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Moe Ambulance and community officer Matt Masiero and advanced life support paramedic Andrew Phoenix will be on hand to assist this holiday season. More ambulances are now available for life-threatening emergencies in peak times, providing care for those in need. FULL STORY page 7.

Council performance under the microscope

By MICHELLE SLATER

LATROBE City Council has rated poorly in transparency indicators compared to similar councils in the state, according to the latest local government performance review indicators. Data shows Latrobe City made double the amount of decisions behind closed doors compared to the state’s average benchmark for all councils. Local Government Victoria’s Know Your Council website looks into the performance of the state’s councils for 2020 and 2021. It reveals that 14.36 per cent of decisions made by Latrobe City were made at meetings closed to the public, nearly double that of the benchmark for all councils at 7.81 per cent. Comparisons to similar regional cities such as Ballarat, Bendigo and Geelong found 9.05 per cent of decisions were made out of the public eye. But the data also revealed there had been a decrease in Latrobe City from the past financial year, dropping from 28.55 per cent. Latrobe City mayor Kellie O’Callaghan said while council made “every effort to ensure transparency in its decisionmaking processes, some items are considered confidential under the Local Government Act 2020 and as such, must be determined in a closed meeting”. “This can include decisions about tenders, contracts and funding submissions,” Cr O’Callaghan said. “We are committed to making council meetings as accessible to the community as we can through live streaming all meetings and facilitating community participation time.” The Know Your Council website includes 58 measures and a governance and management checklist of 24 items, from data supplied from local government’s own annual reports. The website was set up to improve the transparency and accountability of council performance to ratepayers and to provide a more meaningful set of information to the public. Latrobe City’s community satisfaction with council decisions were also low with a score of 56 out of 100, but slightly better than similar councils at 53 out of 100. However, Latrobe City’s elected representatives are costing ratepayers far less at $36,900, way below the cost of other councils in the state at $44,400. Roads and rubbish fared well, with 99.70 per cent of sealed local roads maintained to condition standards, and fewer kerbside bins missed than other councils.

ALL SET FOR ENERGY AUSTRALIA CLASSIC SINGLES - VALLEY SPORT Dux plans her career

Achiever: Traralgon College Dux Emma Balfour (right), with her Legal Studies teacher Naomi Gibson.

photograph contributed

By ALYSSA FRITZLAFF

EMMA Balfour was awarded Dux of Traralgon College with an ATAR of 95.5. Ms Balfour was extremely pleased with her result and holds hope that it will help her begin her career in law. The young lady is very passionate about pursuing a career as an international human rights lawyer. “I just think how the legal system influences societal constructs is so fascinating,” she said. “When I was in Year 8 I read the Constitution, and I was so excited by it that I knew I just had to get into law.” Her first preference for University in 2022 is a double degree in Law and PEE (Politics, Philosophy and Economics) at Monash University. Ms Balfour is relieved her scores have been released and she can move on to the next chapter of her life at University. “The feeling of relief and joy was amazing,” she told The Express, describing the moment she first saw her ATAR. Legal Studies was understandably her highest scoring subject, for which she received a 45 study score. She said her best study habit was developing a routine and sticking to it. “My best study habit was making sure I found a study schedule that worked for me and making sure I stuck to a regimented schedule,” she said. “I would also stay up at night and try to memorise my notes by recording myself and seeing how much I could remember and then highlighting what I’d forgotten and going over it again.” Ms Balfour said she would not have been able to do as well as she did without her wonderful support system. “My mum and my friends were amazing, my teachers were so supportive - even the teachers that I had last year,” she said. “Our school social worker support system was amazing. Being able to go out of class and have a meeting with someone where they check in with my wellbeing was so critical.” Mrs Balfour praised Traralgon College for it’s approach to online learning throughout the pandemic.

Darren Chester

Member for Gippsland

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