Candidates hit the trail

With more than six months to go until City of Perth voters go to the polls to elect a new lord mayor, several ambitious candidates from inside council and out are already jockeying for prime race position.

Speculation is rife as to who will occupy the ballot, with names such as radio personality Eoin Cameron, former federal minister Fred Chaney, and lawyer John Hammond being bandied about.

While some potential candidates contacted by WA Business News were reluctant to reveal their cards so early in the year, it is clear the competition is shaping up for a tight and potentially tough fight.

And business has weighed in to the debate, signalling that someone with vision is needed to make the most of the opportunities presented by the current boom.

Asked for his views on the mayoral race, former banking chief and high-profile director Tony Howarth said the position of lord mayor was a very important leadership role that required someone with vision and a businesslike approach to operating.

“The only way to get things done is find solutions,” Mr Howarth said, highlighting the fact that the GPO development in the city had been stalled due to an argument over the postion of a crane.

“There is a real sense of frustration amongst people.”

Mr Howarth said he had not heard specifically of anyone from the business community who was planning to run, but he would be watching with interest as the various campaigns were revealed.

Chamber of Commerce and Industry WA executive policy director Deidre Willmott said it would be “terrific” if more people from the business community put their hands up for the job.

“There are some really energetic, hard-working people in the business community who understand the importance of business and community in the city, and their relationship to each other,” she said.

Ian Armstrong, general manager of big CBD property owner Perron Group, said strong leadership was needed to get away from petty elements of council business.

Mr Armstrong, who was also critical of the Forrest Place crane row, said the city should be run more like a business.

“In business, you hire a competent CEO who takes care of all the day-to-day stuff and you get on with the business of setting policy,” he said.

Playing on some minds is the strategy of current lord mayor Dr Peter Nattrass, who has chosen to wait until nominations open in September before announcing whether he will vie for a fourth, four-year term.

Dr Nattrass’s current four-year term expires on May 5, however he is understood to have privately indicated he will not run again.

Deputy mayor Michael Sutherland and fellow councillors Max Kay and Lisa Scaffidi have all confirmed they want the top job.

Mr Sutherland believes he understands the machinations of council better than most, having served for 12 years, a term only bettered by Dr Nattrass with 30 years.

A key part of his election platform will be providing solutions to the city’s traffic flow and parking woes, as well as ideas on how to tackle graffiti and anti-social behaviour.

“I’ll look at joint initiatives between the city and adjoining councils to overcome these problems,” Mr Sutherland said.

Former entertainment personality Max Kay has different ideas for the city, starting with the development of a cinema and children’s playgrounds on the foreshore.

Improving safety, increasing the vitality of the city, and retail trading reform are his main aims.

Making her own intentions public for the first time last week to WA Business News, company director and long-time city resident Lisa Scaffidi is busy building her campaign platform for lord mayor and intends to reveal her policies in June.

“The time has come for a far more inclusive and collaborative approach in mapping the city’s future direction with business, the state government and the City of Perth,” she said

The only other confirmed candidate for lord mayor is East Perth pensioner Bill Bradbury, who ran in the last mayoral election in 2003, attracting 1.56 per cent of the vote.