Turmoil embroils City of Perth as acting CEO accuses lord mayor of ‘unlawful’ motion
“As a result, the only elected members who joined the SCM were those who voted in favor of the resolution adopted by the Council in the OCM on 18 November 2025,” it said.
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A second motion to repeal was put forward by councilor Liam Gobbert at the special council meeting, but was not supported by those at the meeting, including Gobbert.
Mabbs’ brief labeled the rescission request as “invalid and ineffective” because it was on the same terms as the original revocation resolution, which had not yet been considered and decided upon by the council at the stated meeting date.
“Given that the Second Motion to Repeal is invalid and the First Motion to Repeal … remains valid, the Administration is prohibited, in accordance with the Rules of Procedure, from taking any steps to implement or give effect to the decision of the Council dated 18 November 2025,” the summary said.
But Bruce Reynolds rejected the administration’s description of the events, saying the review was “necessary” and that the organization would provide a “transparent health check.”
“This is a healthy and positive step for the City of Perth,” Reynolds said.
“As a new leadership group, it is important that we seek continuous improvement in critical areas such as workplace culture, staff wellbeing and organizational security.
“An independent and transparent review will help us set the benchmark for where we are now and how we will continue to strengthen the organization in the future.”
Reynolds said elected members who were unable to attend the special council meeting in person were given the option to participate electronically.
He said he chose to hold the special council meeting to make sure Lezer’s cancellation “does not delay the start of the review or the work of the new committee,” met with management on Monday and notified councilors Monday evening.
“Right now [Tuesday night’s] “The proposed cancellation decision was evaluated and rejected at the meeting,” he said.
“The council can now continue the important work it decided to undertake last week.”
The administration’s report also points to deeper tensions, including concerns raised by the CEO about the psychosocial safety of staff working closely with elected members.
Ten conduct complaints have been made against councilors this year, eight since June.
In the article, Mabbs claimed that no concerns about workplace culture were raised in Michelle Reynolds’ August performance review, and that they unanimously recognized her “high performance and achievements.”
The council will take up the issue at its regular council meeting on Dec. 9, when Lezer’s original motion to cancel the motion filed by the mayor on Nov. 18 is listed.
Mabbs resigned from the organization on November 25. A City of Perth spokeswoman said CEO Michelle Reynolds would return in mid-December.
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