Council revises its civic recognition policy

The City of Melbourne has revised its Civic Recognition policy following backlash from councillors over British popstar Robbie Williams being given a key to the city without consultation.

When Mr Williams performed at Federation Square in January this year, Lord Mayor Nick Reece presented the pop star with a key to the city.

However, it is understood that the decision was made in consultation only with CEO Alison Leighton and the Lord Mayor, sparking concern among councillors.

At the council meeting on June 30, councillors voted to revise the policy so that any decision to add someone to the City’s Roll of Honour or to award a key must be made following consultation between the CEO and councillors.

The council’s creative and arts portfolio lead, Cr Philip Le Liu, said the award should be reserved for people who genuinely deserved it, and that it should be a decision made by the council to ensure a “transparent” process.

Lord Mayor Reece supported the revised policy but stood by his decision to award Robbie Williams the key.

Cr Reece said presenting the award was a “truly magic” moment that opened his eyes to the potential of such awards to create “special moments” for the city.

However, he acknowledged the need to improve the process for granting awards.

“We want to ensure that when the house makes the decision to give someone an award, the community can know there’s been a robust process behind it,” he said.

While the revised motion was widely supported by councillors, Cr Gladys Liu sought to amend it to remove the LGBTIQA+ category from the Melbourne Awards.

The Melbourne Awards, first held in 2002, aim to recognise individuals who make the city an inclusive, creative and forward-thinking place, according to the council’s website.

To award anyone should be based on their contributions and the quality of the person. It should not be based on sexuality,” Cr Liu said. “We do not need to have a special category for another group of people.

The current award categories include Aboriginal Melbourne, Arts and Events, Knowledge and Innovation, City Design, Community, Sustainability, LGBTIQA+, and Access and Inclusion.

The City’s environment portfolio lead, Cr Davvyd Griffiths, said, “I’m just about speechless that we are having this conversation here tonight. I don’t think it reflects the people of Melbourne – I don’t think they would want to see this category removed.”

He said the amended motion had “unlocked culture wars” in Town Hall.

However, Cr Owen Guest – the only other councillor to support the alternate motion – said he was unsure about awards that focus on sexuality, ethnicity or race.

“I just wanted to highlight that this isn’t about a lack of respect for any part of the community. It’s about recognising that we don’t need to segregate groups – whether people are gay or anything else,” he said.

“They are the equals of us all, and to have an award that highlights them – in some ways, I think it’s condescending.” •