The State of the polls Commentary on the Victorian State election from an inner city perspective

Governments are voted out of office never in.

Third terms are always the hardest. The pendulum is on the rebound but is the magnetron strong enough to cause an unplanned 1999 Kennett style upset.

Bracks/Brumby have run a good show overall. They have shown restraint and professional responsibility. There is no reason to throw them out of office. Labor will lose around 5 to 12 seats max. It may even consolidate hold on some.

Electors are also mindful that with a Liberal Federal Government with absolute power in Canberra a Labor State Government is a good way of keeping the Howard Liberal Federal Government in check.

Now is not the time to change lanes.

Legislative Council

In terms of the upper house you should look closer at a comparison we did with the 2004 Victorian senate vote. Yes I am aware that there is a difference in voting between Federal and State elections. BUT the senate vote is the same system of election as the new upper-house system. Voters when faced with the above-the-line senate style ballot paper will fall into old habits. The 2004 senate results was the Liberal party's high and the ALP's low. The Greens failed to generate enough steam to climb the hill. Whilst they are strong in one seat they will only win on the back of preferences which are still under discussion. Once the party above-the-line registration is finalized and hopefully backed up by a credible public opinion poll based on voter intentions in the eight new upper-house electorates we should know the outcome. +/-2%

The Greening of Melbourne

The Greens have an outside chance of an upset in Melbourne but even then its a big ask.

Melbourne has seen a demographic shift which, if they can reproduce the 2002 result, might, and its not certain, favor them. The Greens came close in 2002 only because the Liberal Party polled badly. The same can not be said for this election. The pendulum is on the rebound (although slowly). The Liberal Party should out poll the Greens

The Liberal Party can not afford this time to hold back their vote, to create an upset, as was the case in 2002. All parties need to maximise their vote state-wide not just to maximise their chances in the upper-house but to also secure valuable public campaign funding.

For the Greens to win Melbourne they will need every preference to go their way and they will need to top the Liberal Party who would need to be below 25% primary vote. A big ask. There is no news as to if Kevin Chamberlain will re-contest the seat of Melbourne.

The main upset in this election will be the Greens failure to cross the line as happened in the 2004 senate vote.

Prahran is the inner city seat to watch. It has always been the inner-city litmus test. Labor held it under Cain and also holds it now. It is vulnerable to a 5-6% swing and yes the Greens can influence the outcome but they will not win it. (It is easier for a smaller based party to win a safe seat then a marginal seat. The key being the weakness of one of the major parties which are always seen as the one to beat and attract lower preferences then other minor parties) Eltham is another seat that comes to my mind worth watching. Ivanhoe may alsoi see a big shift in support.

The Greens will not cross the line in the lower-house for reasons I have highlighted above. More analysis and public scrutiny on the Greens, its structure and policies will be more negative then positive. Their record on governance issues in the City of Melbourne is not good with the Greens supporting the holding illegal meetings of Council behind closed doors. David Risstrom, who was a candidate of note, is not running in this election.

John So - Big Fish in small Pond syndrome

There was a rumor about John So entering the field but I think he will opt not to run. John can not win Melbourne. He is a big fish in a small pond. At the age of 60 he might decide to have a go in the 2007 Senate election in the hope of extending his shelf life and influence but such a move would require him to hand over the keys to the limo, the mayoral chains and robes. (Something John might not want to give up just yet) John So's resignation would costs the City of Melbourne over one million dollars to hold a by-election, a cost that would rebound against him. But as they say it is not over until the fat lady sings.

Nominations close November 12.

Seventh Sister "unplanned birth" Melbourne City Council jetset to adopt another sister city as overseas travel costs soar

Melbourne City Council is gearing up to adopt a Seventh Sister city.

The City Council already has six sister cities on its books which is one more then was originally approved. The City Council had previously placed a limit on the number of Sister cities at five but this was extended in 2000/2001 to include the Italian city of Milan. Now the City Council administration is planning on adopting a new sister city this time based in Delhi, India.

We already have a smorgasbord of international cuisines including Japanese Osaka sushi; Chinese Tianjin stir fried, Greek Thessaloniki salad, American Boston buns, Russian St Petersburg borsh and Italian Milan pizza on the menu. Now they want authentic Indian Delhi curry.

All are in the northern hemisphere not one in the south. Create a virtual foster family and forget expanding the sister city program.

With every sister city the extent of opportunity for our city council to travel abroad increases as does the Council's overseas travel costs.

With every new Sister City our existing sister city relationships begin to suffer. We should not adopt another.

Enough is enough. Melbourne must say no to another sister city. Already the existing siblings are suffering from a lack of attention with China being the latest exotic must visit destination.

Oblivious of the costs John So is prepared to spend up big on what ever comes his way.

If the City of Melbourne is allowed to increase the number of sister cities then we can expect that India will be the next exotic destination for our City Councillors and staff to spend corporate, ratepayer funded, holidays abroad.

Under John So's leadership our City Council has become the biggest spending Council in the history of Melbourne and John So shows no sign of fiscal restraint. John So is willing to close his eyes and block his ears to a Greater Melbourne at home but is happy to expand Melbourne abroad.

John So should put the idea of another sister city to a referendum of ratepayers along with the full costs and implications of having a new sibling and see if ratepayers support his global expansion plans.

Melbourne's current sister cities include

• Osaka;
• Tianjin;
• Thessaloniki;
• Boston;
• St Petersburg and
• Milan.

Talk to Kevin Chamberlain or Trevor Huggard (both Former Lord Mayors) and they will explain the past policy in more detail.

Most Travelled City Council ratepayer funded travellers list in order of costs

Melbourne City Council's big spenders based on information the published City of Melbourne Travel Register. 2 December 2004 to 30 September 2006. * Note there are a number if questions outstanding in relation to the accuracy of the published data. (See previous post) When the CIty Council repsonds to our query we will update this list if required. The most travelled and biggest spenders in order of costs
Division	Name	Position	Costs	Days
CORPORATE PERFORMANCE DIVISION	David Pitchford	Chief Executive	$45,818.06	57
SUSTAINABILITY & INNOVATION DIVISION	Geoff Lawler	Director Sustainability & Innovation	$45,180.65	48
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION	Scott Chapman	Director - Marketing & Customer Relations	$45,011.26	44
COUNCIL	Gary Singer	Deputy Lord Mayor	$36,563.46	26
COUNCIL	John So	Lord Mayor	$28,584.43	26
SUSTAINABILITY & INNOVATION DIVISION	Peter Chaffey	Manager Sustainable Business & Trade	$24,206.00	25
CORPORATE PERFORMANCE DIVISION	Kevin Louey	Chief of Staff for the Lord Mayor	$22,948.54	21
SUSTAINABILITY & INNOVATION DIVISION	Michael Anderson	Principle Project Officer Business.Development	$21,827.00	16
COUNCIL	Brian Shanahan	Councillor	$17,615.55	25
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION	Kristy Taylor	Program Manager Destination Marketing	$17,441.04	11
SUSTAINABILITY & INNOVATION DIVISION	Edgar Dong	Principal Officer Trade Development	$15,200.00	32
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION	Jane Sharwood	Program Manager - Melbourne International	$10,981.54	10
COUNCIL	Fiona Snedden	Councillor	$9,370.14	10
COUNCIL	Fiona Sneddon	Councillor	$9,369.42	7
COUNCIL	Carl Jetter	Councillor	$7,696.00	15
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION	Mark Drew	Manager Customer & International Relations	$7,442.25	9
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION	Mark Drew	Manager - Customer & International Relations	$6,046.93	5
DESIGN & CULTURE DIVISION	Shane Power	Manager Major Project Delivery	$5,929.38	21
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION	Tom Parker	China Projects and Communications Coordinator - Melbourne International	$5,903.81	17
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION	Tom Parker	Senior International Relations Coordinator	$5,337.00	20
SUSTAINABILITY & INNOVATION DIVISION	Russ Wood	Senior Project Officer	$4,980.00	9
DESIGN & CULTURE DIVISION	Martin Paten	Team Leader City Culture & Collections	$4,604.00	7
FINANCE DIVISION	Ian Rowan	Manager, Street Activity	$4,602.01	7
SUSTAINABILITY & INNOVATION DIVISION	John Tunney	Manager City Sustainability	$4,547.44	11
DESIGN & CULTURE DIVISION	Bob Rosen	Manager Works Program	$4,455.80	7
DESIGN & CULTURE DIVISION	Rob Adams	Director Design and Culture	$4,431.64	7
CORPORATE PERFORMANCE DIVISION	Linda Weatherson	Director Corporate Performance	$4,425.78	6
CORPORATE AFFAIRS DIVISION	Hayden Cock	Director Corporate Affairs	$4,178.31	3
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Bill Keon	Manager, Asset Services	$4,024.93	8
DESIGN & CULTURE DIVISION	Simon Spain	Creative Producer, Artplay	$3,900.49	16
DESIGN & CULTURE DIVISION	Peter Hornidge	Senior Landscape Architect	$3,870.77	9
DESIGN & CULTURE DIVISION	Garth Bradbury	Manager Facilities Management	$3,538.74	6
COUNCIL	Fraser Brindley	Councillor	$3,446.92	5
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Bev Murray	Senior Indigenous Policy Officer	$2,938.79	4
CORPORATE PERFORMANCE DIVISION	Cecilia	Continuous Improvement Consultant	$2,735.48	3
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Terry Makings	Director Assets & Services	$2,593.24	3
FINANCE DIVISION	Craig Liddy	Chief Information Officer	$2,588.40	10
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Sue Morrell	Manager, Community Services	$2,466.82	8
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Oliver Pohls	Tree Planner	$2,319.41	6
SUSTAINABILITY & INNOVATION DIVISION	Peter Chaffey	Manager Business Melbourne	$2,252.52	3
SUSTAINABILITY & INNOVATION DIVISION	Jodie Harris	Strategic Planning Co-ordinator	$2,252.00	5
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Danielle Thomas	Park Ranger	$2,122.80	6
CORPORATE PERFORMANCE DIVISION	David Appleby	Team Leader Contract Services	$2,090.34	9
SUSTAINABILITY & INNOVATION DIVISION	John Noonan	Manager Sustainable Regulatory Services	$1,985.00	4
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION	Phillipa Powell	Project Coordinator - Melbourne International	$1,979.70	15
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Cathy Kiss	Senior Planning Officer	$1,972.90	6
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Francis Khoo	Manager, Contracts & Operations	$1,965.40	5
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Sharon Sykes	Senior Planning Officer	$1,951.90	5
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Elizabeth Brown	Team Leader Children's Services	$1,948.00	10
CORPORATE PERFORMANCE DIVISION	Kevin Louey	Lord Mayor's Chief of Staff	$1,875.24	2
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Hok Sie	Senior Coordinator Infrastructure	$1,843.20	3
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Nancy Di Santo	Team Leader City Issues	$1,825.36	4
SUSTAINABILITY & INNOVATION DIVISION	Andrew Korr	Transport Program Manager	$1,785.36	3
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Chu Tran	Vietnamese Family Support Worker	$1,782.94	8
CORPORATE PERFORMANCE DIVISION	Peter Athanassiadis	Team Leader Insurance Services	$1,760.59	4
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Jacqueline Connell	Co-ordinator - Immunisation	$1,754.44	5
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Robyn Daff	Team Leader Children's Services	$1,716.50	4
DESIGN & CULTURE DIVISION	Eddie Butler-Bowden	Arts & Heritage Program Manager	$1,675.00	4
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Colleen Lazenby	Manager Community Safety & Well Being	$1,664.17	9
DESIGN & CULTURE DIVISION	Rob Adams	Director Design & Culture	$1,654.50	3
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION	Jane Sharwood	International Relations Program Manager	$1,619.34	5
DESIGN & CULTURE DIVISION	Ian Dryden	Senior Industrial Designer	$1,605.76	4
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Darren Comi	Corporate Fleet Services	$1,596.00	3
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Nalika Peiris	Acting Senior Policy Officer	$1,557.00	2
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Dale Stewart	Leisure Management and Sports Planning	$1,551.24	5
FINANCE DIVISION	Susan Kempson	Team Leader Spatial Systems	$1,545.49	6
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION	Linda Bee	Senior Coordinator - Events Melbourne	$1,518.44	3
CORPORATE PERFORMANCE DIVISION	Trudie Balthazaar	Manager Continuous Improvement	$1,480.00	5
CORPORATE AFFAIRS DIVISION	Holly Shorland	Corporate Communications Adviser	$1,478.00	2
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Tasia Karlis	MetroAccess Project Officer	$1,420.18	2
FINANCE DIVISION	Noel Reid	Manager Parking & Traffic Branch	$1,392.29	5
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Vicki Main	Children's Services Resource & Development	$1,298.97	6
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Marianne Glen	Team Leader Family Services	$1,276.31	9
FINANCE DIVISION	John Kanelopoulos	Team Leader, Street Trading, Street Activity	$1,269.08	2
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Sarah Kaushik	Senior Policy Officer City Safety	$1,257.66	3
DESIGN & CULTURE DIVISION	Jane Crawley	Team Leader Cultural Development	$1,227.00	4
DESIGN & CULTURE DIVISION	Jenny Rayment	Senior Landscape Architect	$1,207.09	16
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Michael O'Hanlon	Community Development and Aged Care	$1,176.32	3
DESIGN & CULTURE DIVISION	Matthew Plumridge	Superintendent Representative CH2	$1,154.70	4
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Ron Nelson	Senior Coordinator Urban Services	$1,104.46	2
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Michael Norton	Principal Engineer Services	$1,080.83	2
DESIGN & CULTURE DIVISION	Ariel Valent	Arts Project Officer	$1,060.00	4
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION	Simone Carrel	Project Coordinator - Events Melbourne	$1,023.60	3
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION	Kate Letson	Project Coordinator - Events Melbourne	$1,023.60	3
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION	Andris Blicavs	Program Manager -Events Melbourne	$1,023.60	3
FINANCE DIVISION	Kim Eishold	Parking Officer (Parking & Traffic Branch)	$1,021.81	3
DESIGN & CULTURE DIVISION	Janina Harding	Indigenous Arts Officer	$995.00	5
FINANCE DIVISION	Troy McDonald	Technical Support Officer	$984.55	3
FINANCE DIVISION	Ian Frazer	Business Analyst Team Leader	$933.80	3
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION	Trudy McPhee	Project Coordinator - Melbourne International	$930.16	14
CORPORATE AFFAIRS DIVISION	Lucy Perera	Corporate Communications Adviser	$916.88	3
SUSTAINABILITY & INNOVATION DIVISION	Jodie Harris	Manager City Strategy	$875.12	3
SUSTAINABILITY & INNOVATION DIVISION	Mark Woodland	Manager Policy & Planning	$874.00	3
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Vince Haining	Group Manager - Parks & Recreation	$856.42	4
FINANCE DIVISION	Graham McKinnon	Acting Team Leader - Enforcement (Parking & Traffic Branch	$854.57	3
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Ian Harris	Group Manager - Parks and Recreation	$821.48	2
FINANCE DIVISION	Roger Nicholas	Team leader, Application Systems	$818.86	7
COUNCIL	Catherine Ng	Councillor	$787.14	1
CORPORATE PERFORMANCE DIVISION	Kevin Louey	Chief of Staff for the Lord	$748.54	1
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Bill Keon	Manager - Asset Services	$728.63	1
SUSTAINABILITY & INNOVATION DIVISION	George Konstantinidis	Team Leader Development Activity	$671.08	8
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Nanette Mitchell	Senior Social Planner	$670.00	2
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION	Scott Chapman	Director Marketing, Tourism & Major Events	$658.80	2
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Geoff Robinson	Group Manager Engineering Services	$618.00	1
DESIGN & CULTURE DIVISION	Andrea Kleist	Public Art Program Manager	$606.09	4
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Helen Bnads	Acting Senior Indigenous Policy Officer	$582.00	3
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Roger Berriman	Coordinator Contracts Specifications	$557.83	1
DESIGN & CULTURE DIVISION	Steven Richardson	Creative Producer Artplay	$550.00	5
DESIGN & CULTURE DIVISION	Eddie Butler-Bowden	Manager Arts & Heritage Collections	$520.00	3
FINANCE DIVISION	Adrian Ong	Application Services Manager	$511.80	1
FINANCE DIVISION	Richard Frost	Senior Applications Analyst	$508.17	1
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Colleen Lazenby	Manager Community Support	$507.84	2
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Ian Harris	Group Manager, Parks and Rec.	$450.00	2
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Murat Sezar	Education & Public Program Co-ordinator	$444.21	1
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION	Jenny Ford	Manager Melbourne Moomba Waterfest	$419.11	1
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION	Paul Davies	Director 2006 Moomba Parade	$419.11	1
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION	Richard Jeziorny	Designer 2006 Moomba Parade	$419.11	1
DESIGN & CULTURE DIVISION	Ros Rymer	Urban Design Researcher	$372.78	2
SUSTAINABILITY & INNOVATION DIVISION	Austin Ley	Manager Sustainable City Research	$313.00	7
SUSTAINABILITY & INNOVATION DIVISION	John Tunney	Sustainability Projects Coordinator	$295.68	1
FINANCE DIVISION	Colin Fairweather	Customer Services Team Leader	$291.47	1
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION	Karen Gilbert	Program Manager Event & Sport Promotion	$290.53	3
MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION	Rachael Dacy	Project Manager - Commonwealth Games	$265.33	1
ASSETS AND SERVICES DIVISION	Chris Adams	Asset Management Officer	$178.00	2
CORPORATE PERFORMANCE DIVISION	Kevin Louey	Chief of Staff	$155.00	2
FINANCE DIVISION	Peter Milne	Business Analyst Team Leader	$0.00	2