A largely meaningless document, called the Community Strategic Plan (CSP), is up for adoption by councillors this Thursday.
Staff say, in the upcoming February 24 Council agenda, the existing document will be further developed and implemented over the the next four years, and ‘sets the collective vision for the next ten years and highlights the community’s priorities’.
While there are many, many aspirations and motherhood statements contained within the document, longtime residents will be aware of how little any of it matters when applied against court cases and accountability of the organisation.
The CSP can conveniently be disregarded with the ‘flexibility’ afforded to Council staff with their decision making, for example.
Is there anything in this document that is legally binding in terms of accountability and performance by Council?
Should the public consider this document has any value, given it is not underpinned by legal consequences?
Those questions were put the the NSW Office of Local Government, given all NSW councils are required to adopt a CSP.
A ‘response’ by a OLG spokesperson did not answer these questions, and instead, they outlined the purpose of the Community Strategic Plan.
That basic information is readily available, which raises the question of whether media spokespeople really exist. Perhaps they are bots programmed to not answer questions and only regurgitate the bleeding obvious?
The biggest scam on Earth?
Further to page 3 story, State govt squeezes Council over its ethical investments, it’s worth pointing out how corrupt and unstable the global financial market is.
If you haven’t watched the 2015 movie The Big Short, do it.
It explains this all simply, with gags and celebrity cameos.
Anyway, a push for more sustainable investments was made years ago by a previous Council. Now, it appears those ethical investments, or anything with ‘Environmental and Socially Responsible outcomes’, does not meet the benchmark for the ratings agencies. And the NSW government want to maintain their ratings, right?
But who are the ratings agencies? Credit rating agencies are private corporations that charge their clients for ratings.
Both countries and corporations, such as financial institutes, are rated on a scale from AAA to D, depending on their economic and financial strength.
The main rating agencies are private US and UK based companies: Standard & Poor’s (S&P), Moody’s and Fitch.
After the 2008 global financial crash, it emerged that rating agencies failed to identify bundled debt mortgages that were a risk. Whatever regulation that was in place didn’t work.
It could be argued that the close relationship between governments (who regulate) and financial institutions is the real risk for stability, not sustainable investments.
There’s plenty of examples where former politicians are snapped up by large financial institutions. Former NSW Premier, Mike Baird, and former Qld Premier, Anna Bligh, are just two examples.
How can Council invest in ethical products and not investments aligned with fossil fuels? This question is now in the hands of the newly elected councillors on Thursday.
News tips are welcome: [email protected]
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
