Cr Andrew Thaler was originally suspended in May and his second suspension will start in August. Photo: Claire Fenwicke.
Controversial councillor Andrew Thaler has been suspended from the Snowy Monaro Regional Council for the second time this year, again over comments he made on social media.
In May, he was found guilty of misconduct due to some comments he made online and was suspended from office for three months.
He appealed this decision, but lost, with the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal finding he had engaged in misconduct. The tribunal noted he called a fellow councillor a “fat dumb blonde” and outlined other comments he made.
This week, the NSW Office of Local Government’s (OLG) deputy secretary Brett Whitworth confirmed Cr Thaler would again be suspended for three months, starting from 5 August.
He also ordered Cr Thaler apologise for the misconduct that led to the second suspension. This misconduct related to comments he made in social media posts on Facebook and videos on YouTube in March.
Mr Whitworth said by early July, Cr Thaler had failed to demonstrate any remorse, which indicated a lack of insight.
He said when it came to some of the misconduct, the councillor indicated he thought it had been “very funny” and he “enjoyed it”.
He said that last week Cr Thaler repeated a derogatory name when referring to a fellow councillor.
“The conduct occurring over a number of days indicates an ongoing pattern of inappropriate conduct by Cr Thaler’s public social media posts, with an apparent disregard for the impact on others and other consequences,” Mr Whitworth said.
He said he took into account Cr Thaler’s “lack of accountability for his own actions and conduct”.
Noreen Vu, who took over as the CEO for Snowy Monaro Regional Council in July, said the council had “a zero tolerance to bullying and harassment”. Photo: Snowy Monaro Regional Council.
The second suspension, which lasts until November, is related to separate breaches of council’s code of conduct to those that led to the first suspension.
Cr Thaler did not respond to Region when contacted for comment.
But he appeared to briefly acknowledge the second suspension on one of his social media accounts on Tuesday (29 July).
“Guess who copped *another* suspension,” he wrote.
Noreen Vu, the CEO of Snowy Monaro Regional Council, thanked the OLG for taking action.
“This suspension notice will allow me to continue the work undertaken by Mr Stephen Dunshea as interim CEO on improving our work, health and safety measures for our staff, volunteers and elected councillors,” she said.
“Snowy Monaro Regional Council has a zero tolerance to bullying and harassment. We trust that the order is complied with in a respectful and dignified manner.
“We will continue to provide support services to our staff who have been affected by Cr Thaler’s misconduct.”
Mr Whitworth said Cr Thaler’s apology must be made in writing and be provided to council for potential distribution to the wider community.
He noted how the misconduct that led to the councillor’s first suspension earlier this year was similar in nature to the conduct that led to this second suspension.
While suspended, Cr Thaler is not entitled to exercise any of the functions of civic office nor any fee for which he might normally receive as a councillor.
Original Article published by Albert McKnight on About Regional.
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