Victoria's local government minister said she was unaware of cultural and governance issues at a now sacked regional shire council until a senior manager was murdered in 2021.
The Victorian government sacked the Moira Shire Council on Monday, after a damning report revealed a multitude of alleged governance failings, including a suggestion the murder of a council worker may have been prevented.
The independent inquiry into the northern Victorian council has reported matters relating to the death of former council manager Rick Devlin to the state coroner.
Further allegations of procurement misconduct and illegal asbestos dumping have been referred to the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission.
The Minister for Local Government, Melissa Horne, said sacking the council was "not a decision we took lightly".
"It's the most serious step a government can take," she said.
"This has been an extraordinary sequence of events."
Former mayor questions findings
The Commission of Inquiry found the governance of Moira Shire Council had been "steadily eroding over most of the last decade".
But recently terminated Moira Shire mayor Peter Lawless has voiced doubts about the commission's final report.
"I do not agree with all the findings of the commissioners and there are elements of the report that I do not believe are accurate," he said in a statement.
"I must also express my disappointment that the commission instructed the minister not ot have contact with councillors."
In his submission to the inquiry, Mr Lawless said councillors "should not share any blame" for Moira Shire Council's decision to unlawfully dump asbestos-contaminated waste at council transfer stations.
The commission did not accept this claim, which it described as an "abrogation of responsibility".
Mr Lawless said he was proud of what council had achieved and he truly believed it was heading in the right direction.
In 2014, the then Moira Shire mayor was summoned to parliament to discuss "many of the same issues" present in recent years, according to the commissioner's report.
Ms Horne said she wasn't aware of any issues at the shire prior to the 2021 murder of Moira Shire's manager of operations, Rick Devlin, by another worker, Andrew Robert Paterson.
"This was the first indication that there was something wrong," she said.
Report raised serious concerns
A municipal monitor, Marg Allan, was appointed in April 2022 to advise and support governance processes at Moira Shire Council.
Ms Allan was expected to remain in that role until January 2023, but plans changed after she handed Ms Horne a confidential report in October 2022.
"The report said that Moira Shire Council weren't performing as expected or required of them … neither the mayor nor the CEO," Ms Horne said.
"And that councillors are unable to properly manage the CEO."
Ms Horne said the monitor advised that when her time working with council ended "any sort of improvements to government governance that she put in place would most likely dissipate".
A commission of inquiry was launched the same month.
'Inherent weaknesses' in local government
Municipal Association of Victoria president David Clark said intervention was overdue.
"If you act early you deal with the issue, and that's what hasn't happened here," he said.
Mr Clark said the events that transpired within Moira Shire Council were unlike any he had seen before.
"And I've been in government for 25 years — this is absolutely unique in that sense," he said.
Ms Horne said most of the 79 councils across Victoria were operating with good representation and good governance.
But Mr Clark said there were some "inherent weaknesses" in the local government system, including fewer resources and in some cases, a lack of skills and experience "at the table".
He said councillors came from a range of backgrounds across Victoria, served on council in a part-time capacity, and there was a 50 per cent turnover every four years.
Mr Clark said that context affected their capacity to oversee governance.
What's next?
The Moira Shire Council will remain under the control of a panel of administrators for at least five years, with the next election now set for 2028.
A single administrator will take the helm of the council and have the power to act as mayor and CEO for the next three months, after which time a panel of administrators will take over.
Ms Horne said this was in line with the commissioner's recommendations, and during that time work would focus on building community leadership and rebuilding trust.
"Which is about developing emerging leaders … and really strengthening the relationship between the community and council," she said.
"You can't do that overnight, that takes time."