Ten local people of “high calibre’’ had expressed an interest to join the Liverpool Council Badgerys Creek Airport Task Force, which was formed at its May 28 meeting this year and is to be chaired by the mayor, Ned Mannoun.
Following the expressions of interest and the 10 responses, two of these were chosen because, according to the report to the council for its July 30 meeting, had met all the criteria, including:.
- A demonstrated and current work, business or residential connection to the Liverpool local government area;
2. A passion to help Liverpool attain its potential as the regional city for South West
Sydney;
3. Knowledge of, and interest in, positive outcomes for Badgerys Creek and the wider
Liverpool local government area;
4. An ability to attend regular monthly meetings of the Committee for a term of two
Years;
5. A demonstrated track record of success in business, industry or commercial
development (business representatives) and/or access to community networks and a demonstrated ability to represent broad
community interests (community representatives) .
But in the end, the council decided to defer the appointments and instead to keep looking for candidates.
It adopted a motion proposed by Councillor Wendy Waller and seconded by the mayor, which stated: “Council defers the appointments to this committee, broadening the membership to
ensure that we have the important stakeholders and to ensure true community
representation and to include a solicitation of Kathryn Ussia and Briona Jocic as prospective
candidates as community representatives if they prove appropriate in the nomination
process’’.
The two positions would represent the community and the business sector.
The South West Voice asked Liverpool Council why the candidates were not approved and why their identities were kept confidential.
“It is standard Council practice to keep names of any nominations for Committees confidential and discussions about the merits of individuals in a closed forum,’’ was council’s reply.
“While the calibre of people nominating was good Council is keen to canvass a wider scope of candidates to make sure we have the broadest possible selection of candidates to draw from in relation to both geographic and industry sector representation.’’
In other second airport news, the Federal Government says its delivery of a Western Sydney airport by the mid-2020s has reached an important stage, with the government formally issuing a Notice to Consult to the Sydney Airport Group.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development Warren Truss said the Notice to Consult will provide for the Australian Government and Sydney Airport Group to enter formal discussions on developing and operating an airport at Badgerys Creek.
Under the 2002 Sydney (Kingsford-Smith) Airport Sale Agreement, the owners of Sydney Airport have a Right of First Refusal, which gives them first opportunity to develop and operate a second major airport within 100 kilometres of Sydney’s centre.
“After decades of vacillating and uncertainty by previous governments, the Coalition confirmed in April that Badgerys Creek will be the site of an airport for Western Sydney,” Mr Truss said.
“Now, less than 12 months in office, this Government is today issuing the Notice to Consult to Sydney Airport Group to firmly establish the next steps for delivering the airport.
“The Notice to Consult phase is expected to take nine months.
“The Government is currently undertaking complex and detailed planning towards an operational airport by the mid-2020s that will generate long-term economic benefits, tens of thousands of jobs and transform Western Sydney to meet its rapid growth.”
Mr Truss said that while consultation with Sydney Airport Group is just one component of the work currently underway, it is an important step in the process. In addition, detailed work has commenced on a range of other factors, including environmental issues and ensuring genuine community consultation.
“This Government is about developing infrastructure for the 21st century that will create new economic opportunities for generations to come,” Mr Truss said.
“A new airport in Western Sydney is one of the most significant infrastructure projects in Australia, which combined with our roads package of nearly $3 billion, will generate jobs and economic growth in Western Sydney, NSW and nationally.
“The consultation phase, initiated by the issuing of the Notice to Consult, is the first phase under the Right of First Refusal provisions. It means we now have a clear timeframe for consultation, decision and action.”
Following the consultation, the Government may decide to make a contractual offer to the Sydney Airport Group. The contractual offer would involve issuing a Notice of Intention to the Sydney Airport Group, setting out the detailed terms for the development and operation of an airport at Badgerys Creek, including technical specifications, contractual terms and timetable.
