Today City of Melbourne Councillors accepted the resignation of Chief Executive Officer, Justin Hanney, and thanked him for his four years of dedicated leadership of the City of Melbourne, through the COVID-19 pandemic and into Melbourne's economic recovery phase.
Mr Hanney informed the Council today that he will leave the organisation in late December, allowing for an orderly transition of leadership.
The Council's CEO Employment Matters Committee has been conducting a thorough review of the donation Mr Hanney received through the Australian Sports Foundation. The Committee has not identified any decisions that have been influenced by the donation. The Committee has also recommended a need for greater clarity and improvements to Council's personal interest declaration process. Mr Hanney should have declared the donation, something he acknowledged at the time it was brought to his attention and has since rectified.
Mr Hanney became CEO of City of Melbourne in 2019, and under his stewardship, the City has implemented an ambitious reform and revitalisation plan which is seeing Melbourne recover strongly after being the most locked down city in the world.
Over the past four years, Mr Hanney's achievements have included the establishment of Invest Melbourne, positioning the city to become the first choice for businesses, and Homes Melbourne, which is opening up more access to affordable housing for key workers and new services for rough sleepers. Mr Hanney has also led a new neighbourhood planning process which brings communities closer to council investment and decision making and a Council-wide commitment to the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals.
Mr Hanney thanked the hard-working staff of the Council, and wished the organisation well in its future plans. Mr Hanney said that serving the ratepayers of Melbourne during the last four years has been an absolute privilege.
Quotes attributable to Lord Mayor Sally Capp
"I thank Justin Hanney for his service to the city. Justin is a dedicated champion of the municipality and has worked tirelessly to improve the lives of its residents and business owners."
"Justin has transformed the culture at the City of Melbourne, strengthening its focus on performance and achievement, and this will be one of his legacies."
"Melbourne is a marvellous city which is bouncing back following some of its toughest times and Justin's outstanding leadership has contributed to this."
Quotes attributable to Chief Executive Officer Justin Hanney
"I would like to thank the Lord Mayor and Councillors for the opportunity to lead this great organisation. The staff of the City of Melbourne work incredibly hard every day for our residents, businesses, partners and visitors."
"There are many things that I am proud of but in particular I acknowledge our collective response to the pandemic and giving Melburnians confidence through one of the greatest challenges we will see in our lifetime."
"Whilst the CEO Employment Matters Committee report is yet to be finalised, there is no suggestion of inappropriate decision making. As I have previously acknowledged, I should have nominated the Australian Sports Foundation donation as part of my personal interest declaration process and this was an oversight."
