Opinion
26 June, 2026
Opinion - Yes our Mayor is a bully
I have thought about this for a long time. I have reflected on my time as a journalist and as a communications manager for local government.
I have thought about this for a long time.
I have reflected on my time as a journalist and as a communications manager for local government.
I have sat through hundreds of council meetings. Literally hundreds.
I have watched councillors throw punches at one another. I have cringed over some of their insults. I have watched them come back from booze-filled meal breaks (making the most of the mayor’s fully-stocked bar fridge) to throw alcohol-fuelled nonsense at well-meaning community representatives.
That’s local government at its best – and worst.
Or is it?
A couple of things first.
I am not faceless. I have a name. I am answerable to a number of people I value.
Phone me. Email me. I’m contactable and I’m happy to put my name to what I write.
So it’s out there.
The Mayor is a bully.
Sit through a council meeting and tell me different. I’m all ears.
Or better still, sit through a few other council meetings (Wollondilly, Goulburn, Yass for example) and tell me that our Mayor is not openly combative.
He doesn’t facilitate debate. He doesn’t welcome debate. He doesn’t participate in debate.
He shuts it down.
Not politely.
It’s short, it’s curt and it’s hurtful.
So maybe time for Mayor Fitzpatrick to own up to some home truths.
Maybe watch some other meetings. See what other mayors are doing in terms of opening debate and discussion instead of consistently shutting it down.
I’ve been a journalist for more than 30 years and I’m still happy to learn because 30 years counts for nothing if you’re not happy to listen.
Our mayor is new to the game. Think training wheels.
He needs to consider his legacy and how he wants to be remembered.
I wouldn’t want to be remembered as a bully or as the mayor who posted photos stabbing photos of a ball with a sharp implement.
Just watching a Yass council meeting. The mayor has asked councillors to “stay respectful” in their comments.
The Yass mayor has navigated a difficult debate, encouraging everyone to have a say and prompted people who have not participated to do so.
Maybe Mayor Fitzpatrick could swing by Yass one day to see how a healthy meeting is run.
Or Wollondilly.
Or Goulburn.
Or one of the multitude of other councils where debate is encouraged, a divergence of views is valued and where chairing a meeting is less of a chore and more of a chance.
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The publisher declares a close personal relationship with a councillor.
Read More: Southern Highlands, Yass, Wollondilly, Goulburn