As an elected official, putting the public interest first means doing your job in a fair and unbiased way. Your decisions should not be influenced by personal gain or connections.
This principle applies to everyone involved in delivering government services, whether paid or not. This includes all government employees, board members, councillors, university staff, contractors, consultants, and volunteers.
To put the public interest first, elected officials should:
- Perform their duties fully and effectively.
- Behave ethically and legally.
- Identify and declare any conflicts of interest and manage them properly.
The importance of managing conflicts of interest
A lot of complaints received by the Crime and Corruption Commission (CCC) and the Office of the Independent Assessor (OIA) involve conflicts of interest. As a local government official, you might face decisions involving conflicting priorities, so it's important to maintain community trust by acting in the public interest.
We all have personal interests — for example, our possessions or our professional, sporting, or social affiliations. As a councillor or mayor, some council matters might affect your personal interests and there may be times when your personal interest is different from the public interest. Your role is to consider the community's best interest and act accordingly. Managing these interests properly is essential to avoid misconduct or corruption.
Having an interest in a matter is not in itself wrong; it’s how you manage it that’s important.
Not managing a conflict of interest in the public interest may result in a conduct breach, misconduct, or corrupt conduct. To constitute corrupt conduct, your conduct must raise a reasonable suspicion that your actions involved a criminal offence.
Read more about managing conflicts here.
Find out more about the types of councillor conduct complaints here.
Important note This information has been prepared to broaden your understanding of misconduct and corruption. It is intended as a guide only and does not replace relevant legislation. |
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As a councillor, you're bound by local government laws and principles. These laws require you to:
- have transparent and effective processes and decision-making.
- ensure sustainable development and management of assets.
- promote democratic representation and community engagement.
- follow good governance principles.
- behave ethically and legally.
Your duty is to serve the community's best interests, not any particular group. You must comply with various acts and codes of conduct that dictate how to manage conflicts of interest, record personal information, and handle confidential information. These obligations apply only to your official duties, not personal activities.
Mayors and councillors must comply with the:
- Local Government Act 2009 (LGA)
- Local Government Regulation 2012
- Local Government Electoral Act 2011 (LGEA)
- Local Government Electoral Regulation 2023, and
- Code of Conduct for Councillors in Queensland (Code of Conduct).
Important note Only some parts of the LGA (e.g., Chapter 5A on “Councillor conduct”) apply to councillors from the Brisbane City Council (BCC). BCC councillors are also subject to the City of Brisbane Act 2010 (COBA) and the City of Brisbane Regulation 2012. |
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The Office of the Independent Assessor (OIA)
The Office of the Independent Assessor (OIA) was created to help improve how local government works in Queensland. It was established by changes to the Local Government Act (LGA) through the Local Government (Councillor Complaints) and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2018.
Functions of the Independent Assessor
The Independent Assessor (IA) leads the OIA and has several key roles:
- Assessing complaints: The IA looks into complaints about councillors, such as breaches of conduct, misconduct, or corrupt conduct.
- Referring cases: The IA can refer suspected conduct breaches back to councils to handle where appropriate.
- Investigating serious complaints: The IA can investigate misconduct complaints, particularly serious ones, or corruption where it’s been referred by the CCC.
- Ensuring fairness: The IA gives councillors a chance to respond to complaints before referral to the Councillor Conduct Tribunal (CCT), which makes decisions on misconduct.
- Preparing cases: The IA prepares documents and evidence for the CCT to review.
Important note The OIA only deals with complaints about a conduct breach or misconduct of a current councillor or mayor, whereas the CCC deals with complaints of corrupt conduct concerning current and former councillors and mayors, and council employees. |
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Learn more |
Crime and Corruption Commission, Queensland
The CCC is Queensland’s anti-corruption body. The Crime and Corruption Act 2001 defines corrupt conduct and sets out the functions of the CCC and its powers.
The CCC has authority to deal with corruption in:
- government departments and statutory bodies
- the Queensland Police Service (QPS)
- local governments
- hospital and health services
- universities and grammar schools
- prisons, courts, boards, and tribunals
- state and local government elected officials.
Functions of the Corruption Division
The CCC deals with corruption that affects the Queensland public sector by:
- Receiving and assessing complaints: The CCC assesses complaints to determine how serious they are, whether they warrant investigation and who is best placed to deal with them.
- Investigating serious and systemic corruption: The CCC has special powers to investigate corruption, including search, surveillance and seizure powers, and the power to conduct hearings that compel people to attend and give evidence and produce documents and other material.
- Monitoring: The CCC can monitor the way agencies deal with corruption complaints we refer to them to deal with, or work with them to carry out joint investigations
- Providing insights and guidance: The CCC provides insights into corruption risks and guidance on prevention strategies.
The CCC investigates the most serious or systemic corruption cases, with the majority of matters referred to the agency where the complaint came from as they are, in most cases, best placed to deal with the matter.
Most complaints about public sector corruption (excluding QPS) that the CCC deals with include:
- fraud and theft
- bribery
- unauthorised access to confidential information, and
- favouritism.
Learn more Find out more about how to report corrupt conduct to the CCC, and how the CCC assesses complaints. |
The Queensland Ombudsman (QO)
Under the Ombudsman Act 2001, the QO investigates decisions and actions made by local councils, including councillors and council committees, as well as state government departments and agencies, like state schools, TAFEs, and public universities.
What the QO does
The QO can make recommendations to change, address, or improve unfair decisions, actions, and services in accordance with the QO legislation by:
- Investigating unfair decisions and actions: The QO looks into actions that are against the law, unreasonable, unjust, oppressive, discriminatory, or just wrong.
- Handling failures to act: If a council or department fails to make a decision or take action, the QO can investigate.
- Checking for mistakes: The QO investigates decisions based on legal or factual mistakes, improper purposes, irrelevant grounds, or improper considerations.
What role does the QO play in local government?
The QO helps improve decision-making and administrative practices in local government. Councillors and mayors should know about the QO’s role because it can recommend changes to unfair decisions and actions. The QO offers a free and confidential service to the people of Queensland.
Most complaints to the QO about councils involve:
- enforcement of local laws
- rates and charges
- environmental management
- planning approvals or refusals.
Important note The QO is an independent agency that works to improve fairness and accountability in public administration. It also oversees the management of public interest disclosures under the Public Interest Disclosure Act 2010. For more information about what the QO can investigate, visit their website. |
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Overview of integrity agency functionsThe diagram provides a high-level summary of the OIA, CCC and QO’s oversight of local government. 
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