Cessnock City Council Report Reveals Code of Conduct Breaches: Councilors Jurd and Olsen Censured

Cessnock Councilors Jessica Jurd and Ian Olsen have both been censured for serious breaches of conduct, marking a significant development within the Cessnock Local Government. Unfortunately, the specifics of their actions and the origins of the allegations against them remain confidential. However, what is known is that Cessnock Council spent just over $49,000 dealing with nine complaints in the 2022/23 financial year which contadicts estimates stated by both Jurd and Olsen that a censure cost $35,000, Despite the lack of detailed information, the clauses of the Code of Conduct breached by both councilors provide a vague idea of the nature of their actions.

According to the minutes of the last meeting Councilor Olsen and Councilor Jurd were found to have breached various clauses of the Code of Conduct:

1. Making statements in the public domain via social media that inferred Council staff were not telling the truth.
2. Making statements in the public domain via social media that a reasonable and informed person would find belittling and harassment.
3. Knowingly conducting themselves in an improper and unethical manner.
4. Acting contrary to Council’s administrative policies.
5. Not acting lawfully or honestly and exercising a reasonable degree of care and diligence in carrying out their functions.
6. Not considering issues consistently, promptly, and fairly and not dealing with matters in accordance with established procedures in a non-discriminatory manner.
7. Engaging in harassment by demonstrating behavior towards a person that is not wanted by the person, offends, humiliates, or intimidates the person, and creates a hostile environment.
8. Engaging in bullying behavior towards others, including aggressive, threatening, or intimidating conduct; belittling or humiliating comments; spreading malicious rumors; teasing, practical jokes, or ‘initiation ceremonies; exclusion from work-related events; unreasonable work expectations; displaying offensive material; and pressure to behave in an inappropriate manner.
9. Conducting themselves in a manner where they directed Council staff or influenced any other member of the staff of the Council in the exercise of their functions.
10. Misusing social media to post or share comments, photos, videos, electronic recordings, or other information that compromises their capacity to perform official duties in an unbiased manner; has the potential to have a negative impact on their working relationships within the Council or with external parties; is offensive, humiliating, threatening, or intimidating to other Council officials or those that deal with the Council; has the capacity to damage the Council’s reputation or contains content about the Council that may be misleading or deceptive; contains allegations of suspected breaches of the Code or information about the consideration of a matter under the Code of Conduct Procedures.

“I’m disappointed with this accusation,” stated Councilor Jurd in response to the censure. “Council has a code of conduct policy where if someone thinks you broke it, you send it into the General Manager. The general manager decides if it is a complaint and sends it onto an investigator, which is a cost to council ratepayers of about $35,000.”

MHV NEWS believes that matters of this nature should be made public, especially with the upcoming elections in September. Ratepayers have the right to know how their money is being spent and the inappropriate behaviors their elected representatives may have engaged in. Transparency is crucial in ensuring accountability and maintaining public trust in the local government.

Both Councilor Ian Olsen and Councilor Jessica Jurd have been referred to the Office of Local Government for further action, signaling the gravity of the situation and the need for thorough investigation and accountability measures.