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Robe mayor issues apology

Posted on September 3, 2008, 5:05pm

Robe Mayor William Peden apologised to his Wattle Range Council counterpart yesterday for comments he made comparing the two local government bodies’ rates.

Or at least he tried to.

Mr Peden said a delay in the apology, which was promised in July, was due simply to “timing” after both he and Wattle Range mayor Mark Braes had been on leave.

However, he said he had prepared a written apology and emailed it to Mr Braes yesterday.

But he said he was unsure if it had sent properly as his telephone line had been down, which included his internet service — another obstacle that had led to his late apology.

After Telstra repaired the phone line yesterday morning and Mr Peden emailed Mr Braes a statement, he said he hoped both councils could now move on from the matter.

Mr Peden’s apology states that he compared Robe and Wattle Range council rates on the basis of cents in the dollar.

“It has been brought to my attention that there are some variations in rating systems that mean this simplified comparison doe not compare apples with apples,” he wrote.

“I apologise to our colleagues at Wattle Range — we hope to work closely with Wattle Range Council during these difficult economic times for the benefit of all ratepayers.”

The statements by Mr Peden that caused offence were published in the mayor’s report of the July edition of the Robe community newsletter.

He wrote that council was aware rates were high, but asked residents to look at their neighbouring council and realise they would pay 78pc more in Wattle Range.

Mr Peden also pointed out to those who previously wanted to merge with Wattle Range that the District Council of Robe had taken “drastic steps to get back on track toward being financially stable”.

According to Mr Peden, if this had not happened, it was likely the South Australian Government would have made Robe a ward of Wattle Range and that they would now be paying the higher rates.

His comments triggered an immediate reaction from Mr Braes, who met with Mr Peden and was assured an apology would be made.

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