Mayor Logan Howlett re-elected

The City of Cockburn's response to PerthNow Cockburn on 18 October 2021 about Mayor Logan Howlett's re-election at the 2021 Local Government election

Question: How does it feel to be re-elected?
Answer: Amazing, my wife Patricia and I look forward to continuing our engagement with the community and promoting the Cockburn values and traditions that have been the centrepiece of our progress as a local government.

Question: You won by a big margin ahead of some councillors and a new candidate. Were you expecting to win?
Answer: Yes, we were quietly confident although in the five weeks leading up to the count we were essentially ‘wiped out’ with a virus that we are still recovering from – so no door knocking or other active campaigning.

Question: What are some of the issues that you would like to continue and tackle during the next four years?
Answer: A united Council that respects individuals points of view and that embraces the opportunities ahead for our community, support & promotion of our small business sector and Industry including job creation and training opportunities, greater input from our various community, sporting & other groups in the future direction of the City, promoting the culture & history of our first nations people, making ‘space’ for our volunteers to prosper, and delivering on the City’s Strategic Community Plan, Long Term Financial Plan and other strategies adopted by Council.

Question: What are your short-term and long-term goals?
Answer: See above.

Question: In terms of briefing sessions, will you look to try to make them public again?
Answer: Yes, however that remains a decision of Council and the outcome of the governance review currently underway.

Question: What are some of the things you would like to improve in the City of Cockburn as well as the functions of the council?
Answer: Getting our messages out to a wider audience, improving the security and safety of our homes & businesses and ourselves, improving traffic flows across the district and addressing climate change.

Question: There will be one new councillor – Tarun Dewan – who will be sworn in. What’s your top tips for the councillor-elect?
Answer: Make decisions at Council based on the rules that govern local government, get the facts on agenda items, utilise the knowledge and experience of staff and fellow elected members, and avoid social media wherever possible.

Question: After this term finishes, you would have served 16 years as mayor. Will this the last time that you will considering running for the mayoral seat or do you plan on pushing on?
Answer: It will be 17 years in fact – I’ll wait until 2025, as it is too soon to know.

Question: How would you achieve an united council, given three councillors took you on (and lost) in the mayoral battle?
Answer: It is a case of everyone moving on – history shows that since the extraordinary election of March 2009 when I was first elected, nine current/former councillors (some multiple times) have challenged for the mayoral role.
We live in a democracy and everyone has the opportunity to nominate for the mayoral or councillor role.