Two former Dubbo mayors, Allan Smith and Mathew Dickerson, have called for the eight-month-old forced merger of Dubbo and Wellington to be dismantled.
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They were reacting to a statement on Friday by Deputy Premier and Nationals leader John Barilaro that his party no longer supported amalgamations.
He vowed to “put an end to the local government mergers in the bush” and said he would push the point when a new premier was elected to replace Mike Baird, who will resign on Monday.
Mr Smith and Mr Dickerson called the merger of Dubbo and Wellington councils the “worst decision” of Mr Baird and his former deputy and Dubbo MP Troy Grant while the pair led their parties. Mr Grant quit as Deputy Premier and Nationals leader late last year.
The former mayors said 80 per cent of Dubbo community members said last year they were against the proposed merger going ahead, and Wellington residents also strongly opposed the move.
A councillor for almost 25 years, Mr Smith said he had lived and worked within the community and had been held responsible for his decisions.
“Ignore the public at your peril - and the NSW government has just learned this lesson,” he said.
“Having changed leadership, they now need to urgently review the decisions made under their previous failed leadership.”
Mr Dickerson was mayor when the merger went ahead with an administrator at the helm.
“What can be asserted without evidence can be dismissed without evidence and with no evidence in favour of amalgamations it is easy to dismiss the concept,” he said. “After eight months, we are seeing more problems than solutions.”
He said the two resignations “vindicate(d)” the mayors’ strong stance against the merger and that they had been doing what they were elected to do - “represent our community”.
“It is time the state government started doing the same,” he said.
The NSW Local Government Association applauded Mr Barilaro’s stand, and president Keith Rhoades said it was time the government abandoned forced mergers right across NSW, not just in the bush, and restored local democracy.
The mergers remain government policy.
Mr Barilaro’s and Mr Grant’s offices were approached for comment.