Cessnock Council is at it again. They’ve rolled out the glossy “financial sustainability” spiel, complete with videos from an “independent expert,” all designed to lay the groundwork for a Special Rate Variation—aka a stealth tax hike on residents. But let’s not kid ourselves: this is nothing more than a blatant cash grab.
At previous meetings, residents were repeatedly told that Council’s financial position was stable. Yet here we are, being told we need to pay more, ostensibly because Council can’t make ends meet. If their finances were stable before, why the sudden need to raid ratepayers’ pockets now?
And before they ask us to fork out more, let’s ask some real questions: how much did Council pay these professors to spin nonsense justifying a rate rise? That’s money that could have gone to fixing roads, maintaining infrastructure, or reducing bureaucratic waste.
If Council were serious about financial sustainability, they would exhaust every other option first. Sell the airport hangar. Scrap expensive and distracting programs like Net Zero and underperforming DEI initiatives. Freeze hiring and FIRE unnecessary bureaucrat which there are many off. Cut consultancy fees. Prioritize projects with real community impact.
Residents already bear the cost of mismanaged projects, half-finished infrastructure, and inflated salaries. We shouldn’t be paying more because Council refuses to prioritize properly. Until they do the hard work of cutting costs themselves, they can bugger off and keep their hands out of our pockets.
The next Council meeting is where residents need to show up, speak out, and demand accountability. We won’t fund their failures. Not with special rates. Not now. Not ever.
