Council
19 September, 2026
Council say ‘no’ to women’s advisory committee
Goulburn-Mulwaree Council has voted overwhelmingly against establishing a women’s advisory committee
Goulburn-Mulwaree Council has voted overwhelmingly against establishing a women’s advisory committee, with some councillors arguing that it would be stepping outside council’s area of responsibility at a time when the community wanted it to focus on the basics like roads, rates and rubbish.
Cr Liz McKeon submitted a Notice of Motion to Tuesday night’s meeting calling on council to establish a women’s advisory committee “to give recommendations and feedback on policies and initiatives that promote gender equity, women’s health, safety and overall well-being”.
She said the advisory committee would address critical issues such as domestic violence, access to health services, economic empowerment, education and community safety.
Two people spoke in the favour of the Notice of Motion at council’s September 8 public forum with one of them saying a women’s advisory committee would help build a “solid and strategic vision” for women in the Goulburn-Mulwaree region moving forward.
Speaking to her Notice of Motion on Tuesday night, Cr McKeon said a women’s advisory committee would help build a ‘stronger, more inclusive and equitable’ society.
Cr McKeon said women were “drastically underrepresented in rooms where decisions are made” and needed “a seat at the table to ensure their voices are heard”.
“It (the proposed committee) is not just a good idea – it’s essential,” she said.
Cr Jason Shepherd said the proposed advisory committee would ensure a broader range of views could be heard.
He acknowledged that there were three “strong and upstanding” elected representatives on council in Crs Dillon, Flint and McKeon, but the advisory committee would discuss “wider issues” and not just council-related matters.
“When we have a capability to bring people together we should use it,” he said.
Cr Christopher O’Mahony asked what the committee would actually achieve.
“I don’t think it has a place in our local government structure,” he said.
He questioned if council was responsible for “this area of endeavour” and said it wasn’t something he thought the community would support.
Cr Bob Kirk said council’s public facing documents already demonstrated council’s commitment to social equity – as did its policies and procedures.
He said council already represented the “collective interest of the community” and he didn’t think there was a need to prioritise the interests of women.
He said government organisations were already in place to deal with the issues raised in Cr McKeon’s Notice of Motion and many of them were outside council’s role, its expertise and its resources.
Cr Kirk said a committee like the one being proposed “might be of benefit” but needed to be external to council.
“Popular is not necessarily practical or appropriate,” he said.
Cr Nina Dillon said council did not have any expertise in the areas outlined in the Notice of Motion and suggested its contribution would be “extremely limited” and would not deliver any measurable benefit.
She said there were already support services and social groups for women operating across the Goulburn-Mulwaree local government area and council’s money would be better spent running an awareness campaign on the services for women that are already in place.
Cr Michael Prevedello said he appreciated the intent of Cr McKeon’s Notice of Motion was to promote inclusivity but in his view it would promote ‘unequalness’.
He said the proposed advisory committee would be potentially divisive and “goes beyond the remit of local government’.
He said it would be “foisting on council a function it should not undertake”.
Cr Daniel Strickland said he was “not against women” but also questioned if it was within council’s area of responsibility.
He said there were already services “set up and established” in the Goulburn-Mulwaree region.
Cr McKeon’s Notice of Motion was lost.
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