29 January 2021
As the decision on the Warwick Saleyards’ future inches closer, Southern Downs Regional Council voted at this week’s Ordinary Meeting to publically release the Warwick Saleyards Business Case and the remainder of the Warwick Saleyards Master Plan including financial statements as part of a future report to Council. This report is expected to be considered at the Ordinary Meeting on 24 February 2021.
In 2019/20, Council received a request to release the Master Plan document but considered that certain aspects of the document were ‘commercial in confidence’ including some financial details. However after a comprehensive consultation process with the office of the Information Commissioner, only the first 29 pages of the Master Plan were released to the community in September 2020.
Southern Downs Mayor Vic Pennisi said that Council had debated and considered its position during previous meetings, and decided this week that the release of these reports will be timely and beneficial to the decision-making process.
“Council’s role is not to influence public opinion but to facilitate open and transparent conversation to have the facts and information for informed decisions on the right projects for our region,” Mayor Pennisi said.
“The decision on the future of the iconic Warwick Saleyards – a pillar of one of our most important industries – will be one of the most important we make in our first year in this term.
“While the public release of these documents has been requested previously, Council considered that now was the appropriate time to share so that all other options could be included in the release to inform the decision-making process.”
As part of its decision at the meeting this week, the Livestock Selling Centre’s operations presentation will also be released as per the motion from the Saleyards Advisory Committee meeting on 10 December 2020.
This vote follows the closure of the Warwick Saleyards Survey on 31 December 2020, with Council now turning its attention to a series of consultative meetings with key stakeholders as part of the inclusive approach to determine the future of the facility.