NSW Local Government Minister Ron Hoenig has suspended Clarence Valley Council for three months and appointed John Rayner as interim administrator, ABC News reported on Friday 16 October.
In a statement quoted by the ABC, Mr Hoenig said the appointment was “necessary to restore the proper or effective functioning of [the Clarence Valley] council”. He said he had considered submissions received after he warned councillors, about a fortnight earlier, that suspension was possible.
“I considered submissions and each of the prescribed suspension criteria before making my decision,” Mr Hoenig said in his statement, as reported by Inside Local Government. “Mr Rayner is an experienced local government executive and will exercise the functions of the governing body during the suspension period.”
Mr Rayner ran Armidale Regional Council when it was under administration in 2020, according to the ABC.
How It Came to This
The suspension follows a month that opened with a tied mayoral vote, ABC News reported. The tie was settled by drawing two names from a hat, but a misunderstanding of the rules led to the wrong candidate being declared the winner.
Councillor Peter Johnstone, who was wrongly declared mayor, resigned when the error came to light. The botched declaration led councillors to vote to sack the council’s general manager, the ABC reported.
The council then voted for an external investigation into matters including governance, administration, operations and financial management, according to the ABC. Inside Local Government lists the areas as governance and statutory compliance, workplace culture, recruitment, financial management and procurement, councillor access to information, complaints and Public Interest Disclosures, internal audit and risk management, and possible maladministration, waste and systemic governance failure.
No findings from that investigation have been reported.
What the Councillors Say
“We were elected democratic leaders of the Clarence Valley and to remove that democratic representation is a very serious step,” Mr Johnstone said, ABC News reported. He said the council had been seeking an investigator, not an administrator, and that he would focus on communicating with ratepayers and businesses during the suspension.
In a statement, the council said it remains open and operational “with staff remaining focused on serving the community and delivering outcomes for the Clarence Valley”, Inside Local Government reported. Council services, facilities and projects will continue as normal, and the administrator will replace the function of councillors and provide governance oversight, working with the executive leadership and staff.
“We recognise that there may be questions about the appointment and further information will be provided as it becomes available,” the statement said.
Three Months Without Councillors
Four NSW councils are under performance improvement orders from the Office of Local Government: Georges River, Kiama, Shoalhaven and Snowy Monaro, ABC News reported.
University of Newcastle professor Roberta Ryan said that since 2024 one-third of general managers had left councils, some fired and others leaving of their own accord. “It’s not just in NSW; it’s a national and international trend that there is greater instability in that senior leadership position,” she said.
In NSW, a mayor is elected either by popular vote or by councillors every two years. Prof Ryan said electing a mayor every two years can make leading the organisation harder.
“I’m going to be preparing for our return because we’re going to hit the ground running when we come back,” Mr Johnstone said, ABC News reported. More state and local politics is in our Politics section.
Sources: ABC News, “Council suspended after GM sacked in wake of mayoral vote hat-draw blunder”, 16 October 2026 (https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-10-16/clarence-valley-council-suspended-mayoral-hat-draw-blunder/107237998); Inside Local Government, “Clarence Valley Council suspended, administrator appointed”, 16 October 2026 (https://insidelocalgovernment.com.au/clarence-valley-council-suspended-administrator-appointed/)
Photo: Kgbo, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Shadows stretch across a grassy riverbank beside the Clarence River at Grafton, New South Wales, in June 2021.
