Former Redlands City Council CEO Andrew Chesterman is the Queensland Government’s pick to reduce red tape in local government.
State Local Government Minister Ann Leahy said Mr Chesterman, who left his bayside job last year, would lead the Local Government Red Tape Reduction Taskforce.
Minister Leahy said Taskforce would work with councils to find ways to streamline approvals and reduce barriers for council projects, with a report due mid-year.
“Andrew Chesterman has hit the ground running as our Taskforce lead, bringing with him over 30 years of professional and public administration experience – including Director-General and CEO roles in both state and local government,” she said.
“Working in partnership with the sector to understand where red tape can be reduced is crucial to supporting councils to efficiently and effectively deliver infrastructure and services for their communities.”
Mr Chesterman said he was eager to begin engaging with local governments and stakeholders across the state.
“Coming from a background in local government, I’m all too aware of the burden over-regulation can place on the sector,” he said.
“Local councils are the experts on their communities, and I look forward to working with them as well as others within the sector to understand how regulation can better serve their needs.”
Local Government Association of Queensland CEO Alison Smith said councils were acutely aware of the impact on local communities of overly complex, duplicated and otherwise unnecessary regulation.
“As a former long-term Queensland council CEO, Andrew is a well-known and respected local government leader,” Ms Smith said.
“Queensland councils have put forward resolution after resolution seeking regulatory changes that would help councils run more efficiently.
“We are looking forward to the review achieving cuts to red tape as well as empowering local councils to provide solutions that best serve their communities.”
