Another high-profile anti-amalgamation agitator, pro-green Noosa Mayor Bob Abbot, once vowed to fight mergers "for ever".

But he too has gone from protester to political campaigner in a race with Maroochy Mayor Joe Natoli for the $180,000-a-year job of heading the Sunshine Coast super council.

"We've got the merger now and I want to make it work," Cr Abbot told The Sunday Mail.

"The most important thing in particular is to ensure that the diversity of the Sunshine Coast, which is our real competitive edge not only in lifestyle but in tourism, is maintained.

"Everywhere I go people just want to maintain their identity and integrity."

Cr Abbot won the endorsement of popular ex-tennis champ and Coast local Pat Rafter during the week.
...

Mr Pitt said local transition committees had done a good job in helping communities understand the future of councils in their region.

But Cr Peoples said many towns around Queensland, such as Aramac, may lack representation on the new councils.

"There's no certainty that we'll have a voice on the council," he said.

"There's a lot of places round the state where it's undivided. Where you've got divisions you've probably got some certainty of some sort of representation. We didn't go with that here in our area."

Cr Peoples said he expected intense interest in the March 15 poll and the performance of the newly formed councils to be under close scrutiny over the next four years.

"I think it's a bloody sad day for local government in Queensland to be honest with you," he said.

"There's going to be a lot of councils and good councillors and service provisions right across the state that we're going to lose out on.

"We're losing a lot of good people."

See - Amateurs to lead big bureaucracies.