‘Up until two seconds ago, I had not had contact’: In bizarre presser, council claims mayor had not resigned

A council whose mayor resigned on Wednesday morning has held a bizarre press conference, with the chief executive saying she did not know the mayor had officially stepped down, and the acting mayor had not read her allegations of bullying.

Jos Mitchell resigned from her role at Redlands City Council, on Brisbane’s bayside, alleging it was a toxic workplace that had a detrimental impact on her health.

Mitchell had been on sick leave since May, and in a statement said she had recently undergone surgery and was suffering from an autoimmune disease.

Deputy Mayor Julie Talty, who had been acting mayor while Mitchell was on leave, fronted media with Redlands chief executive Louise Rusan at 11.30am, insisting it was business as usual for the council.

“We understand there’s been some statements in the media by our mayor, Jos Mitchell, in regards to her intention to resign her position,” Talty said.

“At this stage, we’ve not had any formal confirmation of that, so we’ll continue to support the mayor until she does give us that confirmation.”

Talty said she had not read the comments made by Mitchell online, so she could not speak to them.

Rusan began her statement by saying it was “business as usual” at the council, but was pressed by journalists about screenshots of an email sent to her by Mitchell tendering her resignation at 5am.

She was pulled to the side by an adviser before returning to the microphones.

“I’ve just received advice that we’ve received a resignation, right this moment,” Rusan said.

“So up until two seconds ago, I had not had any contact with the mayor.”

Rusan insisted the council had a “wonderful” culture, but would not speak directly about the allegations by Mitchell of a smear campaign.

“I believe we have a very good culture here at Redland City Council,” she said.

In comments provided to this masthead, councillor Paul Golle said the councillors had not been told of the official resignation before the press conference, and said the ratepayers were the victims of the council’s shortcomings.

“This situation raises serious questions about the adequacy of the department of local government’s processes and safeguards when determining who is eligible to stand for elected office,” he said.

“It would be incredibly challenging for someone who is ill, as declared in the media, to come into such a high-profile role.”

Those comments have been provided to Mitchell for comment.

In her statement, Mitchell said she received some 70 councillor conduct complaints, which she had previously said she thought were used against her politically.

Golle disputed that, and said complaints were part and parcel of the public scrutiny she signed up for.

“Councillors will always face criticism and complaints from members of the public, and rightly so,” he said.

“Public accountability is a fundamental part of the role.”

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