A City of Perth committee has rejected a proposal to suspend interstate and international travel for council members and staff during Western Australia's fuel emergency, potentially leaving ratepayers with a nearly $10,000 bill for a trip to Denpasar, Bali.
Committee Rejects Travel Suspension
At a policy, legislation and governance committee meeting on June 15, Lord Mayor Bruce Reynolds, Deputy Lord Mayor David Goncalves, and councillors Liam Gobbert and Lisa Ma voted against suspending travel while the Fuel, Energy and Power Resources (Declaration of State of Emergency) Order 2026 remains in effect. The proposal, originally raised by Cr Catherine Lezer at the city's April meeting, called for all interstate and international travel by elected members and administration to be suspended during the emergency.
City officers advised that adopting the suspension would result in budget savings, noting that it could still allow travel in exceptional circumstances when critical to the city's operations or legislative obligations. However, the committee instead recommended the council not support the suspension and acknowledge that elected member travel occurs in accordance with the city's national and international engagement policy.
Planned Travel Costs Revealed
A report to the committee detailed planned or contemplated travel for the remainder of 2026, including more than $21,000 for three elected members and one chief executive or general manager to attend the Australian Local Government Association National General Assembly in Canberra, up to $18,000 for future council meetings in Canberra, and an estimated $9,400 trip to Denpasar, Indonesia, for a memorandum of understanding renewal or expansion. The City of Perth could not confirm who was earmarked for the Bali trip despite providing the cost estimate.
Community Outcry Over Spending
Community advocate and City of Perth ratepayer Vicki Raniszewski voiced opposition at an agenda briefing on Tuesday night, stating she opposed domestic and international travel unless there was a demonstrated benefit for the community. “At a time when ratepayers are facing increasing cost-of-living pressures and the city continues to incur significant expenditure addressing governance issues, it is appropriate that all discretionary spending be subject to careful scrutiny, transparency and accountability,” she said.
Ms Raniszewski questioned the value of the proposed travel expenditure, especially for the Bali trip. “Many ratepayers are struggling to understand how a trip to Bali to renew an agreement can cost $9,400,” she said. She also highlighted the proposed $21,006 allocation for the national local government conference in Canberra, noting that “this expenditure is broadly equivalent to the annual council rates paid by approximately 13 average residential households.” She added that previous reports from councillors who attended last year's conference referred to advocacy, engagement and networking opportunities but did not identify specific outcomes. “Advocacy alone is not an outcome. Travel funded by ratepayers should deliver more than opportunities, conversations and networking. It should deliver measurable outcomes,” she said.
Context of Fuel Emergency
The staff report noted that Premier Roger Cook had imposed an international travel ban on ministers, senior officers and heads of government trading enterprises, although interstate travel remains unaffected. It also said suspending travel was “not expected to cause any lasting challenges” to the city's ability to fulfil its role in maintaining national and international relationships.
City's Response
A City of Perth spokesperson said the budget allocation for the Denpasar trip related to a previous commitment to explore a potential sister city-style relationship with the Municipality of Denpasar. “As part of this process, funding was set aside to support travel and engagement activities to assess the strategic benefits of a potential partnership, consistent with the city's approach to exploring relationships with other international cities that may deliver economic, cultural or strategic opportunities for Perth,” the spokesperson said. The city subsequently paused further exploration of the Denpasar arrangement while developing its International Engagement Strategy, which includes a framework for assessing and prioritising future international partnerships and sister city relationships. “Although the strategy has now been adopted by council, the budget allocated for this purpose remains unspent and no travel has occurred under the allocation,” the spokesperson said.
The committee's recommendation will now return to the full council for consideration at its June 23 meeting.
