Philippa Scott elected as new Inner West Council Deputy Mayor
Image: Labor Councillor Philippa Scott has been elected as the Deputy Mayor of the Inner West Council. Photo: innerwestlabor.org.
By DAVID IVANI
Last week, the Inner West City Council appointed Labor Councillor Philippa Scott as the new Deputy Mayor.
“I do intend to use the title of Deputy Mayor for the benefit of the community, really to elevate the profile of work that is taking place”, Cr Scott said.
The new deputy Mayor told City Hub she intends “to make time to have Council leaders attend as many community events as possible, to show respect for the amazing work being done in our community”.
Whats on the agenda?
In terms of agenda, Cr Scott is looking to boost the Inner West’s “mainstream and economy” in order to shine light on the inclusive nature of its communities.
Cr Scott explained that events and projects, such as the Enmore Special Entertainment Precinct, will revitalise the Inner West’s arts economy, and will “demonstrate the best of the Inner West”.
10% of the Inner West’s residents hold a career in the arts sector.
When questioned about current obstacles faced by the Council, Cr Scott said the treatment of the Inner West Council by the NSW State Government has been problematic– drawing on projects such as the WestConnex, Western Harbour Tunnel, and the dereliction of the Leichhardt Oval.
“It has been up to the council to advocate for mitigations against those projects” Cr Scott said.
Additionally, she outlined that the Inner West Council are “really struggling to elevate the needs of the Inner West into the atmosphere”.
This comes as the Deputy Mayor argues that “the Inner West area is not politically useful to the current New South Wales Government”.
New Deputy Mayor speaks on council demerger
As for the proposal of the de-amalgamation of the Inner West Council back to the former Leichhardt, Ashfield and Marrickville councils, the Deputy Mayor said that the group in support of such model is “shrinking”. Cr Scott commented on the extreme complexity of the proposal, stating that “those Councillors who are suggesting that this will be easy, or fast, or democratic, are absolutely mistaken”.
She said that external audits conducted on the proposal have revealed “the extreme risks that would arise from going through this process”, which goes head-to-head with the very roles and obligations of the Inner West City Council’s Councillors – to serve the community and its people.
Cr Scott also expressed her support for the Federal government’s immigration policies, in regard to the Federal Government’s recent announcement of Australia accepting an additional 35,000 migrants, bumping the total to 195,000, each year.
“We have always been a very warm and welcome home to migrants and refugees” she said.
“We are more than happy to participate.
“There are wonderful programs that help people to get jobs and thrive economically, to take on training and improve their education and skills, and to become socially integrated into the community to make friends”.
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