Sydney Business Vote less substantial than predicted

BY LAWRENCE GIBBONS

Over the last 10 months the City of Sydney has spent more than $8 million enrolling just over 22,000 businesses in the upcoming City of Sydney elections, costing ratepayers more than $360 to register a single non-residential voter.  Under a new state law implemented in 2014, the City is required to enrol all eligible businesses to vote. The City has not complied with the law.

According to Sydney Matters leader and Lord Mayoral candidate Clr Angela Vithoulkas, the City has admitted “there were 138,000 property owners, corporations, occupiers, sole traders and others who could have been eligible to be enrolled. “ The City has registered just over 15% of that figure.  According to Clr Vithoulkas, “It is a disgrace that once again millions of dollars of City of Sydney ratepayers’ money has been squandered.”

A spokesperson for the NSW Minister for Local Government Paul Toole told the City Hub: “The system of non-residential elector enrolment, passed through Parliament in 2014 and recommended by an inquiry into the 2012 local government elections, is based on the successful City of Melbourne model.”

In the smaller city of Melbourne there are three hundred percent more non-residential voters on the roll (65,000 vs 22,000). Businesses represent more than 60% of the vote in Victoria’s capital city. In Sydney businesses now make up just over 20% of the vote, with 100,000 residents and 22,000 non-residents on the roll.

Liberal candidate for Lord Mayor, Clr Christine Forster told City Hub, “it appears to me to be very obvious that not all of the businesses in the City have been contacted, and many of those which have been have not taken any steps to get enrolled. “

Incumbent Lord Mayor Clover Moore has decried the new business vote laws as an “undemocratic gerrymander”. The Sydney Morning Herald has reported “the increased power of the business vote could rob her of her majority of support among fellow councillors. Because she has had a majority of support on council, Cr Moore has largely not had to horse-trade with other councillors to implement her priorities.”

Had Clover Moore’s City of Sydney complied with the law and enrolled all eligible business voters, the sitting Lord Mayor’s position would have been more severely threatened. But no one appears to have the political will to compel the City of Sydney to register all eligible business voters.

The NSW Electoral Commission (NSWEC) told the City Hub: “The process of preparing the Non-residential Roll is administered by the City of Sydney council under the provisions of City of Sydney Act.  The City of Sydney Act is not administered by NSWEC.” A spokesperson for State Premier Mike Baird told City Hub “there are no plans to delay the City of Sydney elections due to be held on 10 September.”

Labor Shadow Minister for Local Government Peter Primrose MLC has vowed “The next NSW Labor Government will repeal the costly provisions that require the City of Sydney to maintain a compulsory register of non-residential voters.”