Brisbane City Council Explained

Brisbane City Council
Type:	City council
Formed:	^[1]
Jurisdiction:	Brisbane, Australia
Employees:	8,233 (2019)^[2] ^[3]
Budget:	$4 billion (2022–23)^[4]
Chief1 Name:	Adrian Schrinner
Chief1 Position:	Lord Mayor of Brisbane^[5]
Chief2 Name:	Krista Adams
Chief2 Position:	Deputy Mayor of Brisbane^[6]
Chief3 Name:	Colin Jensen
Chief3 Position:	Chief Executive Officer^[7]
Chief4 Name:	Ainsley Gold
Chief4 Position:	Executive Officer to the CEO
Keydocument1:	City of Brisbane Act 2010^[8]
Embed:	Child: yes Child: yes Brisbane City Council Legislature: 31st Council Coa Pic: File:CoA of Brisbane.svg Coa Res: 115px House Type: Unicameral Party1: Liberal National Leader2 Type: Deputy Mayor Leader2: Krista Adams Seats: 27 elected representatives including Lord Mayor and 26 Ward Councillors Structure1: File:Brisbane City Council seat composition - 2024.svg Structure1 Res: 250px Political Groups1: Majority (19) Opposition (8) Committees1: 10 Term Length: 4 years Salary: A$164,156 (2021) Next Election1: TBD Motto: Meliora Sequimur Session Room: File:Brisbane City Hall at night.jpg Meeting Place: Brisbane City Hall, King George Square, Brisbane Leader3: Jared Cassidy Leader3 Type: Leader of the Opposition Party3: Labor Leader4: Sandy Landers Leader4 Type: Chair of Council Party4: Liberal National Leader5: Steven Huang Leader5 Type: Deputy Chair of Council Party5: Liberal National

Brisbane City Council (BCC, also known as Council) is the local government of the City of Brisbane, the capital city of the Australian state of Queensland. The largest local government in Australia by population and area, BCC's jurisdiction includes 26 wards and 27 elected councillors covering 1338km2.^[9] Council consists of the 26 councillors (elected or appointed to represent wards) and the Lord Mayor of Brisbane (currently Adrian Scrinner) (elected by the city as a whole). By resolution, Council may make local laws (previously known as ordinances). The Lord Mayor is responsible for the key executive functions of Council, such as implementing the policies of Council, preparing the budget and directing Council's senior employees. They are supported by the Civic Council (formally the Establishment and Coordination (E&C) Committee), whose members are drawn from Council and each chair one of Council's standing committees. The council's current CEO is Colin Jensen, supported by EO Ainsley Gold.

Strategy

Brisbane City Council is guided by two core future planning documents: Brisbane's Future Blueprint (infrastructure, cultural, and capital works projects), and Brisbane Vision 2031 (corporate and city planning). Council also does more frequent but smaller scale community consultations through the Your City Your Say platform.^[10]

Brisbane Future Blueprint

Brisbane's Future Blueprint is a community-developed document, released in June 2018, outlining what the city council's goals should be. One in five households in Brisbane, representing every suburb, responded to the community consultation, totalling over 100,000 responses. More than 15,000 unique suggestions to improve Brisbane were put forward. The Blueprint provides for eight principles and 40 specific actions to make Brisbane a "friendly and liveable city":^[11]

1. Create a city of neighbourhoods
2. Protect and create greenspace
3. Create more to see and do
4. Protect the Brisbane backyard and our unique character
5. Ensure best practice design that complements the character of Brisbane
6. Empower and engage residents
7. Get people home quicker and safer with more travel options
8. Give people more choice when it comes to housing

Brisbane Vision 2031

Brisbane Vision 2031 is the city council's long-term plan for developing Brisbane City. It outlines an additional eight principles to consider in developing council policy and supplements the city council's corporate plan 2016–17 and 2020–21.^[12]

Structure

Lord Mayor

See main article: Lord Mayor of Brisbane.

The Lord Mayor of Brisbane holds a role as the Chief Elected Executive of the Brisbane City Council, parallel to the role of the Chief Executive Officer, which is held by a civilian employee of the council. The Lord Mayor has a four-year term between elections, coinciding with general councillor elections.^[13] The current Lord Mayor of Brisbane is Adrian Schrinner of the Liberal National Party, supported by Krista Adams, the Deputy Mayor.

Council of Brisbane

The Council of Brisbane is the high-level administrative board of Brisbane City Council, composed of all elected councillors in the City of Brisbane. There are 27 councillors, 26 from electoral wards in Brisbane and the Lord Mayor.

Ordinary meetings of the council are held in the City Hall Council Chamber, 64 Adelaide Street, Brisbane. Meetings are on Tuesdays at 1pm (except during recess periods).^[14]

The Chair of Council, elected by the Councillors, presides over each meeting. The Lord Mayor does not chair the proceedings. The current Chair of Council is the Councillor David McLachlan.

Standing Committees

Brisbane City Council has ten standing committees made up of and chaired by elected representatives. Each committee considers Council policies, provides advice to council and delivers results for the people of Brisbane. This includes a wide range of areas such as infrastructure, public transport and the environment. With the exception of the Establishment and Coordination Committee (also known as Civic Cabinet), the public are welcome to attend council and standing committee meetings.^[15]

Since August 2021, the standing committees of Council include:

• Establishment and Coordination Committee (Civic Cabinet)
• City Planning and Suburban Renewal
• City Standards Committee
• Community, Arts and Nighttime Economy Committee
• Councillor Ethics Committee
• Economic Development and the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games Committee
• Environment, Parks and Sustainability Committee
• Finance and City Governance Committee
• Infrastructure Committee
• Transport Committee

Most standing committee meetings are held on Tuesday mornings while Council is in session.

Civic Cabinet

The chair of each standing committee is also a member of council’s Establishment and Coordination Committee, more commonly known as Civic Cabinet. At its highest level, Civic Cabinet sets the strategic direction for Brisbane as a city and council as an organisation. The Civic Cabinet has been delegated significant responsibility by full council. Civic Cabinet meets weekly to discuss policies and strategies in areas such as major projects, finance, urban planning, transport, environment, community services and city businesses.

It is in this way that Civic Cabinet sets the strategic direction for Brisbane as a city and for Brisbane City Council as an organisation. The members of Civic Cabinet review and make recommendations to full council on major plans such as council's vision, City Plan, corporate documents and city finances.^[16]

Members of Civic Cabinet

The following councillors were appointed members of Civic Cabinet in April 2024:^[17]

• Lord Mayor, Councillor Adrian Schrinner, City Treasurer and Chair of Civic Cabinet
• Deputy Mayor, Councillor Krista Adams, Civic Cabinet Chair for Economic Development, Nighttime Economy and the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games
• Councillor Adam Allan, Civic Cabinet Chair for City Planning and Suburban Renewal, Chair of the Councillor Ethics Committee
• Councillor Fiona Cunningham, Civic Cabinet Chair for Finance and City Governance
• Councillor Tracy Davis, Civic Cabinet Chair for Environment, Parks and Sustainability
• Councillor Vicki Howard, Civic Cabinet Chair for Community and Arts
• Councillor Sarah Hutton, Civic Cabinet Chair for City Standards
• Councillor Ryan Murphy, Civic Cabinet Chair for Transport
• Councillor Andrew Wines, Civic Cabinet Chair for Infrastructure

The Lord Mayor is the chair of Civic Cabinet. The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) acts as secretary of E&C, provides executive advice and reports back to Council as an organisation.

Each Civic Cabinet Chair works alongside its relevant organisational divisions to "consider Council policy, provide advice to Council and delivers results for the people of Brisbane."^[18]

Organisational divisions

Within Brisbane City Council, there are six different organisational divisions representing the core tasks of the council. Each division had its own Divisional Manager, who is accountable to the Council of Brisbane, the Civil Cabinet, and the CEO. As of February 2023, the six divisions and their divisional managers are:

• City Administration and Governance – Tim Wright
• Organisational Services – Anne Lenz
• City Planning and Sustainability – David Chick
• Lifestyle and Community Services – Tash Tobias
• Transport for Brisbane – Samantha Abeydeera
• Brisbane Infrastructure – Scott Stewart

These divisions are organisational, meaning that they're not subject to the changes in the elected administration nor are elected themselves.^{[19] [20]}

Current composition

Party!Wards!Lord Mayor

		Liberal National	18	1
		Labor	5
		Greens	2
		Independent	1

Ward! colspan="2"

Party		Councillor
Lord Mayor			LNP	Adrian Schrinner
Bracken Ridge			LNP	Sandy Landers
Calamvale			Labor	Emily Kim
Central			LNP	Vicki Howard
Chandler			LNP	Ryan Murphy
Coorparoo			LNP	Fiona Cunningham
Deagon			Labor	Jared Cassidy
Doboy			LNP	Lisa Atwood
Enoggera			LNP	Andrew Wines
Forest Lake			Labor	Charles Strunk
Hamilton			LNP	Julia Dixon
Holland Park			LNP	Krista Adams
Jamboree			LNP	Sarah Hutton
MacGregor			LNP	Steven Huang
Marchant			LNP	Danita Parry
McDowall			LNP	Tracy Davis
Moorooka			Labor	Steve Griffiths
Morningside			Labor	Lucy Collier
Northgate			LNP	Adam Allan
Paddington			Greens	Seal Chong Wah
Pullenvale			LNP	Greg Adermann
Runcorn			LNP	Kim Marx
Tennyson			Independent	Nicole Johnston
The Gabba			Greens	Trina Massey
The Gap			LNP	Steve Toomey
Walter Taylor			LNP	Penny Wolff
Wynnum Manly			LNP	Alex Givney

History

See also: Town of Brisbane.

Pre-1900s

• 1823: John Oxley names the Brisbane River after Sir Thomas Brisbane, Governor of New South Wales from 1821 to 1825.^{[21] [22]}
• 1842–1880: Civilians start occupying Brisbane, making it the main site of commerce for the region.
• 3 October 1859: The first elections for the Mayor of Brisbane are held, following the declaration of Brisbane as a local government municipality named after the river on which it sits. John Petrie was unanimously elected out of 37 candidates.

1900s

• 1924: The Parliament of Queensland passes the City of Brisbane Act, creating a single city council for all the City of Brisbane, rather than the previous 20 various authorities and boards.
• 1 October 1925: The new City Council is begins operation, under its first Mayor of Brisbane, William Jolly.
• 8 April 1930: Governor of Queensland, John Goodwin officially opens the Brisbane City Hall.
• 1939: Brisbane is made the headquarters of Allies of World War II in the South Pacific for Australian and American service personnel. The original offices are now part of the MacArthur Chambers.
• 1982: Brisbane hosts the Commonwealth Games.
• 1988: Brisbane hosts Expo 88, giving birth to South Bank Parklands, the now central cultural area of Brisbane and home of the Brisbane City Council head office.

2000s

• 1 July 2010: The Legislative Assembly of Queensland passes the City of Brisbane Act 2010 as part of a state-wide review of local government legislation, formalising and consolidating state legislation about the City of Brisbane.
• 2010–2013: Brisbane City Hall reopens after significant restoration and renovation.
• November 2014: Brisbane hosts the G20 Leaders Summit.

See also

• List of mayors and lord mayors of Brisbane
• City of Brisbane

Notes and References

1. Web site: City of Brisbane Act 1924. Australasian Legal Information Institute. 22 May 2020.
2. Web site: 2018-2019 Annual Report. Brisbane City Council. live. 22 May 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20210109014922/https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/sites/default/files/20191002%20Tagged%20Annual%20Report%202018-19.pdf . 9 January 2021 .
3. Web site: 2017-2018 Annual Report. Brisbane City Council. live. 22 May 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20210126042412/https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/sites/default/files/20181019-annual-report-2017-18.pdf . 26 January 2021 .
4. News: Brisbane announces steep rates hike on Airbnb accommodation to tackle rental crisis . ABC News . 14 June 2022 .
5. Web site: Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner. 12 February 2020. Brisbane City Council. live. 22 May 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200213024641/https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/about-council/governance-and-strategy/lord-mayor-and-councillors/ward-office-locations/lord-mayor-adrian-schrinner . 13 February 2020 .
6. Web site: Know Your Civic Cabinet. April 2020. Brisbane City Council. live. 22 May 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200831025449/https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/2020-04/Know%20Your%20Civic%20Cabinet%20Apr%202020_V3.pdf . 31 August 2020 .
7. Web site: Organisational chart. 11 May 2020. Brisbane City Council. 22 May 2020.
8. Web site: City of Brisbane Act 2010. 30 March 2020. Queensland Legislation. live. 22 May 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200806075301/https://www.legislation.qld.gov.au/view/whole/html/inforce/current/act-2010-023 . 6 August 2020 .
9. Web site: Councillors and wards. 24 April 2020. Brisbane City Council. live. 22 May 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20190531094600/https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/about-council/governance-and-strategy/lord-mayor-and-councillors . 31 May 2019 .
10. Web site: Your City Your Say. 18 May 2020. Brisbane City Council. live. 28 May 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20190531094446/https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/about-council/contact/have-your-say . 31 May 2019 .
11. Web site: Brisbane's Future Blueprint. 3 March 2020. Brisbane City Council. live. 28 May 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200320160301/https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/planning-and-building/planning-guidelines-and-tools/brisbanes-future-blueprint . 20 March 2020 .
12. Web site: Brisbane Vision 2031. 27 November 2019. Brisbane City Council. live. 28 May 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200319005957/https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/about-council/governance-and-strategy/vision-and-strategy/brisbane-vision . 19 March 2020 .
13. Web site: Australian Mayors: What Can and Should They Do?. Sansom. Graham. September 2012. UTS: Centre for Local Government. live. 23 May 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20170418000019/https://www.uts.edu.au/sites/default/files/1349323703_Mayors_Discussion_Paper.pdf . 18 April 2017 .
14. Web site: Types of Council meetings . 2023-02-12 . www.brisbane.qld.gov.au . en.
15. Web site: Council committees . 2023-02-12 . www.brisbane.qld.gov.au . en.
16. Web site: Establishment and Coordination Committee (Civic Cabinet) . 2023-02-11 . www.brisbane.qld.gov.au . en.
17. Web site: August 2021 . Know Your Civic Cabinet . 11 February 2023 . Brisbane City Council .
18. Web site: Council committees. 24 April 2020. Brisbane City Council. live. 23 May 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200406004548/https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/about-council/governance-and-strategy/committees-meetings-and-minutes/council-committees . 6 April 2020 .
19. Web site: Organisational chart . 2023-02-11 . www.brisbane.qld.gov.au . en.
20. Web site: Executive Management Team . 2023-02-11 . www.brisbane.qld.gov.au . en.
21. Web site: History of Brisbane. Visit Brisbane. live. 31 May 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20150428023938/http://www.visitbrisbane.com.au/information/about-brisbane/history-of-brisbane?sc_lang=en-au . 28 April 2015 .
22. Web site: Council history. 14 May 2019. Brisbane City Council. live. 31 May 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20190531094628/https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/about-council/council-information-and-rates/council-history . 31 May 2019 .